Soleil means sun in Creole, and we take our mission to heart – to shine light on the Global South diasporas, the diverse cultures and parts of the world that are yet to be fully seen, celebrated and understood in the mainstream media – the global diasporas of Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean and the Middle East. This is our intention for everything we do. From our film and TV productions, our Soleil Spotlight podcast, our Soleil Space newsletter, and our Short Film Saturdays event showcase. Our goal is to elevate untold stories and provide opportunities for creators and audiences from these communities to produce and consume world-class content. This is a space for cultural discovery, for community, and for enlightenment.
For me, I feel like my entire life has inspired Soleil. I grew up in Trinidad & Tobago, a rich tapestry of religion and culture where we all celebrate our many indigenous cultures, interwoven into our identities as Trinidadians. It’s something I really took for granted until I moved to the U.S., and then to Europe. What is sadly common though, is that most of the content I grew up on was from North America, Europe and Australia – stories that were mostly white. We didn’t see ourselves shown in an elevated way. Hence, Soleil is the culmination of a life-long argument – that the whole world is important. This applies nowhere better than in film and television, which have been long-dominated by only a few perspectives. Our audiences aren’t niche, they’re global majorities. So – we’re not interested in a seat at the table, we’re building and setting our own, and we want you to join us!
Micha is a media entrepreneur with a vision to unite and empower the world’s diverse diasporas through the connective and enlightening power of media. Micha established a 15-year multinational marketing career leading international growth of iconic global brands like NIKE, Jordan, PepsiCo, Diageo and Moët-Hennessy. In 2017 she founded Soleil Entertainment; a transcultural media company specializing in film and television production elevating stories and creators of the Global South diasporas of Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, and the Middle East. Prior to this, Micha served as Head of Marketing and Strategic Partnerships for award-winning film production company CreativeChaos VMG, where she led marketing, social impact, and corporate partnerships for the critically acclaimed feature documentaries This Changes Everything (Netflix) and Bleed Out (HBO). Through her experience as an independent producer navigating the gatekeepers of Hollywood, Micha realized that the problems of inequity and underrepresentation of people of color around the world cannot be solved through production alone. This led her to create Soleil Space Inc., a NY-based tech-media company and home of the Soleil Spotlight podcast, Soleil Space community platform & the recently launched Short Film Saturday virtual event series. A proud daughter of Trinidad & Tobago and alumna of Howard University & The London School of Economics, Micha was recently named to the 2021 Forbes Next1000, an esteemed list of “upstart entrepreneurs redefining the American dream.”
My guest is Micha Cooper Edwards. She is the founder and CEO of Soleil Space and Soleil Entertainment. At her core, Micha is a visionary media entrepreneur—her expertise span over 15 years in media and across many markets. Micha has led international campaigns for iconic brands like NIKE & Jordan.
We're joined by Micha Cooper-Edwards of Soleil Space, Inc. to talk about production, creation, and distribution challenges for content from the Global South. The films she talks about are: Rocks directed by Sarah Gavron (UK), Small Axe (series), available on Amazon Prime, Atlantic directed by Jan-Wi
Our fearless Founder and CEO Micha Cooper-Edwards was named to the current class of Forbes Next 1000 making waves in their industries and “redefining the American Dream.” We agree!
Authentic stories give brands a chance to align themselves with audiences and value systems without simply attempting to capitalize on important societal moments. But it shouldn't stop there. We believe companies can leverage branded content beyond traditional marketing objectives to communicate
Her leadership and strategic vision led her to other roles at Nike, but her home country of Trinidad and Tobago would call her back and set her on a path of elevating other voices from the Global South diasporas and providing them a platform to tell their story.
“After years of rising among the corporate ranks, the London School of Economics graduate decided to build her own powerhouse company. With an army of well qualified and experienced professionals by her side, Micha has created Soleil.
In honor of Women’s History Month, GBH celebrated women in the film industry with our experts Maria Giese, writer, director and producer and Micha Cooper-Edwards, film and television producer. Whether you are a first-time screenwriter or well-known producer, listen to Maria and Micha.