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ABOUT

​Kiersten Dunbar Chace is an award-winning independent filmmaker with Mondé World Films & Press, author, and human rights advocate whose work explores the intersection of story, memory, and cultural truth.
 

For 27 years, Chace created work that centered the voices of communities often overlooked, offering space for individuals to share their lived experience without distortion, comparison, or imposed narrative. Her approach is grounded in a deep respect for cultural identity, lived truth, and the quiet power of listening.

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Across film and literature, her work reflects a singular belief: that storytelling, when held with care, has the ability to reveal not only who we are, but how deeply we are connected.

 

FILM & DOCUMENTARY WORK

Chace’s documentary work has focused extensively on South Africa, exploring identity, resilience, and human rights, particularly within the Mixed Race, Coloured and Khoe communities.

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Her debut feature documentary, I’m Not Black, I’m Coloured: Identity at the Cape of Good Hope (2009), examines the enduring legacy of apartheid through the lens of mixed-race identity. The film received the Audience Choice Award at the Africa World Documentary Film Festival in Bermuda, screened internationally, and has been shown at more than 70 universities worldwide. It was also selected for presentation at the academic conference Migrating the Black Body: Visual Arts and the African Diaspora in Hanover, Germany.

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Her second feature, Word of Honour: Reclaiming Mandela’s Promise, explores the complexities of South Africa’s young democracy and the ongoing challenges facing Coloured communities. It has screened at the United Nations in Geneva and at international festivals in Barcelona, New York, Paris, Vancouver, and Los Angeles.

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Additional work includes Solveig: The Life and Artwork of Solveig Arneng Johnson (2011), one of the first documentary films about a Sámi American immigrant artist; Munguía (2022), produced for the Arizona Archaeology Site Steward Conference; and collaborations such as Conspiracy to Be Free: The Russell Means Story (2013). 

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The short film Tami Tushie’s Toys (2013), co-produced with Melody Gilbert, won the Audience Choice Award at the International Documentary Challenge (Hot Docs, Toronto) and aired on the Documentary Channel.

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Across her film work, Chace is known for creating environments where subjects can speak freely and authentically, allowing stories to emerge without outside imposition.

 

FILM ETHOS

Chace’s work is rooted in creating safe spaces for marginalized communities to share their stories without outside imposition, judgment, or distortion. Her guiding commitments are:

• To allow people to tell their own stories without an American narrative or comparison.

• To emphasize that freedom must be defined by those who have been historically or currently marginalized.

• To highlight both the suffering and the transcendent humanity that connect us across cultures.
   

LITERARY WORK

Chace’s writing extends her commitment to storytelling into a more interior and lyrical form, exploring memory, land, and the unseen forces that shape human experience.

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Her debut novel, She Who Holds the Wind (2025), is a work of literary fiction rooted in spiritual realism. Told through cinematic fragments, journal entries, and poetic prose, the novel reflects her evolution from visual storyteller to author. It explores themes of feminine reckoning, ancestral memory, and the quiet power of presence.

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Her earlier work, At the Table When: South Africa (2024), presents a curated collection of reflections drawn from decades of interviews within Coloured communities, offering an intimate lens into identity, belonging, and voice.

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Across her literary work, Chace explores what cannot always be captured on film, the internal landscapes of experience, the weight of silence, and the ways story continues to live beyond what is spoken.

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Literary Recognition

American Writing Awards – Finalist (2025)
Official Selection – Tucson Festival of Books, Indie Author’s Pavilion (2026)

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ADVOCACY & HUMAN RIGHTS

Beyond her creative work, Chace has been engaged in international human rights advocacy.

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She served as a stakeholder in the United Nations Universal Periodic Review (2017) in Geneva, contributing to the presentation of human rights concerns alongside South African advocates. She also participated as an observer during the submission of a Shadow Report to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), addressing violations related to South Africa’s Coloured communities.

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Her films have been used as educational resources within United Nations settings and academic institutions worldwide, helping to inform and expand global understanding of identity and systemic inequality.

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She also volunteers with the Arizona Site Steward Program, supporting the protection and preservation of cultural heritage sites.​

 

ASSOCIATIONS

·       Former Arizona Site Steward Program Foundation

·       Former Critical Mixed Race Studies Global Caucus

·       Former Hanson Film Institute Producer’s Club, University of Arizona

·       Former Member – FilmNorth