Christopher Clark

Journalist, Filmmaker and Author

Originally hailing from a sleepy village in rural Devon, United Kingdom, I moved to Cape Town, South Africa in 2011 with a view to forging a career as a freelance journalist covering the African continent.

I initially established myself as a travel writer, roaming around southern Africa as well as Kenya and Tanzania, writing feature articles and working on guidebooks for the likes of CNN Travel, Fodor's Travel, Lonely Planet and Rough Guides.

Since 2015, I've shifted my focus towards short- and long-form reporting on marginalised people, places and social issues across southern and central Africa.

I've reported from 16 different African countries for publications such as Al Jazeera, The Atlantic, Forbes Africa, Foreign Policy, The Guardian, Guernica, Hakai, Harper’s, Huck, Mongabay, Monocle, NPR, PRI, Reuters, Roads & Kingdoms, VICE, and The Washington Post.

In 2017, I reported from the Democratic Republic of Congo on a fellowship from the International Reporting Project.

Since 2018, I have co-directed two 25-minute documentaries for Al Jazeera’s ‘Witness’ series: ‘South Africa’s Reluctant Vigilante’ and “South Africa’s Deadly Politics’. My solo directorial debut, ‘The Race’, was released in early 2019 as part of a BBC Africa series on African masculinity. I’ve also produced and co-directed short films for Mongabay, TRAFFIC and the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.

My first book, Clare: The Killing of a Gentle Activist, a “compelling” and “deeply moving” work of narrative non-fiction, was published by Tafelberg in May 2022.

I occasionally moonlight as a communications consultant for the World Health Organization, a journalism lecturer and a writing coach.