Assa Aïcha Sylla (born 3 June 1996) is a French actress and writer. She debuted in the film Girlhood (2014), which earned her César and Black Reel Award nominations. She has since starred in the French version of Skam (2018–2020), the Netflix series Mortel (2019), and the film The Last Mercenary (2021).
Early life Sylla was born in the 15th arrondissement of Paris south of the river to Soninke parents from Mauritania, her father a cleaner and her mother a stay-at-home mother, and grew up in the Barbès area of the 18th arrondissement north of the river. She has three sisters and two brothers. She is Muslim.
Sylla attended Lycée Edgar Quinet Filières Professionnelles. She was scouted at 17 by the Girlhood casting directors when she accompanied her friends to the auditions. Then, she played the role of the Franco-Malian boxer Aya Cissoko in Danbé, la tête haute - portraying the boxer's teenage years. For this role, she took intensive boxing lessons whilst continuing to study for her baccalauréat professionnel.
Bibliography "Raising Hope" in My Profession is Not Black by Aïssa Maïga (2018)
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 2014 Girlhood () Lady / Sophie 2016 Verdon Secret Clara 2016 Na tout pour elle Aminata Short film 2017 Accidental Family Young Woman 2017 Lola Pater Caroline 2017 Chateau Starting Woman 2018 Blue Queen Nina Short film 2019 Plus jamais je ne t'aimerai Assa Short film 2019 Numéro 10 Awa Short film 2021 The Last Mercenary Dalila2022Umami2024 Le Roi des ombres
Television Year Title Role Notes 2014 Danbé, Head Held High () 16-year-old Aya Cissoko Television film 2014 Spiral Vanessa 1 episode 2014 Falco Jennifer Episode: "À l'état brut" 2018–2020 Skam France Imane Bakhellal Main role (seasons 1–5)Recurring role (season 6) 2019 Mortel Nora Cissoko Main role 2021 Regard noir Herself Documentary2024NonkelsSafa NgogoSeason 2
Web Year Title Role Notes 2019 Golden Moustache Episode: "Le Nouveau Don Juan"
Awards and nominations Year Award Category Work Result Ref 2015 César Awards Most Promising Actress Girlhood 2016 Black Reel Awards Outstanding Breakthrough Performance – Female
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