Chris Chinwe Ulasi

Dr. Chris Chinwe Ulasi has been a professional communicator, scholar and researcher for over fifteen years. A screenwriter, producer, and poet, he was from 1993-1996 journal editor and book editor of the Journal of Nigerian Affairs (formerly CONPO REVIEW). He is the Executive Editor of USAfrica, a community newspaper, and The Black Business Journal both based in Houston. He has published scholarly articles, poems (DrumVoices Review, Summer-Fall 2000), book chapters, and presented papers at numerous conferences. He has been a consultant on International Communication and Development for the International Education Foundation in Austin, Texas. Since 1988, he has taught courses in Media, Culture & Society, International Communication, Screenwriting, Film Theory, Aesthetics, and Media Criticism at Texas Southern University's School of Communications. A TSU graduate himself, Ulasi holds a B.Sc. in Mass Communications, MA in Telecommunication Policy and Administration, and Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in International Communications. Chris is a member of several professional organizations, including African Studies Association and the International Communication Association, and is very active in local and nationally based social and cultural organizations. A film producer and director, Chris has to date produced four feature length films: Material Witness (Songhai Filmworks, 1994) and The Kangaroo (Songhai Filmworks, 1995), The Stalk Exchange 419 (Songhai Filmworks, 1997, and the fourth film as a producer, Return of the Exile, which he co-wrote with Don Okolo is currently in distribution. Chris co-directed the feature film Blood n Destiny with Don Okolo in 2009. Another project by Ulasi, a documentary film examining the lives of the Nigerian emigrant community in Houston, is currently in pre-production. His new book of poetry Demigods of the Rainy Season is forthcoming in Summer 2010. He lives in Houston, Texas USA.