Sunu Gonera is the director of the fact-based inspirational saga “Pride” starring Ron Howard and Bernie Mac. Hailing from the townships of Zimbabwe during the time of the Civil War, Sunu Gonera has managed in a very short space of time to carve out a career, which sounds less like a real life and more like a movie.
A scholarship at a private school in Zimbabwe and excellent sporting prowess opened doors to international travel and ultimately another scholarship to the University of Cape Town, where he completed a degree in Organizational Psychology.
Successful sporting achievements and a lucrative banking career were quickly overtaken by his long-term dream of acting and making movies. Sunu quickly worked his way up in the film industry, and within three short years garnered several prestigious directing awards, that were the result not just of his refreshing talent, but also of his courage, diligence and persistence.
Dubbed in the world of commercials as one of the finest directing talents, he continues to produce a body of work with a unique voice that has inspired such prestigious clients as Nike, VW, Coca Cola and U.S Tennis Association to mention a few. His short film RIDING WITH SUGAR, based on his own full-length, feature script, screened at Cannes in 2006. In June of the same year, he beat out several more seasoned Hollywood directors and landed his first full-length feature directing assignment with Lionsgate.
Five months later, Sunu sold his home in South Africa, and moved his wife and kids to Hollywood to make his feature directorial debut on PRIDE. Taking a look back at Sunus life, one can imagine the honesty and insight that he is able to bring to a story about an underdog black swim team who through determination, passion and burning ambition came to realize their dreams.
The future looks bright for this talented filmmaker. In development is “Church Boy,” with Lionsgate. Pic will chart Franklin's journey from troubled teenager to regular churchgoer and top selling artist who changed the face of contemporary gospel by introducing elements of R&B, hip-hop, rock and pop.
In addition Sunu is will be writing and directing “Bloodline” for Morgan Freeman and Lori McCrearys Revelations Entertainment. “Bloodline” is a complex crime drama about family members on opposite sides of the law torn apart by their conflicting loyalties to their causes.
Sunu is married to Rene, a stylist and interior designer. They have two children.
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