[4] Kouyaté began his theatre career in 1966, when he appeared as adviser to the king in a historical play produced by his friend Boubacar Dicko.
l'Héritage du griot, the character being imagined as an old dying man by his son, though portrayed as more forceful than that.
[6] Sotigui Kouyate: A Modern Griot Director: Mahamat-Saleh Haroun From: Chad/France Year: 1996 Minutes:58 Language: French with English subtitles Genre: Documentary When casting The Mahabharata, Peter Brook's assistant scoured through film studios in search of an actor to take on one of the lead roles, Bhishma the sage.
Born in 1936 in Bamako (Mali), Kouyaté belongs to an illustrious family of griots–masters of words who are at once genealogists, historians, masters of ceremonies, advisers, mediators, singers and musicians.
Filling each of his roles with profound dignity, he has appeared in some 60 films, including Sia The Dream of the Python directed by his son Dany Kouyate and Names Live Nowhere in which he follows African immigrants in Belgium and tells their story only as a griot could.
From Africa to Europe, the film unveils the multiple facets of Sotigui Kouyate, actor, musician and modern griot.
"Despite years away from home and a career spanning many cultures, Malian actor and griot Sotigui Kouyaté has not strayed from his foremost mission: to break ignorance of Africa's living traditions and spark encounters across continents" - Cynthia Guttman, UNESCO Courier.