the 6th african film festival may 19--june 1, 2000 photo: mossane

box office and ticket information | calendar program description In celebration of The 6th African Film Festival, The Film Society is proud to present The First Erinn Chalene Collection of photography at the Frieda & Roy Furman Gallery at The Walter Reade Theater. This program was organized by Richard Peña and The African Film Festival, Inc. (Mahen Bonetti, Prerana Reddy, Brigitte Houngbedji, Don Webster, Maguette Ndiaye). Thanks are due to Tunde Giwa, Hilary Ney, Mamadou Niang, Manthia Diawara, Luca Bonetti, Cat Stephens, Kevin Duggan, Maureen Slattery, Sharan Sklar, SBM, PR and MGP & Associates, PR. The programs of AFF are made possible by the generous support of Rockefeller Foundation, Ford Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Chase Manhattan Foundation, New York State Council for the Arts, Texaco Foundation, Piper Heidsieck, Estudio Inc. and Empire Hotel. Air Afrique provides transportation for visiting African filmmakers. For half a century, African filmmakers have been developing ambitious and vibrant cinematic languages that incorporate both traditional and colonial inheritances in the service of nation-building and cultural expression. For more than half a decade, The New York African Film Festival (AFF) has worked to bring emerging African voices to American screens. The AFF proudly leads the mission in bringing the distinctive experience of African cinema to the hearts and imagination of the world. As we begin the 21st century, we are witnessing a great surge in media and communication capabilities that drastically reduces the distances between cultures. Images, sounds, and ideas are being exchanged almost instantaneously around the world, creating dynamic hybrid cultures. As Western consumer culture has infiltrated the globe, it has, in turn, been invigorated by the different sensibilities, traditions, and styles of other cultures. Likewise, African film has evolved from its early exploration of colonialism and the conflict between tradition and modernity into a new diasporic and international consciousness. The New York African Film Festival and the Film Society of Lincoln Center proudly present the best new work by emerging African directors living in the European and American diaspora. Spanning many genres, these provocative films aim to reinterpret Africa’s place in the modern world and to explore issues relevant to a broad international audience. In addition to the celebration of African diaspora filmmakers, this year’s festival will also feature a centerpiece titled African Women in the Media: From Griot to Filmmaker. We are also proud to commemorate the passing of one of African cinema’s greatest pioneers, Djibril Diop Mambety. Since 1973, his work has consistently expanded the boundaries of film style and provided precious insights into the development of modern Africa. You can read Robert Sklar's piece on Djibril Diop Mambety in the latest issue of Film Comment. * Many African directors will be present during the festival. Look for an asterisk (*) before the titles of films which are expected, at presstime, to be introduced by visiting directors. This program continues at Brooklyn Museum of Art, June 3, 4, 10 & 11.

la grammaire de ma grand'mère / grandma's grammar tvg

program: TRIBUTE: DJIBRIL DIOP MAMBETY (1945-1998), PIONEER OF AFRICAN FILM Presented by Mambety’s dear friend Bara Diokhane: LA GRAMMAIRE DE MA GRAND’ MÈRE / GRANDMA’S GRAMMAR (Jean-Pierre Békolo, Cameroon, 1996; 9m) In an informal meeting, the filmmaker receives an unforgettable definition of cinema from the late African film pioneer Djibril Diop Mambety. with: TOUKI-BOUKI (Senegal, 1973; 95m) Touki-Bouki (THE HYENA'S JOURNEY) is a stylistically sophisticated African Bonnie and Clyde story about a young couple who yearn to live the glamorous life in France, but must first pull off a couple of heists to buy their tickets out of Dakar. According to the director, “TOUKI-BOUKI is about Africans sick with the idea of Europe, Africans who consider that Europe is the door of Africa, and that it’s necessary to have been there in order to be able to come back and be highly thought of... . I belong to a very restless generation... . I see poetry everywhere, but my films are not poetic cinema. I have a very cruel vision of things—-death is everywhere in my film (Variety).” Sun May 21: 4:30 Thurs May 25: 9:15 Wed May 31: 3:15 HYENAS (Senegal, 1992; 113m) Mambety’s second and last feature, HYENAS, adapts a timeless parable of human greed into a biting satire of today’s Africa, where the hopes of independence are betrayed for the empty promises of Western materialism. In an adaptation of Frederich Dürenmatt’s The Visit of the Old Lady, Linguère Ramatou, a woman “rich as the World Bank” returns to the decaying backwaters of Colobane where she bribes the villagers with the glitter of consumer culture to kill her former lover, Dramaan Drameh. Dramaan had betrayed Ramatou for a wealthier wife and then cast her out of the village when she became pregnant with his child. Her revenge reveals the hunger for wealth that controls the hearts of the villagers — like hyenas, they ruthlessly feed off the weakness of others. Mon May 22: 1 Fri May 26: 5 LE FRANC (Senegal, 1994; 45m) In LE FRANC, Mambety begins his tribute to the poor, whom he describes as “the only truly consistent, unaffected people in the world, for whom every morning brings the same essential question: how to preserve what is essential to themselves.” He uses the French government’s devastating 50% devaluation of the CFA in 1994 as the basis for a trenchant yet whimsical parable of the life of millions in Africa today. The hero of the tale (and perhaps Mambety’s alter-ego) is Marigo, a down-on-his-luck musician whose formidable landlady has confiscated his congoma (a kind of guitar) as payment for back rent. Played with slapstick gusto by Dieye Ma Dieye, Marigo is a kind of everyman, a West African equivalent of Charlie Chaplin’s “little tramp.” In a desperate attempt to pay his rent and reclaim his congoma, he buys a lottery ticket. When he wins, he finds that redeeming the ticket is no easy feat. with: LA PETITE VENDEUSE DE SOLEIL / THE LITTLE GIRL WHO SOLD THE SUN (Senegal/Switzerland, 1999, 45m) Conceiving Soleil as the second installment, after LE FRANC, of an unfinished trilogy of dramatic shorts entitled Tales of Little People, Mambety works in a simpler, almost fabular style that reflects his move beyond documenting Africa’s victimization towards envisioning the continent’s recovery. Consequently, this film is a luminous portrait of a young handicapped girl and her determination to be a street vendor of Le Soleil, the national newspaper of Senegal, against the wishes of the street boys. It is at once a tribute to the indomitable spirit of the street children of Dakar, and to the individual’s capability for transforming her situation. Fri May 26: 7:15 Sun May 28: 8 Thurs June 1: 3:15 * BARBECUE-PEJO (Jean Odoutan, Benin, 1999; 88m) A poor Benoise corn farmer wants to break out of his deep misery. Out of the blue, he buys a shaky Peugeot 504 and tries his hand at being a bush-cabdriver. When the engine of the jalopy breaks down, he converts it into a flour mill. The mill, however, soon breaks down, leaving the man without income. His wife is forced to prostitute herself in the cornfields in order to support their two daughters afflicted with congenital malformations. In his despair, the man tries one last time to make something profitable out his only two resources-—his corn and the fickle Peugeot. With: LE REALISATEUR NEGRE / THE BLACK FILMMAKER (Jean Odoutan, Benin, 1999; 7m) The African filmmaker Jean Odoutan sets up a meeting with 300 actors for the casting of his film BARBECUE-PEJO. Unfortunately, the filmmaker doesn’t show up. As the time drags on, tempers begin to flare. Fri May 19: 1 Sat May 27: 7:45 Wed May 31: 9:30

blood is not fresh water asientos

SHORT & CURLIES is an exciting series of five 11-minute shorts show- casing the talents of emerging South African directors as they explore the complexities of life in a country undergoing rapid change. 1. HUSK (Jeremy Handler, South Africa, 1998; 11m) Lucy is stuck in a remote and desolate town and is a virtual prisoner of her drunk and useless father. When her father’s debt collector tries to exact the mortgage from her, her macabre revenge is sure to sting both her oppressors! 2. THE VOW (Junaid Ahmed, South Africa, 1998; 11m) A father hopes that by fulfilling a tortuous vow during the Hindu ceremony, Kavady he will cure his mute son. Though he is unsuccessful in keeping the vow, he and his son are drawn closer together through a near disaster. 3. WATERCOLORS (Nantie Steyn, South Africa, 1998; 11m) A mayor of a small South African town buys the public swimming pool so the woman he loves won’t have to share her daily swims with black people, but she thwarts his racist plans. 4. PORTRAIT OF A YOUNG MAN DROWNING (Teboho Mahlatsi, South Africa, 1998; 11m) In a tough urban township, a killer seeks redemption, but finds that his community is not willing to accept his desire to change. 5. LUCKY DAY (Brian Tilley, South Africa, 1998; 11m) An unemployed man accepts a day job from a mysterious farmer, but what might have been a regular day of manual labor turns into a harrowing psychological experience. With: * MAMLAMBO (Palesa Letlaka-Nkosi, South Africa, 1997; 26m) A story of the ill-fated relationship that develops between Malusi, a 12- year-old street kid from Hillbrow, and Tinyie, a young Chinese prostitute who works for an overbearing pimp. Fri May 19: 3 Wed May 24: 9:45 Sun May 28: 4 * TOURBILLONS / WHIRLWINDS (Alain Gomis, Senegal, 1999; 12m) Ousmane is a young Senegalese student in Paris in a critical time in his life: he must make the decision whether to go back to Senegal or to stay in Paris, where he feels comfortable. Engulfed in a whirlwind of contradicting emotions and advice, he is caught between the memory of the man he was and the image of the man he is about to become. But do these choices still belong to him? Is it already too late to choose? with: * LE TRUC DE KONATÉ / KONATÉ’S GIFT (Fanta Nacro, Burkina Faso, 1998; 33m) When Diénéba leaves the city where she is visiting her cousin, Salif, he bids her farewell and gives her some gifts for the family in the village. Upon her arrival in the village, she promises her husband, Konaté, a wonderful gift for the night.... In the evening she gives him the present-—a condom. Konaté is furious and refuses to change his habits, but Diénéba, having seen the effects of AIDS in the city, refuses to give in. Upon the taunts of his friends and his anger at his wife’s refusal, Konaté discovers that he has become impotent. In his desperation he visits the fetishist for a solution. The fetishist relays the message of the spirits: Konaté will only get his virility back if he finds the tree from which came this “strange fruit,” the condom. Konaté’s voyage in search of the magic tree reveals to him the true source of his impotence and the value of the gift he’s been given. with: * HOT IRONS (Andrew Dosunmu, Nigeria/USA, 1999; 50m) Set in Detroit, this film paints a unique portrait of a conceptual art form rarely appreciated—that of African American hairstyling. With emphasis on how hair and style are important aspects of African American culture, this humorous, outrageous and informative film reveals the complex nature of this competitive industry. Fri May 19: 5:15 Fri May 26: 9:30 * MOSSANE (Safi Faye, Senegal, 1996; 105m) In a Wolof village between the sea and the savanna lives Mossane, a girl of mythical beauty. In fact, Mossane’s story comes from a Wolof legend: every two centuries, a girl is born whose beauty is so great that she provokes tragedy. From birth she is promised to Diogoye, who long since went to Paris to make his fortune. Mossane, now 14 years old, falls in love with Fara, a student with no prospects. Their passion for one another becomes a catalyst for defiance and desperation. Faye sets her story in an imaginative world touched by both myth and social observation. As shot by Jürgen Jürges, Fassbinder’s cinematographer, Mossane offers a breathtakingly beautiful portrait of village life. Fri May 19: 7:30 Wed May 24: 1 Sun May 28: 6 Mon May 29: 3:15 In collaboration with Human Rights Watch International Film Festival * TEA IN THE SAHEL (Mahamat Saleh Haroun, Chad, 1998; 8m) A young man returns home where he lives with his parents. Thinking he is alone, he pours whiskey in a teapot to savor his moment without incurring the wrath of his Muslim family. When his father comes in unexpectedly, he requests a cup. At first surprised by its taste, he slowly comes to appreciate this variety of tea and downs several cups. In an advanced state of intoxication, he confides in his son in a way he never has before. with: * BYE BYE AFRICA (Mahamat Saleh Haroun, Chad, 1998; 86m) BYE BYE AFRICA is a self-reflexive docudrama based on the story of a Chadian film director now exiled in France. When after many years, he goes back home for the death of his mother, he also discovers the faltering state of the Chadian film industry due to the closing down of cinema theaters and the proliferation of video rooms. With his old friend, Garba, the former projectionist of the Normandie theater, the film director goes all over town to document the cause of cinema’s decline, but ends up discovering how his own filmmaking affects the local community. Fri May 19: 9:45 Tues May 23: 1 Wed May 24: 7:45 Mon May 29: 9:45 * FRAGMENTS DE VIES / FRAGMENTS OF LIFE (Francois L. Woukoache, Cameroon, 1999; 87m) The film follows three stories that take place in the slums of a city in French Equatorial Africa. At nightfall, people seem to regain a vitality that explodes in the bars to the rhythm of the latest hits from the charts, and in other outlets.... Part 1: Petit-Jean, a young graduate, is unemployed and roams the city in search of work. From humiliations to frustrations, the destiny of the young ordinary African will change dramatically. Part 2: A young girl transforms herself into an angel of death in order to free herself from a traumatic past. Part 3: An encounter between a woman and a man seems typical at first. But, for the woman, a past which she thought had forever disappeared resurfaces. Mon May 29: 8 Wed May 31: 1 *MAMA (Veronique Patte Doumbe, Cameroon, 1997, 45m; beta) Miriam Makeba in conversation with her granddaughter. Sat May 20: 4:30 A 20 minute excerpt of MAMA will also be shown with COME BACK AFRICA on May 21 and 26.

colis postal l'etranger venu d'afrique / the stranger from africa

LE GÉNIE D’ABOU (Isabelle Boni-Claverie, Ivory Coast, 1998; 10m) Abou is a sculptor. Accompanying him is a woman. Is she his source of inspiration or an evil spirit? Another woman with an extraordinary figure arrives on the scene. She offers to be his model. A strange ritual ensues. (Note: this film contains nudity and mature sexual themes.) with: FACES OF WOMEN (Desire Ecare, Ivory Coast, 1985; 105m) This politically and stylistically adventurous two-part film explores the links between feminism, economics and tradition in modern-day Africa. The film first creates a rich tapestry of the textures and rhythms of village life and then wryly demonstrates the ironic comparisons between the economic and the sexual stratagems adopted by both rural and urban African women, both of whom must negotiate a patriarchal society. Sat May 27: 10 Thurs June 1: 1 * A TRIP TO THE COUNTRY (Jean-Marie Teno, Cameroon, 2000; 75m) With irony and humor, this film questions the validity of developmental discourse that deems all things European to be modern and all things African to be archaic. Retracing the travels of his youth, the director documents his own voyage from Youande, the capital, to his village, Bandjoun. Along the way he meets ordinary people and listens to their hopes, disappointments, and frustrations in the face of a changing society. These personal observations coalesce into a thoughtful meditation on the very definition of modernity in the African context. Sat May 20: 7 Wed May 24: 6 Thurs May 25: 3:15 Sat May 27: 6 * TGV (Moussa Toure, Senegal, 1997; 90m) TGV is an express bus service between Dakar, Senegal, and Conakry, Guinea, operated by the enterprising Rambo and his assistant, Dembo. Before setting off, Rambo and his passengers are warned of the danger that lies on their route. The Bassari are carrying on a revolt at the Guinea border, leading to an exodus of refugees from their villages. On hearing the news, only a dozen or so passengers decide to make the risky trip. As the arduous journey proceeds, the passenger’s motivations for making the dangerous trip are slowly revealed. Along the way, a dismissed government minister and his wife join the group, followed by two anthropologists. The fear of impeding danger catalyzes the formation of relationships and clashes among this volatile assortment of passengers. Sat May 20: 9:15 Thurs May 25: 5 Sun May 28: 9:45 * SILMANDE TOURBILLON (Pierre Yameogo, Burkina Faso, 1998; 85m) In this modern dramatic comedy, a Lebanese family that took exile in Africa has become prosperous, but the shady deals required to keep afloat finally take their toll. While the mother wants her sons to simply make money until they can return to Lebanon, her sons find it difficult to keep an isolationist stance. Having grown up in Africa, the sons can’t help but become embroiled both financially and emotionally in the local scene. This film evokes the political, economic and social realities of Africa and is the crossing point for destinies typical of any African city. The battles for influence amongst the Europeans, Lebanese, and Africans, the hidden trafficking great and small, love affairs and dreams of going back home punctuate this complex city life. Sat May 27: 4 Mon May 29: 1 Wed May 31: 6 COME BACK, AFRICA (Lionel Rogosin, South Africa,1960; 83m) * (Miriam Makeba wil be present.) American documentary producer/director Lionel Rogosin followed up his Oscar-nominated film On the Bowery (1956) with another docudrama about the disenfranchised, COME BACK, AFRICA. Filmed for the most part in Johannesburg (and starring Miriam Makeba), the film follows a Zulu family uprooted from their native environs and plunked down in the middle of a strange urban jungle. Due to the repressiveness of the South African powers-that-were, Rogosin was forced to shoot his film with hidden cameras, then obliged to smuggle the footage out of the continent. The finished film, which depicts its protagonists as being the helpless pawns of a white bureaucracy, was condemned as radical propaganda in many landed-gentry circles, especially by the coal-mining interests (the main character is worked in the mines until he drops). Conditions may have improved in Johannesburg since this film was first released, but the human-rights abuses it describes persist elsewhere, making this 35-year-old film as contemporary as today’s newspaper. —- Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide Sun May 21: 7 Fri May 26: 1 Mon May 29: 6 with *MAMA (Veronique Patte Doumbe, Cameroon, 1997; 20 minute excerpt; beta) Miriam Makeba in conversation with her granddaughter.

fragments de vies / fragments of life fragments de vies / fragments of life

* BLOOD IS NOT FRESH WATER (Theo Eshetu, Ethiopia, 1998; 56m) BLOOD IS NOT FRESH WATER is the document of a passionate journey in Ethiopia, the director’s land of origin. Through a portrait of the filmmaker’s grandfather, Ato Tekle Tsadik Mekuria, who is Ethiopia’s most renowned historian, the film attempts to bypass Eurocentric concepts of Ethiopia by exploring ideas of Ethiopia’s origin and the nature of identity. The story goes continually backwards in time, from the present to Ethiopia’s colonial past, from its origin myth to the paleo anthropologists’ discovery of Lucy, the first human being. It does all this with a lighthearted and humorous approach that is both sympathetic and compassionate and sees the more serious problems of present-day Ethiopia within its unexpectedly rich cultural context. with: * DELUGE (Salem Mekuria, Ethiopia, 1996; 61m) This visual essay tells the story of Ethiopian students and their struggle to bring change in the political and social landscape of the 1970s. It is a tale in which the children of this ancient land abandoned their history, culture and identity and pinned their hopes on a foreign ideology. Sun May 21: 9:15 Wed May 24: 3:15 A WOMAN'S PLACE (Catherine Stewart & Pat Van Heerden, South Africa, 1998; 28m) Throughout history, a woman’s place has been described by culture and custom; however, in recent times, laws have begun to challenge old belief systems. Can new laws change old ways? A WOMAN'S PLACE explores the inevitable conflict between tradition and change through stories of women who are using the legal system to ensure women’s newly won rights. In rural South Africa, the town’s first woman magistrate fights to guarantee women their right to property, and to a place of their own. with: ASIENTOS (Francois Woukoache, Cameroon, 1994/1995; 52m) Asientos means “something acquired, agreed.” It was in the form of asientos, or licences, that Spain in the 16th century entrusted European companies with the organization of the slave trade. A century has passed since the end of the deportation of Africans to the New World. A young African, traumatized by the violence that he still sees, takes refuge in his imagination in the sacred places of the slave trade on the isle of Gorée. A journey through memory that goes to the heart of the sorrow and sufferings of the history of the black people. Mon May 22: 3:30 Wed May 31: 7:45 * COLIS POSTAL (Joseph Kumbela, Zaire, 1998; 13m) Isidore, an African living in Paris, is worried as his fiancee, his “post parcel,” has just arrived from Abidjan. He reveals to his best friend, Martin, his heart-wrenching dilemma. While he loves Esperance, he doesn’t know how to tell her that he is HIV positive. with: * L’ETRANGER VENU D’AFRIQUE / THE STRANGER FROM AFRICA (Joseph Kumbela, Zaire, 1998; 13m) Against the background of Beijing, the cultural differences between a couple—-a young Chinese woman and an African student—-provoke conflict, misunderstanding, as well as the voyeuristic interest of others. with: * ARISTOTLE’S PLOT (Jean-Pierre Békolo, Cameroon, 1996; 72m) In a southern African town, a group of wannabe gangsters hang out at the Cinema Africa, devouring megadoses of the latest actionfests. They’ve even taken the names of their screen gods: Van Damme, Bruce Lee, and Nikita. In walks an earnest cineaste, trying to enlist the government’s help in cleansing the Cinema Africa of Hollywood imports, replacing Schwarzenegger with Sembene. The government is indifferent, and the gangsters won’t come quietly, so he takes matters into his own hands and becomes a vigilante for an indigenous film culture! Mon May 22: 6 Thurs May 25: 1 COLIS POSTALE and STRANGER FROM AFRICA will also be shown on May 20 at 4:30 pm with MAMA O CLANDESTINO (Jose Laplaine, Zaire, 1997; 15m) When an Angolan stowaway lands in Lisbon, he learns that the Europe of his dreams may not be the paradise he imagined. Constantly having to evade a persistent police officer, he begins to long for his homeland. His adventures lead him to realize that for an African, Europe provides no escape from hardship. with: MACADAM TRIBU (Jose Laplaine, Zaire, 1996; 88m) There’s a new kind of African cinema being born and it’s coming straight from the clamorous streets of the continent’s big cities. In MACADAM TRIBU, four friends roam streets, bars and boxing clubs in a bubbling and bewitching big African town. The mother of two of these friends, Mother Bavusi, indulges in a bit of drinking and dreams of her dead husband and the stall she used to occupy in the big market. MACADAM TRIBU weaves unemployment, lust, and family commitments into a rich tapestry of lively “scenes-from-the-quarter.” Tues May 23: 3:15 Thurs May 25: 7 KADDU BEYKAT / LETTER FROM MY VILLAGE (Safi Faye, Senegal, 1975; 95m) Shot in three weeks during the rainy season with a crew of three, LETTER was Safi Faye’s first feature-length film. In a sparse, docudrama style, the director’s voice-over letter to a friend is punctuated by stark black-and-white images of her rural hometown, held captive by wildly fluctuating prices for its crops. Catching the idiosyncracies of the villagers, she chronicles routine events from dawn to dusk: workers toiling in dusty fields, the unchanging rituals of courtship, the evening meeting of elders under the “chattering tree.” Although Faye is deeply concerned with the economic crisis produced by a reliance on an outdated, colonial system meant to hamper self-sufficiency, she also warns against the corruption of the new Black middle class in the city. African film critic Françoise Pfaff describes LETTER FROM MY VILLAGE as “soberly poetic yet politically effective,” so effective in fact, that the film was banned in Senegal. Fri May 26: 3