Student Academy Award winner and Shadow And Act RISING Award winner Kelley Kali has had her short film, Lalo’s House accepted by Cannes for their 2019 Diversity in Cannes Showcase.

Kali announced news about the honor on Instagram, writing that the showcase is sponsored in part by JuVee Productions, Viola Davis and Julius Tennon’s production company.

“There were hundreds of submissions and they only chose 14 films to showcase,” she wrote online.

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Lalo’s House has been accepted into the Diversity in Cannes Showcase which is Sponsored by Viola Davis @violadavis and Julius Tennon’s JuVee Productions @juveeproductions and many others!!! There were hundreds of submissions and they chose only 14 films to showcase! Along with @laloshousefilm my good friends are selected too! @praheme @tayo.shoes and @xlnbstories !!! My Howard University and USC Family United at Cannes!!! Thank You to @diversencannes @garcelle @lisarraine @realhollywoodjones @realhowardgreen @jimmyjeanlouis @paulbeaubrun @howardalumni @howard1867 @usccinema @uscscanetwork #diversityincannes #decadeofdiversity

A post shared by Kelley Kalí (@iamkelleykali) on Apr 18, 2019 at 5:13pm PDT

Lalo’s House takes on the heavy topic of sex trafficking. Set in Haiti, the short film follows 14-year-old Manouchka (Jasmin Jean-Louis) and her five-year-old sister Phara (Kyra Rose) who are kidnapped and forced into a prostitution network that fronts as a Catholic boarding school. Manouchka develops a plan to escape with her sister and find their way back home.

Kali told S&A’s Aramide A. Tinubu that her film was based on real events. “I was in Haiti before the earthquake in 2010. I was studying children’s rights and living conditions with my anthropology background. Then the earthquake happened and I went back to help,” she said. “While I was there, I caught wind of this ‘Catholic’ orphanage, where the nun was allegedly allowing foreign men to come in and [sexually assault] the children. As I started to investigate that over the years, I found that she was more like a mafia queen. People in the village that I interviewed were absolutely petrified of her. They said that she’s killed people who’ve interfered with her business before.”

The film also stars Garcelle Beauvais, who also backed the film through her and her producing partner Lisa L. Wilson’s company Beauvais Wilson Productions. Beauvais also introduced the project to Jamie Foxx, who contributed $25,000 to the project.

READ MORE:

Student Oscar Winner Kelley Kali On Her Enthralling Film ‘Lalo’s House’

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The Inaugural Shadow And Act RISING Awards Honored Black Hollywood’s Emerging Stars

Kelley Kali and Jasmin Jean-Louis | Photo Credit: Courtesy of Kelley Kali