100% Arabica
France, 1997, 85min, comedy in French with English subtitles, Mahmoud Zemmouri, dir.
Official Selection, Venice Film Festival, 1997.
In a housing project located on the outskirts of Paris renamed "100% Arabica" by its inhabitants, African immigrants live side by side. The residents are united by their struggle for recognition in a society where immigrants are often regarded as second-class citizens. In a world of exiles, poverty is the common denominator. Against this backdrop, director Zemmouri has brought together two of the biggest and most charismatic stars of the cross-cultural musical form known as Rai, Cheb Mami and Khaled, who play the leaders of a band called Rap Oriental. As the band of musicians starts to gain in popularity, the Imam of the local mosque (Mouss) tries to destroy them by stirring up racial and cultural tensions. However, no one can stop the infectious popularity of the songs in this story of music triumphing over bigotry and violence.
(Source: nyadff.org)

A Dios Momo - Good-bye Momo
Uruguay, 2005, 100 min, 35mm, drama in Spanish with English subtitles, Leonardo Ricagni, dir.
Obdulio is an 11-year-old Afro-Uruguayan street boy who lives with his grandmother and sells newspapers for a living while he cannot read or write. Obdulio is not interested in going to school until he finds out that the night watchman of the newspaper's office is a charismatic magical "Maestro" who not only introduces him to the world of literacy but also teaches him the real meaning of life through the lyrics of the "Murgas" (Carnival Pierrots) during the mythical nights of the irreverent and provocative Uruguayan carnival. With a poetic nod to Fellini, Leonardo Ricagni uses the carnival atmosphere to transport the viewer to a magical place where realism and surrealism live side by side in Uruguay—and what a wonderful place to be. With sweeping directorial vision and gorgeously shot with rich, vibrant colors, A DIOS MOMO achieves a rich visual and spiritual sensibility unparalleled today. – Shaz Bennett AFI Fest 2005.
(africanfilm.com)

“Africa, I will fleece you (Afrique, jet e plumerai)”
Cameroon, 1992, directed by Jean-Marie Teno, video, 88 min., in French with English sub-titles.
"Afrique, je te plumerai provides a devastating overview of one hundred years of cultural genocide in Africa. Director Jean-Marie Teno uses Cameroon, the only African country colonized by three European powers, for a carefully researched case study of the continuing damage done to traditional African societies by alien neo-colonial cultures."
(California Newsreel)

African Prostitution: The European Connection
France. 2005, 52min, documentary in French with English subtitles, Oliver Enongo & Romaric Atchourou, Dirs.
International law recognizes the problem of trafficking in women and children as a serious human rights issue. In West and Central Africa, as in some parts of Asia and South America, it must be recognized that the worst forms of trafficking that exist is trafficking in children for exploitative labor and the trafficking in persons (mainly women) for the sex trade. What becomes of these African women who flee poverty and illiteracy to work in Europe and get caught in the nightmare of forced prostitution? What would the parents say if they knew? Should we remain indifferent? African Prostitution: The European Connection represents investigative journalism as its best: discreet, compassionate and overwhelming.
(nyadff.org)

“Allah Tantou” (God’s Will)
(Guinea/France, 1991, video, 62 min, in French with English sub-titles) directed by David Achkar. "Allah Tantou is the first African film to confront the immense personal and political costs of the widespread human rights abuses on the continent. It follows filmmaker David Achkar's search for his father, his father's search for himself inside a Guinean prison and Africa's search for a new beginning amid the disillusionment of the post-independent era." (California Newsreel)

Al’leessi... An African actress
Niger, 2004, 69 min, French and Songhoy with English Subtitled, Rahmatou Keita, Dir.
Zalika Souley is in her fifties. She lives with four children in a two-bedroom apartment with neither electricity nor water in Niamey, the capital of Niger. But thirty years ago, she was a movie star and Africa's first professional female actress, working with such celebrated directors as Niger's Oumarou Ganda and Moustapha Alassane. Souley was once the legendary bad girl of African cinema defying directors with her compelling improvisations. Yet, despite her fame, her life was beset by difficulty. In moving and often heart-breaking interviews, Souley speaks wistfully about how audiences confused her with the women she portrayed - vamps, adulteresses, prostitutes - and how, as her stardom rose abroad, she became a pariah in her own country.
More than a simple chronicle of Souley's extraordinary career, the film is a moving homage to the heyday of Nigerien cinema in the 1960s when a cottage industry of Westerns, detective films and thrillers delighted audiences. African actors donned cowboy hats and channeled their heroes - Steve McQueen, Jimmy Stewart and Ronald Reagan.
AL'LEESSI (meaning "a destiny" in Songhoy) encapsulates the condition of women in modern African society and the history of cinema in Niger which has all but dissolved in recent years. Equally essential for women's studies, cinema studies, African and post-colonial studies, AL'LEESSI is a love letter to this pioneer of Nigerien cinema and a poignant meditation on the current state of the African film industry.
(nyadff.org)

Almost Adult
UK, 2006, 89min, drama, English, Yousaf Ali Khan, dir.
17 years old Mamie traveled to Britain from the Democratic Republic of Congo in the hope of finding a safer life after losing a sister and having no knowledge of where her parents are. Immigration authorities send her to Birmingham, where she meets the fragile Shiku, and while they don't share a language, Mamie vows to look after the younger girl, and treat her like a sister.
However, the authorities cannot allow the girls to stay together when it is discovered they are not genuine siblings, and their separate ordeals begin: Mamie is initially placed in a desperate hostel, and quickly threatened with deportation goes underground and starts working in exploitative conditions within the immigrant community. Shiku's is placed with foster parents who have little understanding of her, sending her to a school where she is desperately unhappy. Cast from non-actors within the refugee community, leads Victoire Milandu and Ann Warungu give impressive, touchingly honest performances.
(nyadff.org)

“Borom Saret”
(1963, b/w, 19 min., in French with English sub-titles) directed by Ousmane Sembene, Senegal.
It tells the story of a poor cart driver in Dakar.

“Camp de Thiaroye”
(Senegal, 1987, color, in Wolof and French with English sub-titles, 152 minutes) directed by Ousmane Sembene and Thiermo Faty Sow.
Based on a real story, this film deals with the fate of African troops who had served in the French Army in World War II. Interned at the end of the War, a group of men stage a rebellion against their white oppressors, which ends in a massacre inviting "comparison with Eisenstein's Odessa Steps in its ruthlessness and artistry."
(New Yorker Films)

“Ceddo”
(Senegal, 1977, color, 120 min., in Wolof with English sub-titles) directed by Ousmane Sembene.
A classic epic of the African experience, comparable to the films of Griffith and Renoir. "An exciting political thriller concerning the kidnapping of a beautiful princess is used to examine the confrontation between opposing forces in the face of Moslem expansion."
(New Yorker Films)

“Colobane Express”
(2001) Senegal, directed by Khady Sylla.
This documentary looks at the public vans in Dakar, which are the sole means of local transportation in the city, and their drivers who are always on the go.
In Wolof with English subtitles.

“Diary of a Tired Black Man”
(2006) 100min, directed by Tim Alexander, U.S.A.
This story about the complex relationships between black men and black women follows the life of a successful black man looking for love and the constant challenge he meets in the anger of the black women with whom he gets involved.

Dry Season / Daratt
Chad, 2006.
The government has granted amnesty to all war criminals. Atim, 16 years old, is given a revolver by his grandfather so that he may kill the man who killed his father... Atim leaves his village for N’djamena, seeking a man he does not know. He quickly locates him: former war criminal Nassara is now married and settled down as the owner of a small bakery... With the firm intention of killing him, Atim gets closer to Nassara under the guise of looking for work, and is hired as an apprentice baker… Intrigued by Atim's attitude toward him, Nassara takes him under his wing and teaches him the secrets of making bread... Over the weeks, a strange relationship evolves between the two. Despite his disgust, Atim seems to recognise in Nassara the father figure he has always needed, while Nassara sees the teenager as a potential son. One day, he suggests adoption...
Official Competition Venice Film Festival 2006 - WINNER Special Jury Prize
(africanfilm.com)

“Emitai”
(Senegal, 1971, color, 101 min., in Diola and French, with English sub-titles) directed by Ousmane Sembene.
A film about the clash between the Diolas, a mystical Senegalese tribe, and French colonialists in the closing days of World War II. The film visualizes the myths, rituals, and history of this tribe.

“Faces of Women”
(Ivory Coast, 1985, color, 105 min, in French and indigenous languages with English sub-titles) directed by Désiré Ecaré.
"This politically and stylistically adventurous two-part film explores the links between feminism, economics and tradition in modern-day Africa. The film creates a rich tapestry of the textures and rhythms of village life as well as pointing out wryly ironic comparisons between the economic and the sexual stratagems adopted by African women in a patriarchal society."
(New Yorker Films)

“Homecoming”
(2005) 82min, directed by Norman Maake, South Africa.
Charlie, Thabo, and Peter, three "MK" veterans from the armed branch of the African National Congress, return to post-apartheid South Africa in 1996 after years of exile and find it will not be easy for them to rejoin society. Homecoming draws its plot from the experiences of Zola Maseko, a former ANC soldier. Maake (Soldiers of the Rock ) is perhaps the most promising young director from South Africa.
"Inspired by the real-life experiences of screenwriter Zola Maseko, Homecoming offers the affecting tale of three lifelong friends and African National Congress veterans who struggle to maintain their powerful bond while pursuing their individual paths in life and integrating themselves back into a society that has experienced massive social and political change."
(All Movie Guide)

“Hotel Rwanda”
Directed by Terry George.
Hotel Rwanda is a historical drama film that shows the quiet heroism of one man, Paul Rusesabagina (Don Cheadle), during the Rwandan Genocide. It was filmed mostly in South Africa, with some second unit filming in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda.
Hotel Rwanda has been called an African Schindler's List. Each movie portrays one imperfect individual who uses his social position, interpersonal skills, and quick wit to rescue thousands of lives from a holocaust. Unlike its more famous cousin, Hotel Rwanda did not win any Oscars, though it was nominated for three: Best Actor (Cheadle), Best Supporting Actress (Sophie Okonedo), and Best Original Screenplay.

“Keita: The Heritage of the griot”
(Burkina Faso, 1995, video, 94 min., in Jula and French with English subtitles) directed by Dani Kouyaté.
"Keita creates a unique world where the West Africa of the 13th Century Sundjata Epic and the West Africa of today co-exist and interpenetrate." Young Mabo is on a quest which "requires the successful reconciliation or integration of two types of power represented by his paternal and maternal lineages /Islamic and pre-Islamic/." He is helped by Djéliba Koyaté (Great Griot) who tells him the medieval epic.
"Keita makes the case for an 'Afrocentric' education, where African tradition, not imported Western curricula, is the necessary starting point for African development."
(California Newsreel)

“Mandabi”
(1967,color, 90 min., in Wolof with English sub-titles), directed by Ousmane Sembene, Senegal.
It tells the story of a poor man who faces many obstacles when he wants to cash a money order.

Masai: The Rain Warriors
Director: Pascal Plisson, from: France/Kenya, Year: 2005, Minutes: 94
Language: Maa with English subtitles, Genre: Epic Drama.
Faced with a drought that endangers the continuity of their people, Masai elders are convinced that they have been cursed by the Red God -- the God of Vengeance. Following the death of the war chief, a group of adolescents must now cross over to adulthood, forced to quickly form a new generation of inexperienced but brave warriors. The young men must bring back the mane of a legendary lion, which appears at every critical period of Masai history to appease the wrath of the Red God and bring back the rains. The survival of their culture depends on this quest.
"A story of initiation, friendship, teamwork and sacrifice set on the vast ochre savannah of Kenya, Masai: The Rain Warriors builds slowly to a powerful and touching finale." -Lisa Nesselson, Variety.
"With a documentary-like authenticity and major movie production values, this gorgeous drama takes us deep into the life of the Masai in East Africa. The story may be fiction, but the actors and the culture are completely real.” -Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall.
(africanfilm.com)

“Rotating Square”
(2002) Egypt, directed by Ahmed Hassouna.
A surrealist comedy about a couple packing to move to the US where they intend to open a restaurant, but a series unexpected events leads to seduction, murder, and the disposal of dead bodies. In Arabic with English subtitles.

“Samba Traore”
(Burkina Faso, 1993, 85 min., color, 16mm, in Mooré with English sub-titles).
"A universal morality tale set in the austerely beautiful plains of the African Sahel region. Samba Traoré, on the run after a gas station hold-up, returns to his native village a rich man and becomes both benefactor and enigma to his neighbors." (New Yorker Films)

“The blue eyes of Yonta”
(Guinea-Bissau, 1991, video, 90 min., in Criolo with English sub-titles) directed by Flora Gomes.
"The blue Eyes of Yonta is one of the few recent African films to make the disillusionment of the revolutionary generation its primary subject - and offer a glimmer of hope for the future. Flora Gomes (born 1949) is a member of the generation which fought for Guinea-Bissau's independence." The films end with Yonta and the children of Bissau dancing. Flora Gomes hopes "that the young will come up with dreams of their own, dreams which ... will not hold them hostage, but inspire them to make something real in the real Africa around them." (California Newsreel)

“The Great Bazaar”
(2005) Mozambique, directed by Licinio Azevedo.
In the suburb of an African city, twelve-year-old Paito sells fritters outside his house, until he's robbed and sets out for the big city to get his money back.
In Portuguese with English subtitles.

“Tilai”
(Burkina Faso, 1990, 81 min., color, 16mm, in Mooré with English sub-titles). Awarded the Special Jury Prize at Cannes.
A moving tale of honor and family ties on the African plains. A man returns home after two years to be told that his fiancée has married his father.Tilai has a directness and a purity that makes most recent cinema seem needlessly affected." (New Yorker Films)

“Women with open eyes”
(Femmes aux yeux ouverts) (Togo, 1994, video, 52 min., video) directed by Anne-Laure Folly.
In Femmes aux yeux ouverts, award-winning Togolese filmmaker, Anne-Laure Folly presents portraits of contemporary African women from four West African nations: Burkina Faso, Mali, Senegal and Benin.
The film shows how African women are speaking out and organizing around five key issues: marital rights, reproductive health, female genital mutilation, women's role in the economy, and political rights." (California Newsreel)

“Yaaba”
(Burkina Faso, 1989, 90 min., color, 16mm, in Mooré with English sub-titles) directed by Idrissa Ouedraogo.
"The debut film from the most acclaimed African director since the great Sembene, Idrissa Ouedraogo's Yaaba is a haunting and humanistic tale of a 12-year old boy who strikes up a friendship with an old woman who has been shunned as a witch by the rest of the community."
(New Yorker Films)

 “Yeelen”
(Mali, 1987, 105 min., video) directed by Souleymane Cissé. "Film Comment named Yeelen, 'the best African film ever made.'
Set during the powerful Mali Empire of the 13th century, it may remind viewers of 2001: A Space Odyssey. The film represents a highly imaginative contemporary response to the seminal West African quest myth, The Sundjata Epic."
(California Newsreel)