Sesc São Paulo presents the Mostra de Cinemas Africanos from September 11 to 18 with national premieres and African guests
Among the guests is Abderrahmane Sissako, one of the most renowned filmmakers on the African continent, who will also participate in a masterclass at the Sesc’s Centro de Pesquisa e Formação. Screenings will take place at Cinesesc.
Black Tea (2024). Dir. Abderrahmane Sissako – Credits: Olivier Marceny
The Mostra de Cinemas Africanos enters its 7th year with a programme in São Paulo (SP). This year, the festival will take place from September 11 to 18 at Cinesesc, and presents 16 feature films and 4 short films from 14 African countries, with several titles premiering in Brazil and a special programme focusing on colonial exploitation, violence, and epistemicide that have marked the history of countries on the continent. The presence of African guests is guaranteed in the programme with post-screening debates. Tickets to watch the films cost R$ 24.00 (full price), R$ 12.00 (half price), or R$ 8.00 (full credentials), while parallel activities are free of charge. Information on the website www.mostradecinemasafricanos.com/en
The festival opens with the Brazilian premiere of the feature Black Tea (2024) by Abderrahmane Sissako, one of the most renowned filmmakers on the African continent. The film tells the story of a young woman from the Ivory Coast who falls in love with an older Chinese man after immigrating to Asia. Born in Mauritania, Sissako is known for films that explore globalization and displacement, with several awards at international festivals. With the support of the French Embassy in Brazil and Senegal, the filmmaker will be present at the festival and will participate in a masterclass at the Sesc’s Centro de Pesquisa e Formação.
Another highlight this year is the Senegalese tale Banel & Adama (2023), by the young Franco-Senegalese director Ramata-Toulaye Sy, which follows a young couple from a small village confronted by the conventions of their community. The film, which already caught everyone’s attention by competing for the 2023 Cannes Palme d’Or, was screened at the Rio Film Festival last year and has its commercial pre-premiere in Brazil at the Mostra de Cinemas Africanos. The director will also come to Brazil to attend to the festival.
Among the films premiering in Brazil that will also feature the presence of their directors are the docufiction Pirinha (2024), by Cape Verdean Natasha Craveiro, which presents the journey of a young woman struggling to free herself from the dungeons of her subconscious and childhood traumas. From South Africa, the documentary Banned (2024) by Naledi Bogacwi, recounts the events surrounding the film Joe Bullet (1973), composed of an all-African cast and banned by the apartheid government. Meanwhile, Nigerian Dika Ofoma explores the complexities of community and family relationships in a context of political tension in the short Uma Segunda-feira Tranquila (2023).
The Mostra de Cinemas Africanos 2024, the only festival in Brazil exclusively dedicated to the exhibition of contemporary African films, has the feature-length curatorship of Ana Camila Esteves, director and creator of the event, and Senegalese programmer Ibee Ndaw. "Once again, we reaffirm our commitment to bringing the best of recent African cinema to Brazil, allowing the Brazilian public to know and appreciate the richness and diversity of these cinematographies," says Ana Camila. She also highlights the importance of the festival in promoting content production on African cinema: "It is essential for us to address the events that marked African history, such as the traumas of the Rwandan genocide and the apartheid in South Africa, which still resonate in the imagination of filmmakers from these countries. Similarly, celebrating the centenary of revolutionary leader Amílcar Cabral is a way to honor the resistance stories of African peoples as a whole."
Special Programme: The right to art, land, and mourning
A selection of films addressing colonial exploitation, racism, and epistemicide is part of a special programme at the Mostra de Cinemas Africanos 2024. Curated by Ana Camila Esteves, Gabriela Almeida, and Emi Koide, this session features short and feature-length documentaries that address, in different ways, the trauma and mourning of colonial violence and the right to the restitution of objects, artworks, and remains.
The Empty Grave (2024) from Agnes Lisa Wegner and Cece Mlay shows the traumas of colonialism and the struggle of families to repatriate the remains of their relatives. In Our Land, Our Freedom (2023) by Meena Nanji and Zippy Kimundu, a Kenyan mother and daughter investigate the atrocities committed by the British colonial government against Kenya and its people. The Story of Ne Kuko (2023) by Festus Toll follows activist Mwazulu Diyabanza in the fight for the return of African objects held in European museums. Two classic films that also address the looting and colonial oppression of African artworks close the programme: Statues Also Die (1953), by Alain Resnais, Chris Marker, Ghislain Cloquet, and You Hide Me – The Colonization of African Art in the British Museum (1970) by Nii Kwate Owoo.
Abderrahmane Sissako Masterclass
The Mostra de Cinemas Africanos also has the mission to disseminate knowledge, produce content, and promote dialogue between African and Brazilian audiovisual production. In this São Paulo edition, the festival will hold a Masterclass with Mauritanian filmmaker Abderrahmane Sissako, Abderrahmane Sissako, considered one of the greatest names in contemporary African cinema. The event is free and will take place on September 12 (Thursday), from 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., at the Sesc’s Centro de Pesquisa e Formação , moderated by Brazilian researcher Hannah Serrat, a specialist in the filmmaker's work.
The discussion will address how Sissako portrays migratory and diasporic experiences in his films, creating new forms of collective identity. The discussion will also explore how these themes are aesthetically constructed in framing, mise-en-scène, and editing. Based on Hannah's research on Sissako's filmography, this encounter between the researcher and the filmmaker offers an in-depth analysis of a body of work that explores essential issues for the African continent, such as the complexities surrounding the processes of movements of African people worldwide.
The Mostra de Cinemas Africanos 2024 in São Paulo is produced by Sesc São Paulo, conceptualized by Ana Camila Comunicação & Cultura , and has cultural support of the French Embassy in Brazil and Senegal..
Details:
Mostra de Cinemas Africanos 2024
São Paulo (SP): September 11 to 18: Cinesesc , and Sesc Centro de Pesquisa e Formação
Films: 8 days, 16 feature films, and 4 short films from 14 countries
African filmmakers: Abderrahmane Sissako (Mauritania), Ramata-Toulaye Sy (France/Senegal), Natasha Craveiro (Cape Verde), Naledi Bogacwi (South Africa), Dika Ofoma (Nigeria)
Movie tickets: R$ 24.00 (full price), R$ 12.00 (half price), or R$ 8.00 (full credentials);
Abderrahmane Sissako Masterclass
September 12 (Thursday), from 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Moderated by: Hannah Serrat (researcher and specialist in Sissako's work)
Venue: Sesc Centro de Pesquisa e Formação
* Simultaneous translation FR-PT
Free of charge
Full Programme: www.mostradecinemasafricanos.com/en
Feature Films:
Goodbye Julia (Goodbye Julia, Sudan, Egypt, Germany, France, Saudi Arabia, Sweden: 2023), dir.: Mohamed Kordofani – Trailer;
The Empty Grave (The Empty Grave, Tanzania, Germany: 2024), dir.: Agnes Lisa Wegner and Cece Mlay;
Banel & Adama (Senegal, France, Mali: 2023), dir: .Ramata-Toulaye Sy – Trailer;
Banned (Banned, South Africa: 2024), dir.: Naledi Bogacwi;
Black Tea (Black Tea, France, Luxembourg, Taiwan, Mauritania: 2024), dir. Abderrahmane Sissako – Trailer;
Dent pour dent (Dent pour dent, Senegal, Belgium, France, Rwanda: 2023), dir.: Ottis Ba;
After the Long Rains (Baada Ya Masika, Kenya, Switzerland: 2023), dir.: Damien Hauser;
Father’s Day (Father’s Day, Rwanda: 2022), dir.: Kivu Ruhorahoza;
Didy (Didy, Switzerland: 2024),dir.: Gaël Kamilindi and François-Xavier Destors;
Disco Afrika: A Malagasy Story (Disco Afrika: A Malagasy Story, France, Germany, Mauritius, Qatar, South Africa: 2023), dir.: Luck Razanajaona;
Donga (Donga, Libya: 2023), dir.: Muhannad Lamin;
Don’t Be Late for My Funeral (Don’t Be Late for My Funeral, South Africa: 2023), dir.: Diana Keam;
Our Land, Our Freedom (Our Land, Our Freedom, Kenya, Portugal, EUA: 2023), dir.: Meena Nanji and Zippy Kimundu;
London Recruits (London Recruits, South Africa: 2024), dir. Gordon Main;
Pirinha (Pirinha, Cape Verde: 2024), dir.: Natasha Craveiro;
All the Colours of the World are Between Black and White (Nigeria: 2023), dir: Babatunde Apalowo;
Zaho Zay (Zaho Zay, Madagascar, Austria, France: 2020), dir.: Maéva Ranaïvojaona and Georg Tiller.
Short films:
The Story of Ne Kuko (The Story of Ne Kuko, Netherlands: 2023), dir.: Festus Toll;
Statues Also Die (Les statues meurent aussi, France: 1953), dir.: Alain Resnais, Chris Marker, Ghislain Cloquet;
A Quiet Monday (A Quiet Monday, Nigeria: 2023), dir.: Dika Ofoma;
You Hide Me – The Colonization of African Art in the British Museum (United Kingdom: 1970 ), dir.: Nii Kwate Owoo.
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