#DirectedbyWomen Worldwide Film Viewing Party - 1-30 September 2016: A Conversation with Barbara Ann O’Leary

Barbara Ann O’Leary, founder of #DirectedbyWomen Worldwide Film Viewing Party discusses the objectives of the initiatives, and activities and projects that took place during the inaugural event in 2015 and throughout the year.

Barbara, could you give a background to the Directed by Women Worldwide Film Viewing Party project?

#DirectedbyWomen is an initiative that I dreamed up in 2014 to help bring joyous, loving, appreciative attention to the work of women film directors.  The vision was to have a Worldwide Film Viewing Party to galvanize attention. In September 2015 we had the first #DirectedbyWomen global party. Groups and individuals in various countries organized events from house parties, community screenings, online streaming live tweeting events, and more. Existing festivals like Portland Film Festival and Scalarama joined in, and there were even a few multi-day/multi-city festivals planned specifically as part of DirectedbyWomen Worldwide Film Viewing Party. The hashtag #DirectedbyWomen was used via social media to help share news about what was unfolding during the 15-day celebration.

What are the objectives and projected outcomes?

The intention of the #DirectedbyWomen Worldwide Film Viewing Party is to invite film lovers to become aware of the thousands and thousands of women who have directed/are directing films, to inspire exploration and appreciation of their work, and to foster a sense of growing community among film lovers. Ultimately the intention is to help the world fall madly in love with films by women directors.

What are the dates and platform?

The #DirectedbyWomen Worldwide Film Viewing Party takes place 1-30 September 2016. It is a blend of in- person and online events. The events are organized by film lovers who hear about the celebration and choose to create events, so the party is everywhere and anywhere.

What contribution can The Centre for the Study and Research of African Women in Cinema, especially its social media networks, play in the promotion of the #DirectedbyWomen project?

I hope you'll blog and tweet out wonderful films by African women as you did last year. That was an excellent contribution to the celebration. That helped many #DirectedbyWomen party participants discover and fall in love with work by African women filmmakers. There are SO many amazing women film directors to explore. I hope we'll also be able to draw attention to your YouTube archive of interviews and other resources. It's a real treasure trove. I'm open to whatever other ideas you have. This party is designed to be non-hierarchical, so everyone is invited to celebrate in ways that resonate for them.

2015 was the inaugural year for the Directed by Women project. Talk about its successes, its overall reception and lessons learned?

When I first envisioned #DirectedbyWomen Worldwide Film Viewing Party, I saw it as a one-time thing, but before it even started people active in planning events began talking about what they'd do NEXT YEAR. It soon became clear that this had a life of its own and needed to have room to continue. The idea of the party has been to concentrate attention by holding events in various locations, organized in a Do-It-Yourself style so that the richness of what women film directors have created since the beginning of cinema history through to today could begin to reveal itself more fully. Although no one of us could participate in all the events, we were able to NOTICE the ways in which others were celebrating and there was a very palpable sense of connection across time and space. Many people commented on this.

Events were held in Australia, Canada, India, Italy, Spain, Turkey, UK, USA, and more. I'm not entirely sure where in the world Film Viewing Parties took place as not everyone was remembering to post their information on our global map. There was also a lot of activity online as people shared about their personal film viewing, blogged about women film directors, etc. I've been excited to see new initiatives and collaborations arising out of last year's Worldwide Film Viewing Party. I'd like to see even more interaction between and among people active in the celebration. Let's make it easier to share work by women directors by collaborating together.

Lessons learned?  I think I'm still processing and coming to understand the first party. I'll share a few things I personally learned.

Fifteen days wasn't enough, so this year we've spread out to celebrate during the entire month of September. It makes it easier for monthly film screenings to coordinate with #DirectedbyWomen and gives more opportunity for people to find time to create events.

People who heard about the celebration and thought, "This is AMAZING!" ran off and created incredible events - large and small. This is an initiative that seems to help activate a sense of individual freedom to take action while fostering a deepening sense of global community.

Celebration and appreciation are powerful transformative processes. Turning our attention to what we want to see flourish helps expand invigorating possibilities. I'm looking forward to continuing to invite more and more people in the global film community to turn their attention toward what they want and innovating together to help that thrive. The #DirectedbyWomen Worldwide Film Viewing Party has opened up some possibilities. Let's keep going. Everyone's welcome to co-create.

As you noted, the African Women in Cinema Blog participated by highlighting films by African women that could be accessed online. In what other ways may African women in cinema participate in the project?

Yes... I loved that. I hope you'll do that again. This year I've been offering a #VideoOfTheDay on the #DirectedbyWomen website and also sharing on social media. I'd love to include even more work by African women in that process. Please send me links!

I've also created an online database of women who have directed film: http://directedbywomen.com/en/directedby.html It's a work in progress. I'd love to include EVERY woman who has directed. Recently I've launched #DirectedbyWomen Timelines to share filmography and incorporate content from other sites around the web. My vision is to weave in interviews from African Women in Cinema and so many other places. I would love to see this resource expand during September to help make it easier for film lovers to discover women directors from all around the world.

And of course because this is a D-I-Y celebration everyone is invited to create events of their own, list them on the #DirectedbyWomen global calendar - http://directedbywomen.com/events/ - and share about them via social media. Any activities that celebrate and appreciate women directors are welcome in the global party. They don't have to be events specifically created for #DirectedbyWomen.

Future initiatives as it relates to the project?

I'm envisioning the #DirectedbyWomen Worldwide Film Viewing Party continuing each September. I'm hoping to see the database and timelines continue to expand. I'm cultivating a Conversation series feature. 

I've been celebrating birthdays of the women directors whose birthdays I know by tweeting and sharing on Facebook and Tumblr.  But that 366 Days of Birthday Celebrations is a one-year event. I've enjoyed it and it's been a privilege to honor and celebrate so many women in that way, but it's been a LOT of work, so I won't be doing that again next year.

We'll have to see what happens next. Definitely I know I will continue to bring loving attention to as many women film directors as I can on a regular basis as I think it is so important for film lovers to have the opportunity to explore and relish the work of women directors. And thank you for all the amazing work you do to help the film world awaken to and embrace the work of African women directors. The resources you share are so valuable. Your work inspires me. Thank you.

Conversation with Barbara O’Leary and Beti Ellerson, August 2016.

Djia Mambu : “Black”, pourquoi Mavela et pas Loubna ? | Contradictions in the representation of Mavela and Loubna in the film “Black”

Djia Mambu : “Black”, pourquoi Mavela et pas Loubna ? | Contradictions in the representation of Mavela and Loubna in the film “Black”  

Source : Africultures, 20-10-2015. Translated from French by Beti Ellerson.  

English (Français ci-apres)

Black by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah released on Belgian screens on 11 November 2015. 

Does the black body summon violence in genre films in general, or is it only in these kinds of films?

A slap in the face. This is the experience many people felt while leaving the screening of Black, the new film by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (who directed the provocative Images in 2014) during the Belgian premier at the International Francophone Festival of Namur. It is a dramatic and daring work about the rivalry between two gangs from foreign communities, with the hectic streets of Brussels as backdrop. And, if the images reflect reality, the police are never far away, ready to disperse the crowds. A kind of West Side Story, though devoid of the music and dances often judiciously used in the American film as buffer to the momentousness of the narrative. Adapted from the novel by Dirk Bracke, the film follows a Congolese teenager in Brussels caught between her love for a young Moroccan and the gang to which she belongs.

In these squabbles, women (or rather girls) are victim-objects. In the same way as in the armed conflict in Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, known as the world capital of rape, their body is used as a weapon of war. They are insulted, abused and demeaned in each altercation, yet the encounters are essentially on masculine terrain.

If the creators chose to represent one of the most despicable experiences of one community, why then show so much restraint towards the other? The gang rape of Mavela by Notorius and his buddies, compared to the same act inflicted upon Loubna, is one example. The long cruel scene exposing aspects of the black victim in her most excruciating suffering, positions the spectator as voyeur. How can one resist? The black female body has always been the site of the gaze, while also located in a position of revulsion. Already during the époque when the colonial considered the black woman closer to an animal because of her nudity, her body was almost always described with a passionate desire in his photographs and writings, thus contributing to what now is interpreted as the erotic imaginary of Western fantasies. (1)

The aggression towards Loubna is only suggested, barely touched upon. And having survived this barbaric act, only the latter appears psychologically troubled: turning inward into herself, with moments of absence, withdrawal, to the point that she causes concern among her friends. As for Mavela, once the tears have dried, she shows up at a nightclub accompanied by her attackers. The heinous act thus seems intolerable for one but excusable for the other.

This North African restraint is inscribed in the legacy of representation between the two women. Nudity was taboo for women in the West and excluded among the Arabs. Whereas, among the “savages", it was customary to see the woman nude, even in a noble manner. Today, the Moroccan prostitute of Much Loved (Nabil Ayouch) shocks, whereas the prostitute of Morbayassa, Le Serment de Koumba (Fantamady Cheick Camara, Guinea) does not. (See Djia Mambu : A best actress award for Much Loved | Un prix d'interprétation féminine pour Much Loved – Analysis | Analyse

http://africanwomenincinema.blogspot.com/2015/10/djia-mambu-best-actress-award-for-much.html)

As it relates to the roles of women, the representations of the two communities in Black, reflect a similar treatment. First, a Maghreb women police officer never misses an opportunity to set the "cousins" on the right path with a sermon. Moreover, the young Loubna though she hangs out with a gang, still has a job as a waitress in a cafe. But what of Mavela and the other "sisters"? Not much. The heroine herself does not seem to do anything outside of her connection with the Black Bronx gang. No desire, no relationships, no job. Her friends in the gang either get pregnant or go astray. As for her unemployed single mother, she is unable to control her daughter. Between hope and despair. On the other hand, in the Matonge neighbourhood there is always the occasion to see the black girls fighting as they tear into each other’s hair. Reminiscent of Celine Sciamma’s Girlhood.

There is a similar representation in the development of the male characters. Apart from a few broken items here and stolen handbags there, the gang of Marwan are “care bears” compared to Mavela. One laughs at their practical jokes, even feeling compassion for this clique of buddies. On the contrary, the Black Bronx are extremely violent, cruel, and even bestial, appearing as animals in the gang rape scene.

In Black, which won the Discovery Award at the International Film Festival in Toronto, there is an effective style of genre cinema: accelerations and explosive action scenes, dramatic slow motion, unvarnished romantic love scene, and an energetic cast of non-professionals. Very rare for a Belgian film, the actors are almost all Black or Arab. But while it is essential to encourage diversity in film, why should violence become a representation that is difficult to detach from? Why is it necessary that when the focus is on a community of foreign origins that the violence film becomes the genre of choice, as if it were an intrinsic characteristic?

La Squale, Dealer, Banlieue 13, La Cité de Dieu, Bande de Filles, Qu'Allah bénisse la France, etc. Since Kassovitz’s La Haine until the recent Dheepan by Audiard, the list is too long.

1) "The African woman has been represented throughout the colonial occupation as the forbidden fruit of the white man (racial adultery and martial adultery) and correspondingly conveys its greatest fantasies".  La femme africaine représente en fait, tout au long de l'occupation coloniale, le fruit défendu de l'homme blanc (adultère racial et adultère martial) et véhicule parallèlement les plus gros fantasmes. (Lissia Jeurissen. Colonisation au masculin et mise en corps de la féminité noire : le cas de l'ancien Congo Belge" in FER-Ulg http://www.ferulg.ulg.ac.be/). Text in French.

Français

Black d'Adil El Arbi et Bilall Fallah sort le 11 novembre 2015 sur les écrans belges. La violence est-elle dans le film de genre une assignation du corps noir ou bien est-ce seulement dans ce genre de films ?

Une claque. C'est l'effet qu'ont eu beaucoup de gens à la sortie de la projection de BLACK, le nouveau film d'Adil El Arbi et Bilall Fallah (qui avaient réalisé le sulfureux Images en 2014) en première belge au Festival international de Film Francophone de Namur. Une œuvre saignante et osée sur les rivalités entre deux bandes issues de communautés étrangères, avec comme fond les rues mouvementées de Bruxelles où à en croire les images, la police n'est jamais bien loin pour disperser les troupes. Un genre de West Side Story, quoique dépourvu des musiques et des danses pourtant judicieusement utilisées comme distance par rapport à la gravité du récit dans le film américain. Adapté du roman éponyme de Dirk Bracke, le film, qui sort le 11 novembre sur les écrans belges, suit une adolescente congolaise à Bruxelles prise entre son amour pour un jeune marocain et le gang auquel elle appartient. LIRE l’article en intégralité sur http://africultures.com/black-pourquoi-mavela-et-pas-loubna-13266/

Published on the African Women in Cinema Blog in partnership with Africultures | Publié sur l'African Women in Cinema Blog en partenariat avec Africultures

Call for Papers | Appel à communication – International Conference | Colloque International - Strasbourg (France) : Producing films in/with Africa and the Middle East | Produire en/avec l’Afrique et le Moyen Orient

Call for Papers | Appel à communication – International Conference | Colloque International - Strasbourg (France) : Producing films in/with Africa and the Middle East | Produire en/avec l’Afrique et le Moyen Orient 

ENGLISH AFTER FRENCH TEXT

Institut de recherche sur le cinéma et l’audiovisuel 

HESCALE - Histoire, Économie, Sociologie des Cinémas d’Afrique et du Levant 

Appel à communication 

Colloque international – Strasbourg (France) –15, 16, 17 mars 2017 

Produire en/avec l’Afrique et le Moyen Orient 

Les cinémas maghrébins, arabes, méditerranéens ou africains ont constitué un objet prisé des recherches principalement pour ce que les films véhiculent, dans leur réception internationale, des préoccupations politiques, culturelles, sociales ou esthétiques des pays concernés. Par contre, les modes de production, la circulation des films n’avaient attiré l’attention que de rares chercheurs ou critiques du cinéma.

Et pourtant, l’Afrique perçue à tort comme un désert cinématographique, compte au-delà de Nollywood plusieurs cinémas nationaux, dont certains en renouveau. Elle n’a jamais produit autant de films qui sont très appréciés dans certains espaces et, à l’inverse, ignorés ou rejetés par d’autres. Dans le même temps, au Moyen-Orient, des pays sans cultures ni traditions de cinéma tentent aujourd’hui de redessiner les lignes de force de production et de circulation des images. En outre, la mutation numérique, et son impact économique et culturel, continuent de transformer les modes de production, de distribution et de diffusion des films. Si la fascination exercée par Nollywood a eu le mérite de considérablement renouveler les questionnements de la recherche concernant les modes de production, la distribution et la consommation des films, elle a aussi laissé dans l’ombre une myriade de contextes très différents et beaucoup plus contrastés.

Depuis quelques années, plusieurs initiatives ont mis en valeur de nouvelles perspectives de recherche jusque-là peu prisées (la distribution, la diffusion, l’exploitation, les publics), et évoqué l’importance des mutations récentes qui affectaient les cinémas du Maghreb, du Moyen Orient et d’Afrique subsaharienne. À l’issue des colloques « Activités, pratiques spectatorielles et cultures de cinéma en Afrique et au Moyen Orient » organisé à Strasbourg en mai 2015 et « Représentations du cinéma et pratiques spectatorielles en Afrique francophone » en mai 2016 à Marrakech, s’est constitué un groupe de recherche international et multidisciplinaire, HESCALE, désireux d’explorer l’organisation de l’activité cinématographique dans ses dimensions transnationales, nationales et locales. Plusieurs axes de recherche sont privilégiés : les publics, pratiques spectatorielles, cultures de cinéma et réception qui ont déjà fait l’objet de colloques et séminaires comme la circulation des films, des travaux que nous poursuivrons, et enfin et les enjeux politiques, culturels, économiques et industriels de la production, qui concernent le présent appel à communication.

Dans des pays caractérisés par une profusion d’images essentiellement venues d’autres continents, et par une production très inégale, voire inexistante, quels ont été les modèles dominants de production? Quels sont ceux que les mutations en cours font émerger? Quels sont les enjeux économiques, industriels et sociaux de cette mutation numérique? Quels en sont les principaux acteurs? Qu’en est-il de la participation et du rôle des États? Quels liens financiers, politiques, juridiques, demeurent avec les anciennes métropoles coloniales, avec les nouveaux acteurs de la production? Qu’en est-il des équipements et de la formation des personnels? De l’organisation de la diffusion des films sur les territoires? Des aires –géographiques, linguistiques, etc. - cohérentes se détachent-elles au sein de ces espaces? 

Les communications pourront privilégier plusieurs approches disciplinaires : 

-historiques : quelles évolutions dans la production des films, quantitatives et qualitatives, peut-on repérer pays par pays ou par zones, notamment depuis les indépendances? Comment se sont situées les interventions des États nationaux? Celles des regroupements régionaux (UEMOA, CEDEAO, etc.)? Quelles reconfigurations dans le temps du paysage des financements et des bailleurs de fonds étrangers?

-économiques : quelles contraintes majeures, financières et réglementaires, pèsent sur le métier de producteur selon les sous-régions? Quelles stratégies adaptatives sur des marchés en récession ou restreints ont adoptés les professionnels? Quelles influences sur les pratiques ont pu exercer les contraintes économiques et l’étroitesse des marchés? Quels liens avec les marchés vidéos, télévisuel, internet?

-sociologiques : quels parcours de producteurs et de productrices (origine, formation, etc.)? Quelles évolutions des métiers? Quels discours des professionnels? Comment s’organisent les tâches liées à la production, le cumul des métiers (avec celui de réalisateur et parfois de diffuseur, etc.)? Quels rôles ont exercé les regroupements de réalisateurs (FEPACI)? Quelles productions pour quelles cultures? 

Les communications pourront être prononcées en français ou en anglais, et devront être d’une durée de vingt à trente minutes. 

Le colloque accueillera des communications scientifiques, ainsi que des rencontres avec des professionnels. Il fera l'objet d'une publication. 

Envoyer un abstract de 300 à 500 mots, une courte bibliographie et une mini-bio à patricia.caille@unistra.fr, c.forest@unistra.fr avant le 30 octobre 2016. 

Comité scientifique 

Karine Blanchon, Université de Bordeaux Montaigne, France / Vincent Bouchard, University of Indiana, Etats-Unis / Patricia Caillé, Université de Strasbourg / Claude Forest, Université de Strasbourg / Honoré Fouhba, Centre National d’Éducation, Cameroun / Odile Goerg, Université de Paris 7 / Lamia Guiga Belkaied, ESAC, Tunisie / Nolwenn Mingant, Université Paris 3 Sorbonne nouvelle / Françoise Naudillon, Concordia University, Québec, Canada / Patrick Ndiltah, Université de N’djamena, Tchad / Justin Ouoro, Université de Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. 

Comité organisateur du colloque: Patricia Caillé, Claude Forest, les étudiants de la 3ème promotion du Masters 2 Coproduction internationale d’oeuvres cinématographiques et audiovisuelles 

Bibliographie indicative : 

– ALBERSTAT Philip, The Insider's Guide To Film Finance, Focal Press, (2004) 2013, 280 p. 

– BARLET Olivier, Cinémas d’Afrique des années 2000, Paris, L’Harmattan, 2012, 442 p. 

– BEAUCHEMIN-FLOT Christine et FLOT Yannick, La vie des productrices, Séguier, 2016, 300 p. 

– BENHAMOU Françoise et FARCHY Joëlle, Droit d’auteur et copyright, La découverte, (2009) 2014, 126 p. 

– CRETON Laurent, DÉHÉE Yannick, LAYERLE Sébastien et MOINE Caroline (dir.), Les producteurs : enjeux créatifs, enjeux financiers, Nouveau monde éditions, 2011, 392 p. 

– DAVIES Adam et WISTREICH Nicol, The Film Finance Handbook: How to Fund Your Film: New Global Edition, International Edition, 2007, 480 p. 

– DIAWARA Manthia, African cinema. Politics and culture, Bloomington, Indiana university press, 1991, 192 p. 

– FLOT Yannick, La vie tumultueuse des producteurs, Séguier, 2014, 456 p. 

– GENOVA James E., Cinema and development in West Africa, Bloomington, Indiana university press, 2013, 192 p. 

– HAYNES Jonathan, Nollywood: The Creation of Nigerian Film Genres, University of Chicago Press, 2016, 416 p. 

–KRINGS Matthias and OKOME Onookome (eds), Global Nollywood. The Transnational Dimensions of an African Video Film Industry, Bloomington, Indiana university press, 2013, 382 p. 

– ROY Armes, Dictionnaire des cinéastes africains de long métrage, Paris, Karthala, 2008, 402 p. 

– RUELLE Catherine, Afrique 50. Singularités d’un cinéma pluriel, Paris, L’Harmattan, 2005, 334 p. 

Institut de recherche sur le cinéma et l’audiovisuel 

Institut de recherche sur le cinéma et l’audiovisuel 

HESCALE - Histoire, Économie, Sociologie des Cinémas d’Afrique et du Levant

Call for Papers 

International Conference – Strasbourg (France)

15, 16, 17 March 2017 

Producing films in/with Africa and the Middle East 

Maghrebi, Arab, Mediterranean and African cinemas have become favoured areas of research, particularly with respect to the political, cultural, social and aesthetic issues communicated by the films in the context of their national and international reception. By contrast, the production and circulation of these films have not attracted attention beyond the work of a few isolated researchers and films critics. 

While Africa is often wrongly perceived as being a desert for films, it now boasts several flourishing national cinemas, even besides Nollywood. Indeed, Africa has never produced as many films as it does today. These films are very popular in certain parts of the world while unknown if not rejected in others. Meanwhile in the Middle East, countries without any film cultures or film traditions, are attempting to redefine relationships of power with respect to the production and circulation of films. Furthermore, the digital revolution, and its economic and cultural impact have transformed the processes of film production, distribution and circulation. While recent interest in Nollywood has led to the renewal of studies on the production, distribution and consumption of films in this context, it has been at the cost of the diversity of the industries in other African countries.

In the last few years, several initiatives and projects have brought new research perspectives to bear on film distribution, exhibition and audiences, thereby revealing the ways in which the recent transformations have affected Maghrebi, Middle Eastern and sub-Saharan African cinemas. Two conferences, « Activités, pratiques spectatorielles et cultures de cinéma en Afrique et au Moyen Orient » organised in Strasbourg in May 2015 and « Représentations du cinéma et pratiques spectatorielles en Afrique francophone » in May 2016 In Marrakech, have led to the constitution of an international and multidisciplinary research network HESCALE the purpose of which is to analyse the film sector in its transnational, national and local dimensions. Several research orientations have been identified: audiences, spectatorship, film cultures and reception, which, like film circulation have already been the topics of conferences and seminars, and which we will continue to explore. The focus for the present call for papers is the political, cultural, economic and industrial characteristics of production. 

In countries with an enormous film supply coming essentially from other continents, but with its own (albeit irregular and sometimes non-existent) film production, what have been the dominant modes of production? What has been the impact of the digital revolution on the modes of production? What are the economic, industrial and social issues raised by the digital revolution? Who are the principal actors? Is there state involvement in film production? What are the financial, political and economic relationships with former colonial powers, with new actors in film production? What about equipment and staff training? What about the circulation of the films produced in these regions? Are there any specific and coherent geographical and linguistic areas emerging within these regions?

Perspectives from different disciplines are welcome:

- History: What quantitative and qualitative developments in film production can be discerned in specific countries or regional areas, in particular since independence? What have been the involvement and strategies of nation states? What have been those of sub-regional areas (UEMOA, CEDEAO, etc.)? How have film funding and foreign investment been reconfigured over time?

- Economics: What financial constraints and regulations influence producers in different regions? What strategies have been developed by professionals to adapt to a declining market? What has been the impact of financial constraints and reduced markets on production? What are the ways in which film production has been affected by the video market, television and the internet? 

- Sociology: What have been the career paths of film producers (background, training, etc.)? The development of careers, business practices and discourses? How are the various tasks related to film production organized, and the accumulation of different jobs (the filmmaker as producer and sometimes distributor of his/her own films, etc.)? What has been the impact of filmmakers’ associations (FEPACI) on film production? What productions for which cultures? 

The papers, which can be presented in French or in English, are expected to be between twenty and thirty minutes. 

The conference will alternate academic panels and round-table discussions with professionals. The proceedings will be published.

Send a 300- to 500-word abstract, a short bibliography and biography to: 

patricia.caille@unistra.fr, c.forest@unistra.fr before 30 October 2016. 

Scientific committee : 

Karine Blanchon, Université de Bordeaux Montaigne, France / Vincent Bouchard, University of Indiana, Etats-Unis / Patricia Caillé, Université de Strasbourg / Claude Forest, Université de Strasbourg / Honoré Fouhba, Centre National d’Éducation, Cameroun / Odile Goerg, Université de Paris 7 / Lamia Guiga Belkaied, ESAC, Tunisie / Nolwenn Mingant, Université Paris 3 Sorbonne nouvelle / Françoise Naudillon, Concordia University, Québec, Canada / Patrick Ndiltah, Université de N’djamena, Tchad / Justin Ouoro, Université de Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. 

Organizing committee: Patricia Caillé, Claude Forest, students of the Masters programme in International Coproduction of cinematic and audiovisual works. 

REMINDER - Out of Africa International Film Festival (OOAIFF) 2016: Call for entries

REMINDER - Out of Africa International Film Festival (OOAIFF) 2016: Call for entries

Regular Deadline: 30 September 2016

Out of Africa International Film Festival (OOAIFF) is committed to discovering and developing filmmakers to reach their greatest potential in film and to provide the global audience with original and creative films.

Through the networking platform there are programs, through which filmmakers will be discovered, supported, and inspired to create world record films that appeal to a global audience in their originality and creativity.

The second edition, 2016, is moving ONLINE! All films selected this year will be screened on the Festival's VIMEO Channel as well as the website. There will be screening of high-calibre selections of new-release features, documentaries and short films from all over Africa and outside Africa.

https://filmfreeway.com/festival/OutofAfricaInternationalFilmFestival

Rules & Terms

Eligibility 

To be eligible for the competition:

1. Entrants must comply with the entry Rules and Regulations including all deadlines, film length, entry materials and any other that have been set.

2. Non-English language works must have English subtitles at the time submitted. Dialogue lists will not be accepted.

Submitting a film to OOAIFF you must agree to the following:

• All the information entered in the OOAIFF entry form is true and accurate

• You must ensure that your film is genuinely your own

• You either own the rights to the footage, sound music and images which are part of your film

• In case of a collaborative work, co-authors must be acknowledged, and the nature of their participation in the making of the film must be specified.

• Completing the entry form and accepting the participation agreement does not guarantee that your film will be chosen as a competition finalist.

• The Producer grants OOAIFF the right to reproduce part of their film (maximum 1 min) for the purposes only of promoting the festival. This may be as part of a compilation; for exhibition by any means including screening, internet; for cable, satellite, or by any medium not yet devised.

Afrika Film Festival Cologne 2016, Fokus : Sisters in African Cinema - Programmheft | Booklet | Brochure - Deutsch | English | Français

Afrika Film Festival Cologne 2016

Fokus : Sisters in African Cinema

PROGRAMMHEFT | BOOKLET | BROCHURE

http://www.filme-aus-afrika.de/fileadmin/media_faa/pdf/2016/AFFK.pdf

Deutsch

Fokus: SISTERS IN AFRICAN CINEMA

Frauen vor und hinter der Kamera gewinnen im afrikanischen Filmschaffen zunehmend an Bedeutung. Sie wenden ihre cineastischen Blicke nicht nur auf die Rolle und die Probleme von Frauen im Alltag, sondern auch auf Frauen im Widerstand gegen patriarchale Strukturen, Ungerechtigkeiten, Gewalt und Menschenrechtsverletzungen sowie auf Frauen in Politik und Kultur. Mit dem Fokus SISTERS IN AFRICAN CINEMA will FilmInitiativ Köln das aktuelle Film- schaffen afrikanischer Frauen vorstellen und eurozentrischen Blicken auf Frauen in Afrika Perspektiven von Frauen aus Afrika entgegensetzen.

English

Theme: SISTERS IN AFRICAN CINEMA 

Women are becoming increasingly more important in African cinema, both on-screen and behind the camera. Their films take a cinematic look at the daily role of women and the prob- lems they face, at women who fight against patriarchal struc- tures, injustice, violence and an abuse of their human rights, and at women in politics and culture. With the theme SISTERS IN AFRICAN CINEMA, FilmInitiativ Köln wants to present the current filmmaking exploits of African women and to pit Euro- centric perceptions of women in Africa against the reality seen through the eyes of African women.

Français

Thème: SISTERS IN AFRICAN CINEMA

Les femmes devant et derrière la caméra ont de plus en plus d’importance dans la création cinématographique africaine. Elles portent leur regard de cinéaste non seulement sur le rôle et les problèmes des femmes au quotidien, mais aussi sur des femmes qui refusent les structures patriarcales, les injustices, la violence et les violations des droits de l’homme, ainsi que sur des femmes engagées dans la politique et la culture. Avec ce thème central SISTERS IN AFRICAN CINEMA, FilmInitiativ Köln peut présenter la création cinématographique actuelle des femmes africaines et remplacer le regard eurocentrique sur les femmes en Afrique par des perspectives données par des femmes d’Afrique.

Beti Ellerson: Sisters in African Cinema 

http://www.filme-aus-afrika.de/fileadmin/media_faa/pdf/2016/AFFK.pdf 

Deutsch, seite 26

Sisters in African Cinema von Beti Ellerson

English, page 29

Sisters in African Cinema by Beti Ellerson

Français, page 29

Sisters in African Cinema de Beti Ellerson


Links :

Afrika Film Festival Cologne 2016, Fokus : Sisters in African Cinema - Film Selection - DE | EN | FR

Sisters in African Cinema : FilmInitiativ Köln e.V. – Afrika Film Festival 2016 - Deutsch | English | Français

African Centre Artists in Residency Applications Open 2016

Africa Centre Open Call Announcement

http://www.africacentre.net/artists-in-residency/ 

General Application Guidelines : http://www.africacentre.net/air-2016-application-guidelines/ 

Deadline: 30 September 2016

Since its inception in 2011, the Africa Centre’s Artist in Residency Programme (AIR) has successfully awarded 39 African artists the chance to take up residencies across the globe. Through continued partnerships with residency programmes in Australia, Brazil, India, Spain, China and the United States, we are proud to offer eight new residency opportunities through the 2016 edition of this programme.

Last year, we added another layer to our residency programme by launching a separate competition for seasoned, mid-late career artists, allowing them to apply for artist-in-residence positions at the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Center in Italy. We are delighted to announce the second installation of this competition that will award an additional five residencies for Africa’s more experienced artists.

AIR is seeking applications from high calibre African artists, in different stages of their career development (from emerging to late career), who are provocative, innovative, and are stretching the boundaries of their artistic practice.

The residencies are available to composers, fiction and non-fiction writers, playwrights, poets, video/filmmakers, curators, visual and performance artists as well as artists of other forms whose work is inspired by or relates to global or social issues and promotes the well-being of humankind.

The AIR partners select an artist from a short list provided by the Africa Centre, for one of their 2017 or 2018 residencies. Each residency offers a distinct structure, set of requirements and duration. The costs of the residency and round-trip airfare are included in each residency award made.

Visit the Africa Centre website for further information about the 2016 programme

Source: Africa Centre

Ugandan Kay Kyohairwe, aka Kowa launches crowdfunding campaign for her film “Beats in a Jungle”

Ugandan Kay Kyohairwe, aka Kowa launches crowdfunding campaign for her film “Beats in a Jungle”

PRESS RELEASE

Ugandan filmmaker Kay Kyohairwe, aka Kowa has recently launched a crowd-funding campaign for her first feature film, "Beats in a Jungle", that tells the story of a young woman who is abducted, and her fight to return home.

Visit the Beats in a Jungle for details about the crowdfunding efforts and to make a contribution.

"Beats in a Jungle" was inspired by Kowa's experiences at her organization Coalition for Human Rights & Education Uganda (C.O.H.R.E) where she worked with young Aboke girls and boys who were kidnapped in Northern Uganda. After time spent studying video production at London's Blake College, Kowa returned to Uganda to work on telling these stories through images.

Shooting is scheduled to start in late September in and around Kampala with an all-Ugandan cast and crew.

Photos:

C.O.H.R.E CEO Kay 'Kowa' Kyohairwe, pictured at Soochow Human Rights Conference, Taiwan

Cast members Benon Mumba, Shanice Kyozira and Timothy Mumba

Beats in a Jungle sketch