Raoul Peck was born in 1953 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. His father took a job in what was then-colonial Belgian Congo, and the family lived for some years in Kinshasa. He studied in France, the US and at the German Film and Television Academy in Berlin. He is also a trained industrial engineer, journalist, and photographer and has served as Minister of Culture in Haiti. His biography is reflected in his films, documentaries, and short films, with settings in the Congo, Rwanda, Haiti, and Europe.