—  About

Gobez Media is an Ethiopian-Canadian production company dedicated to powerful storytelling from Africa and its diaspora. We develop and produce documentary and fiction films, television, and digital content that bring African perspectives to audiences around the world.

Our recent projects include the award-winning documentary Finding Sally, the Emmy-nominated documentary Made in Ethiopia, and the award-winning short film Alazar. Gobez productions have screened at leading international festivals including Cannes, TIFF, Tribeca, Hot Docs, Sheffield DocFest, Red Sea International Film Festival, FESPACO, Tallinn Black Nights, and the Göteborg Film Festival. Our work has been commissioned, broadcast, and distributed by partners including CBC, MTV, NHK, PBS, VPRO, DR2, ARTE, and other leading international broadcasters and platforms.

Working across Africa and internationally, we create stories that are both locally rooted and globally resonant. Our films center voices that are too often unheard and are shaped by the perspectives of those closest to the stories we tell. Through an inclusive and care-based approach to production, we foster meaningful collaboration on screen and behind the camera. At the heart of Gobez is a commitment to creative excellence and expanding the visibility of African and diaspora stories on the world stage.

— Tamara Dawit, Senior Producer

Tamara Mariam Dawit is a Canadian filmmaker of Ethiopian, Eritrean, Ukrainian, and Scottish descent whose work explores the intersections of history, memory, identity, and social change.

Working between East Africa and Canada, she is committed to amplifying African stories and supporting the growth of film and media ecosystems across the continent and its diaspora.

As a director, her work focuses on diaspora stories, human rights, and the ways personal lives intersect with larger political histories. Her films include the award-winning documentaries Finding Sally and Grandma Knows Best.

As a producer, Tamara develops and produces a slate of documentary, television, and feature film projects across East Africa.

Alongside her filmmaking practice, Tamara works in training, mentorship, and creative sector development. Prior to founding Gobez Media, she spent a decade as Executive Director of 411 Initiative for Change, where she developed arts and media projects with partners including Amnesty International, Keep a Child Alive, and Kids Help Phone. She has advised cultural institutions, funders, and industry organizations on film policy, financing, inclusion, and industry growth, including work with the Canada Media Fund, Afreximbank, DW Akademie, and EUNIC. She teaches and mentors producers through international professional development programs, including EAVE and the East African Screen Collective.

Tamara is a founding board member of the Racial Equity Media Collective (REMC). An alumna of Berlinale Talents, Durban Talents, EAVE, and APostLab, she has received fellowships and honours from organizations including MacDowell, TIFF, the Logan Nonfiction Program, and the Chalmers Arts Fellowship.

— Abigail Megbar, Producer's Assistant

Abigail Megbar Debebe is an Ethiopian filmmaker and curator. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies from California State University, Chico, and returned to Ethiopia to pursue a career as a writer-director. Her work explores questions of memory, identity, belonging, and the ways individuals navigate cultural and historical inheritance. She is committed to showcasing less-explored aspects of Africa through film and is particularly interested in existential themes, especially as they relate to young people.

Alongside her filmmaking practice, Abigail has developed an interest in curatorial work, particularly through moving image and contemporary art. Through both film and curation, she seeks to create nuanced spaces for engaging with Ethiopian and African histories, identities, and contemporary realities.

As an assistant at Gobez Media, Abigail supports organizational operations, project coordination, and executive administration, helping to facilitate the company's productions.

— Gobez

The Amharic word gobez describes someone who is capable, resourceful, resilient, and courageous. It is a quality earned through perseverance, skill, and determination.
These values are at the heart of Gobez Media and the stories we tell.

— Press Coverage

Production Underway in Ethiopia - Screen Daily

Whose Progress? - Africa is a Country

Absorbing Study of Chinese Investment in Africa - Financial Times

Made in Ethiopia Review - The Guardian

Finding Sally: Political cinema from Ethiopia - Deutsche Welle

CBC and Hot Docs’ Finding Sally digs deep into Ethiopia’s diplomatic past for a whopper of a family secret -GlobeandMail

New doc Finding Sally uncovers how a Canadian university grad became a Marxist fugitive in Ethiopia - CBC

Exclusive clip: Tamara Mariam Dawit talks Hot Docs film “Finding Sally” - Realscreen

Government support has Ethiopian biz ready to boom - Variety

Guest host Piya Chattopadhyay spoke with Tamara Dawit. She is co-founder of the 411 Initiative for Change, a community group that uses arts programming to empower young women in schools. - CBC Radio, Metro Morning

Tour tells kids about HIV risk - Kamloops Daily News

Encountering the oil-dependant, post civil-war South Sudan is not something many young Torontonians get to put on their resumes. Matt Galloway spoke with Tamara Dawit, who just returned from working in the world's newest country to get her impressions of life there.   - CBC Radio, Metro Morning

411, not 911  - Torontoist 

Charleswood School students show their girl power - Winnipeg Free Press

411 TV Aims to Empower 7,000 Female Students - Samaritan 

Hip-hop helps young offenders - Macleans Magazine