5 African Films to Watch Out For, N°19

“Vers la forêt de nuages” (“To the cloud forest”) is a film by Robin Hunzinger, who tells a story about his Ivorian wife Aya and their son Tim (in the image above), travelling in Côte d’Ivoire to pay tribute to Aya’s father who recently passed way. The film intends to offer a portrait of and an “initiation” to the country. Follow the production of the project on its Facebook page. Here’s a first trailer:

The director of “Pars et Reviens Tard” (“Leave and come back late(r)”) Aurylia Rotolo (with help from Xavier Deleu) first met the documentary’s protagonist, “Régis,” while in Tanger, Morocco. Cameroonian Régis — a professional football player in his home country — had plans to make a living in Europe but wasn’t gonna risk his life crossing the Mediterranean Sea illegally. When Moroccan clubs turn out not to be too keen to give him a contract either, he returns home:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNrjCUQVkeI

For reasons so far unknown, a screening of Jews of Egypt was banned by the Egyptian National Security earlier this week. The documentary is a portrait of the lives of the Egyptian Jewish community in the first half of the twentieth century until their second grand exodus after 1956. “An attempt to understand the change in the identity of the Egyptian society that turned from a society full of tolerance and acceptance of one another … and how it changed gradually by mixing religious and political views into a society that rejects the others,” in the words of the film’s director Amir Ramses:

“Downtown Tribes” is a short documentary created and directed by Amirah Tajdin, and produced by Wafa Tajdin of 8486 Films, commissioned by STR.CRD and shot at their “Urban Street Culture Event” last year (where Dylan and Antoinette also interviewed Just A Band). Loyal AIAC readers will have fun spotting the many familiar faces:

And “A Batalha de Tabatô” (“The Battle of Tabatô”) is a first-time feature by director Joao Viana exploring music, magic and, according to The Hollywood Reporter, “post-colonial angst” in Guinea-Bissau. We’re still interested though, because that same review remarks Viana’s combining “a strong eye and rich subject matter”. Here’s a first teaser:

And here’s another one.

Further Reading

Not exactly at arm’s length

Despite South Africa’s ban on arms exports to Israel and its condemnation of Israel’s actions in Palestine, local arms companies continue to send weapons to Israel’s allies and its major arms suppliers.

Ruto’s Kenya

Since June’s anti-finance bill protests, dozens of people remain unaccounted for—a stark reminder of the Kenyan state’s long history of abductions and assassinations.

Between Harlem and home

African postcolonial cinema serves as a mirror, revealing the limits of escape—whether through migration or personal defiance—and exposing the tensions between dreams and reality.

The real Rwanda

The world is slowly opening its eyes to how Paul Kagame’s regime abuses human rights, suppresses dissent, and exploits neighboring countries.

In the shadow of Mondlane

After a historic election and on the eve of celebrating fifty years of independence, Mozambicans need to ask whether the values, symbols, and institutions created to give shape to “national unity” are still legitimate today.

À sombra de Mondlane

Depois de uma eleição histórica e em vésperas de celebrar os 50 anos de independência, os moçambicanos precisam de perguntar se os valores, símbolos e instituições criados para dar forma à “unidade nacional” ainda são legítimos hoje.