The documentary film Joseph Zobel, l’enfant de la rue Cases-Nègres (53 minutes, France, 2025), written and directed by Inès Sabatier, Inès Blasco, and Fabrice Gardel, was aired on France 3 on May 12, 2025.
As Antilla-Martinique reports, “Inès Sabatier, brings blood to life in this film in the form of a tribute and, with her co-directors, Inès Blasco and Fabrice Gardel, creates an intimate and luminous documentary. Following in the footsteps of her great-grandfather, Joseph Zobel—author, major figure in Caribbean literature, and artist—the director shares his story through her own childhood memories, her quest to pass on her knowledge, and her perspective as a great-granddaughter who became a filmmaker. She brings to life a man whose work, artistic legacy, and determination to realize his dreams should inspire us and inspire future generations.”
Many thanks to Zobel’s granddaughter, Emily Zobel Marshall, for providing the following translation of the article “Joseph Zobel, l’enfant de la rue Cases-Nègres” (France TV Pro).
A look back at the life of Martinican writer and artist Joseph Zobel, internationally known for his autobiographical novel La Rue Cases-Nègres, which was adapted for the screen by Euzhan Palcy in 1983. Born into poverty among sugarcane fields and racial violence, Zobel managed to rise above his circumstances thanks to his grandmother. Holding on to his dreams, he eventually left for mainland France, where he became a fully-fledged artist and crossed paths with major figures of the Négritude movement, including Aimé Césaire and Léopold Sédar Senghor. Poet, sculptor, painter, and master of Japanese floral art, Zobel never limited himself. With relentless determination and despite setbacks, he became a respected figure in French-language literature.
Through private footage, from Martinique to the Cévennes via Paris, those close to him share the journey of a man driven by his passion for the arts until the very end. Joseph Zobel was born in Petit-Bourg, in the agricultural south of Martinique. He came from a modest background in a society still dominated by the white descendants of colonists. Orphaned by his father, he was raised by his maternal grandmother, M’man Tine, an elderly farm worker living in a “Cases-Nègres” street—former slave quarters made of wood and tin. Zobel grew up in extreme poverty, surrounded by hardship, hunger, and hard labor. For M’man Tine, education was everything. He became the first child on the plantation to attend school in Petit-Bourg. A brilliant student, he learned to read and write and was set on a path toward higher education. At the prestigious Lycée Schoelcher, he was struck by social inequalities: while some students lived in comfort, others, like the kids he grew up with, were starving.
The carefree boy became an angry teenager. With his diploma in hand and a passion for the visual arts, Zobel dreamed of studying at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. But World War II disrupted his plans. Stuck in Martinique, he began writing short stories about everyday life for the island’s press and caught public attention. A fan of the Tropiques journal, led by Aimé Césaire, Zobel was part of a generation asserting its identity. A strong friendship formed between the two men. Césaire, a mentor figure, encouraged him to write his first novel, Diab’-là, published in 1942. Bold and hopeful, the story was immediately targeted by the Vichy regime. It was banned and wouldn’t see full publication until 1947.
During the Occupation, Zobel met his wife, and they had three children. Yet despite starting a family, he wasn’t content. His artistic dreams led him to leave Martinique for Paris a year after the Liberation. The pain of exile and the scars of war made things difficult at first. But in the bustling, multicultural capital, he thrived, fueled by ambition and curiosity. There, he met key thinkers like the Nardal sisters, René Maran, and Léopold Sédar Senghor. A year later, his family joined him. Now a teacher, Zobel devoted himself to the arts—writing, drawing, and photography.
In the late 1940s, stirred by memories of Martinique—part nostalgia, part anger—he published La Rue Cases-Nègres, a moving account of his youth. Acclaimed by literary circles, it earned the Académie française’s Lange Prize in 1954. Thirty years later, it would reach a new audience through Euzhan Palcy’s film adaptation. In 1957, Zobel was invited to Senegal, where he taught and later became a radio producer. He stayed for over fifteen years.
When he returned to France, he settled in the Cévennes and continued writing while diving into sculpture, pottery, ikebana, yoga, and shiatsu. His thirst for learning never faded. Until his death, Zobel refused to limit himself. In 1998, the boy from the “Cases-Nègres” was awarded the title of Chevalier of the Legion of Honor, France’s highest distinction. Nearly twenty years after his death, Zobel’s legacy still travels the world. Exhibitions, tributes, graphic novels, public events—his impact endures, securing his place as a pioneering voice in Caribbean literature.
Translated by Emily Zobel Marshall. For the original article, in French, see https://www.francetvpro.fr/contenu-de-presse/72112086
Also see https://antilla-martinique.com/joseph-zobel-lenfant-de-la-rue-cases-negres/ and https://la1ere.franceinfo.fr/il-nous-a-ouvert-le-chemin-comment-joseph-zobel-parti-de-rien-s-est-impose-comme-une-figure-significative-de-la-litterature-antillaise-1585742.html
The documentary film Joseph Zobel, l’enfant de la rue Cases-Nègres (53 minutes, France, 2025), written and directed by Inès Sabatier, Inès Blasco, and Fabrice Gardel, was aired on France 3 on May 12, 2025. As Antilla-Martinique reports, “Inès Sabatier, brings blood to life in this film in the form of a tribute and, with her
