Jean-Michel Tchissoukou was born 1942 in Pointe-Noire. He studied filmmaking in Paris at the Institut national de l'audiovisuel and at Ocora.[1] On his return to the Congo, he spent a decade working for the national television channel. His first film, Illusions (1970) was a medium-length feature about a peasant who comes to live in the city with his parents.[2] Tchissoukou was also assistant to Sarah Maldoror on Sambizanga (1972).[1]