The purpose of the African Women in Cinema Blog is to provide a space to discuss diverse topics relating to African women in cinema--filmmakers, actors, producers, and all film professionals. The blog is a public forum of the Centre for the Study and Research of African Women in Cinema.

Le Blog sur les femmes africaines dans le cinéma est un espace pour l'échange d'informations concernant les réalisatrices, comédiennes, productrices, critiques et toutes professionnelles dans ce domaine. Ceci sert de forum public du Centre pour l'étude et la recherche des femmes africaines dans le cinémas.

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24 May 2018

FESPACO 2019 : Appel à films est ouvert | Call for entries is open

FESPACO 2019
Appel à films est ouvert
Call for entries is open


Le FESPACO a l'honneur de porter à la connaissance des professionnels du cinéma et de l'audiovisuel que les inscriptions pour la sélection des films de la 26e édition, prévue pour se tenir du 23 février au 02 mars 2019, sont ouvertes.


FESPACO is honoured to announce to cinema and audio-visual professionals that the call for entries is open for the selection of films for the 26th edition, to take place from 23 February to 2 March 2019. 


Date limite | Deadline : 31 Octobre / October 2018

23 May 2018

Black Camera: On-screen Narratives, Off-screen Lives: African Women Inscribing the Self by Beti Ellerson (Spring 2018)

On-screen Narratives, Off-screen Lives: African Women Inscribing the Self
Beti Ellerson

Black Camera
Vol. 9, No. 2 (Spring 2018), pp. 460-476

The journeys of on-screen characters, while most do not reflect the off-screen trajectories of the real-life women, some do provide glimpses that parallel the paths that these women have voyaged in their own lives, perhaps influenced by their characters, or more brutally, because of them. Their travels, imaginary and real, had some relationship to their roles as actor and/or the choices they later made as a result of their encounter with/within the world of cinema. It is their on-screen legacy, especially in the case of iconic films, that has been the most enduring; as these women, far removed from their fame in these early films, live quiet off-screen lives a long way from the experiences of their cinematic characters.

Moreover, the filmmakers, who navigate frontiers, negotiate relocations and displacements to extra-African environments, inscribe an autobiographical journeying, problematizing these itinerant identities in their films. Likewise, traveling, sojourning and relocating across the globe involve shifting or ultimately expanding the identity of their cinema. Hence, an exploration of on-screen representations offer a larger picture of their experiences in front of and behind the camera.

Subheadings:
Reel imaginaries, real herstories
Behind the camera, in the frame: autobiographical imaginaries 

22 May 2018

Women at the 25th African Film Festival New York 2018

Women at the 25th
African Film Festival
New York
2018

Women’s presence at the African Film Festival New York is visible in all categories with many of the film practitioners in attendance for discussion at the screenings. At the helm of the Festival is Sierra Leonean Mahen Bonetti, founder and director. Some of the highlights at the 2018 edition are Apolline Traoré's opening film Borders; the 2017 version of Selbe: One Among Many, by Safi Faye, reissued in Wolof, originally released in 1983; French-Burkinabé curator Claire Diao’s traveling series “Quartiers Lointains”; Ekwa Msangi’s Master Class, during which she explores building a sustainable career as a filmmaker. This year’s festival, which celebrates its 25th year, runs from 16-22 May to 10 June with screenings and other relevant cultural events in various venues.

Abbesi Akhamie.  Still Water Runs Deep. (Nigeria/USA), 2017, 15 min

Nicole Amarteifio. Before the Vows (Ghana) 2017, 88 min

Josza Anjembe. Le Bleu blanc rouge de mes cheveux (France) 2016, 21 min

Machérie Ekwa Bahango. Maki’la (Democratic Republic of the Congo/France) 2018, 78 min

Jenna Bass. High Fantasy (South Africa) 2017, 96 min

Samantha Biffot. The African Who Wanted to Fly (Belgium/France/Gabon/China) 2016, 70 min

Djali Brown-Cepeda. A Pesar de su Ausencia. (U.S.) 2017, 8 min

Theresa Traore Dahlberg. Ouaga Girls (Sweden/Burkina Faso/France/Qatar) 2017, 83 min

Iman Djionne. Boxing Girl (Senegal) 2016, 26 min

Safi Faye. Selbe: One Among Many - 2017 Version (Senegal) 1983/2017, 30 min

Idil Ibrahim (Somali/USA) Sega - 2018, 25 min.

Marthe Djilo Kamga. Vibrancy of Silence: A Discussion with My Sisters (Belgium/U.S.) 2017, 90 min

Tapiwa Kapuya, Tawanda Gunda. In My Father’s Village (Zimbabwe) 2016, 22 min

*Rahmatou Keïta. The Wedding Ring (Niger) 2016, 96 min

Sewra Kidane Proclamation Punctuation (U.S.) 2016/2017, 5 min

Aïcha Elhadj Macky. The Fruitless Tree (Niger/France) 2016, 52 min

Rosine Mbakam. The Two Faces of a Bamiléké Woman (Belgium/Cameroon) 2016, 76 min

Akosua Adoma Owusu. On Monday of Last Week (U.S.) 2018, 14 min

Magaajyia Silberfeld. Vagabonds (U.S./France/Niger) 2017, 16 min 

Apolline Traoré. Borders (Burkina Faso) 2017, 90 min

Sheila S. Walker. Familiar Faces/Unexpected Places: A Global African Diaspora (U.S./Various Countries) 2018, 31 min

Stephina Zwane. Baby Mamas (South Africa) 2018, 93 min



21 May 2018

Safi Faye : Selbe, one among many | Selbe et tant d'autres – restored/restauré en/in Wolof – African Film Festival New York 2018

Safi Faye : Selbe, one among many | et tant d'autres (1982)

At the beginning of the film, the eponymous Selbé tells us that her mother made a song for her: "the song I sing is like our life, there is no rest for the poor." The song is repeated in the same way as the repetition of the cycle of daily activities: breastfeeding the child, grinding millet, fetching wood, preparing food. Similarly, there is the recurring discussion about the men who leave the village in search of work in Dakar but return with nothing. The song ends the film with a hopeful wish for the future: "Mother, mother of us all, do not give up, do not give up. Work in the fields until you drop. God why is this our fate? God find a better future for our children."

Safi Faye : Selbe, one among many | et tant d'autres – restored/restauré en/in Wolof – African Film Festival New York 2018

http://www.africanfilmny.org/aff2018/tag/safi-faye/ NO LONGER AVAILABLE

[English]
In focusing on the daily life of a Senegalese village woman, Selbe: One Among Many examines the economic and social roles rural African women are expected to play. Selbe has the heavy responsibility of providing for a large family as her husband searches unsuccessfully for work in a neighboring town. On his return, he joins the other unemployed men of the village, who will not help the women, but are as dependent on them as the children for food and shelter.

This reissue marks the first time the film has been issued in its original Wolof language. U.S. Premiere of reissue in Wolof. In the presence of Safi Faye.

Français]
Le mari de Selbé est parti en ville gagner sa vie. C'est donc à elle d'assumer une grande famille, le travail aux champs, en pleine saison sèche. Ses consœurs n'ont rien à lui envier, leurs charges sont aussi écrasantes: elles doivent subvenir aux besoins de tous les membres de la famille, assurer les corvées domestiques et le travail agricole. Elles parlent de leurs droits, leurs devoirs, leurs rapports avec l'homme qu'elles aiment ou critiquent. Un film rude, à l'image de la vie de ces femmes.

En enchaînant sans répit des plans rapprochés sur les bras, les épaules, les corps musclés en mouvement de ces femmes solides, en activité permanente, environnées d'enfants, Safi Faye a réussi à évoquer formellement dans ce bref documentaire, la dureté de ces destinées sans cesse confrontées aux exigences de la survie.

Ce documentaire offre un regard unique sur la vie quotidienne en Afrique de l'Ouest. Tourné au Sénégal, Selbe met l'accent sur la responsabilité économique et le rôle social des femmes dans la société africaine.

Sorti en 1982, Selbe et tant d'autres a été restauré dans sa version d’origine en wolof en 2017. Presenter en première aux Etats-Unis en sa version restaurée, en presence de Safi Faye.

LINK | LIEN

Safi Faye : “Fad,jal” (Cannes Classics 2018)

19 May 2018

REMINDER: Call for Submissions - Reel Sisters of the Diaspora Film Festival and Lecture Series 2018

Call for Submissions:
Reel Sisters of the Diaspora Film Festival and Lecture Series 2018

Deadline: 31 May 2018 
Late Deadline: 12 June 2018 
Extended Deadline: 22 June 2018

Reel Sisters 21 Anniversary event will take place from 20-21 October 2018

The Reel Sisters of the Diaspora Film Festival & Lecture Series is a two-day annual film festival founded by African Voices magazine and Long Island University's Media Arts Dept., Brooklyn Campus. Established in 1997, Reel Sisters (www.reelsisters.org) is dedicated to providing opportunities for women of color filmmakers to advance their careers in the film industry. Reel Sisters is the first Brooklyn-based film festival to showcase films directed, produced and written by women of color. Gender non-conforming filmmakers are welcomed to submit women centered films to the festival. 

18 May 2018

Cannes 2018 : Sofia by/de Meryem Benm'Barek. Analysis /analyse : Falila Gbadamassi (Africiné)

Cannes 2018: Sofia by/de Meryem Benm'Barek. Analysis / analyse: Falila Gbadamassi (Africiné)

Translated from French by Beti Ellerson and published on the African Women in Cinema Blog in collaboration with Africine.org. Falila Gbadamassi is a writer at Africiné Magazine. (Images: Cannes).

En français (ci-après) : http://www.africine.org/?menu=art&no=14452

Sofia, the first feature film by Franco-Moroccan Meryem Benm'Barek screened on 16 May 2018 at Un Certain Regard, is a social drama set in a society holding on to backward beliefs. The young filmmaker delivers a polished work presenting a superb portrait of a woman, brilliantly performed by Maha Alemi.

Sofia (Maha Alemi) is a clever 20-year-old who discovers that she is pregnant and is about to give birth. In Morocco, to have a child outside of marriage is a crime. Hence, assisted by her cousin Lena (Sarah Pearls), the young woman has a few hours to find the father of her child, a certain Omar (Hamza Khafif).

Sofia is clearly not very expressive. In addition, she is almost scolded for not being more expansive when she drags her entire family into this "experiment", considered particularly humiliating in Moroccan society.

Especially when her cousin Lena, who comes to her rescue from the very start of the drama, asks her to light her lantern. Though Sofia has problems, it does not automatically elicit empathy. And one of Meryem Benm'Barek's remarkable magic tricks is to make her, scene by scene, a woman who ends up commanding respect and admiration.

Sofia’s main charcter is a heroine in a world of women, as her mother, aunt and cousin are the main protagonists. On the other hand, the men (Sofia's father and the father of her child), contrary to appearances, are accessories, even if they can also cause irreparable harm.

Sofia's stoicism is the most visible facet of her heroism. Her denial that she is pregnant, the rejection and anger of her parents, her new motherhood, all are hardships that she seems to traverse with indifference. Her face, filmed in close-up, is almost always impassive. But when she does smiles, it is to show, and perhaps especially to affirm, that despite the circumstances, she remains in control of her destiny. Particularly in a society that oppresses women and leaves them, as a result, little or no room for maneuver. A lesson in feminism, without fanfare.

Meryem Benm'Barek created a scenario of exceptional finesse and intelligence. And she was able as well, to transform it into images with the same qualities. Maha Alemi, who carries the film, is also a wonderful discovery. This perfectly-mastered first work, is again, proof of the vitality of Moroccan cinema.

Un roseau nommé Sofia. Un film de Meryem Benm'Barek. Analysis\analyse: Falila Gbadamassi (Africiné). Falila Gbadamassi est rédactrice à Africiné Magazine

Sofia, le premier long métrage de la Franco-Marocaine Meryem Benm'Barek projeté le 16 mai 2018 à Un Certain Regard, est un drame social dont le décor est une société aux principes encore rétrogrades. La jeune cinéaste livre une œuvre épurée au service d'un somptueux portrait de femme, interprété avec brio par Maha Alemi.

Sofia (Maha Alemi) est une sage jeune fille de 20 ans qui découvre, par hasard, qu'elle est enceinte et surtout qu'elle est sur le point d'accoucher. Au Maroc, mettre au monde un enfant en dehors des liens du mariage est un crime. Aidée par sa cousine Lena (Sarah Perles), la jeune femme a quelques heures pour retrouver le père de son enfant, un certain Omar (Hamza Khafif). Lire l'intégralité de l'article @ http://africine.org/?menu=art&no=14452


17 May 2018

Safi Faye : “Fad,jal” (Cannes Classics 2018)

Safi Faye : “Fad,jal” (Cannes Classics 2018)

Safi Faye: "Fad signifies “Arrive” and Jal means “Work”. “Work” because when you arrive at this farming village called Fadial, you must work. When you work, you’re happy, and if you don’t work, people will mock you".
 
Source: festival-cannes.com by Charlotte Pavard [https://www.festival-cannes.com/en/festival/actualites/articles/safi-faye-recounts-fad-jal]

Safi Faye returns to Cannes with Fad,Jal, restored by the CNC, presented at Cannes Classics. The film was first screened at Cannes in 1979 at Un Certain Regard. Also selected at Cannes at Un Certain Regard 1996, was her film Mossane.

Fad,jal (Grand-père, raconte-nous) de Safi Faye. Une présentation du CNC et de Safi Faye. Restauration numérique effectué a à partir de la numérisation en 2K des négatives 16mm. Restauration réalisée par le laboratoire de CNC. En présence de Safi Faye. 

Synopsis : Fad,jal (1979, 1h52, Sénégal, France)

Fad,Jal is a Serere Senegalese village. At school, children learn, in French, the grammar and history of France. Villagers practice their religion in a church, a vestige of colonialism.

At the foot of a tree, the ancestor and a griot recount to the children in Wolof, the history of the village—its customs, its tradition, its creation. An opportunity to discover the artisanal trades, agricultural techniques and the difficulty of exploiting the land because of the drought. Meanwhile, as a result of the recently-implemented government policy,  the Serere are confronted on a daily basis with the appropriation of their land, previously transmitted by oral agreement among the villagers.

Fad,Jal est un village sénégalais sérère. A l'école, les enfants apprennent, en français, la grammaire et l'histoire de France. Les villageois pratiquent leur religion dans une église, vestige du colonialisme.

Au pied d'un fromager, l'ancêtre et un griot racontent en wolof l'histoire du village aux enfants, sa création, ses coutumes, ses traditions. C'est l'occasion de découvrir les métiers artisanaux, les techniques agricoles et la difficulté d'exploiter les terres à cause de la sècheresse. En parallèle, le quotidien des sérères est confronté à la politique gouvernementale qui s'approprie désormais les terres, auparavant transmises oralement entre les villageois.

(Source: Cannes communiqués)

Safi Faye (Cannes 2018):



Fad,Jal (Cannes 2018)




LINK | LIEN


16 May 2018

Rafiki: to our forbidden love! | à nos amours interdites ! Cannes 2018 (analysis/analyse, Falila Gbadamassi - Africiné)

Rafiki: to our forbidden love! Cannes Film Festival (8-19 May 2018). Falila Gbadamassi (Africiné Magazine: analysis of the film by Wanuri Kahiu)

Translated from French by Beti Ellerson and published on the African Women in Cinema Blog in collaboration with Africine.org.

En français : http://www.africine.org/?menu=art&no=14442

A film about love, between two high school girls, which caused its director [Wanuri Kahiu] to be threatened with imprisonment in Kenya. Rafiki, a remarkable drama, is one of three African films in competition at the Un Certain Regard.

“We are here to celebrate love because we have come a long way to tell this story, it cannot be shown in Kenya (it has been banned since 27 April 2018, because the film is accused of ‘promoting’ lesbianism) but we can show it to you,” Kenyan filmmaker Wanuri Kahiu said during the screening of her film on 9 May 2018 on the Croisette. Rafiki ("Friend" in Swahili), an adaptation from the book by Ugandan Monica Arac de Nyeko, opened the competition at Un Certain Regard.

In Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, Kena (Samantha Mugatsia) and Ziki (Sheila Munyiva) are neighbours from the same area, though they belong to a different social background. But more importantly, their fathers are political rivals involved in an election campaign where the slightest blunder could be disastrous. With her girlfriends and her kitsch look, Ziki only thinks about having fun. Kena is more serious and wants to become a nurse. A tomboy, she often hangs with her friend Blacksta (Neville Misati) who plans to make her a respectable woman in the near future.

Meanwhile, Kena and Ziki "imagine themselves", one would say to paraphrase Vanessa Paradis (singer and actress, on the poster of Un Couteau dans le cœur, the film by Yann Gonzalez in the running for the 2018 Palme d'Or) when she interprets the song Tandem. The two high school girls come closer together and finally declare their burning desire for each other, in this Kenyan society where homosexuality is the latest crime in fashion.

The pragmatic Kena, while taking many risks to make the relationship happen, is careful not to reveal it. The frivolous Ziki, who does not want to be an ordinary Kenyan, chooses rebellion. Can one or the other of these strategies allow them to live their love openly when the pastor of their community emphasises, when he can, the abomination of a homosexual relationship?

The Kenyan state shares his view: homosexuality is illegal and is punishable by 14 years in prison. Reality has caught up with fiction. The shame is now cast on Wanuri Kahiu, who, congratulated a few hours after the announcement of her selection at Cannes, is now under threat of imprisonment because her film portrays homosexual love. At the moment, Kenyans are a long way from seeing the first Kenyan film selected at Cannes. Yet, they can be proud of this lively and colourful work, like the credits of the film. It echoes a Kenyan youth who enjoys its right to insouciance even in the most dramatic situations. Supported by two performers who convey their characters valiantly and with great sincerity, Rafiki is a beautifully made film. Wanuri Kahiu's sensitive and skilful storytelling takes the viewer by the hand, to see the blossoming of a love born in the expressions and smiles filmed with close-up shots. Through the lens of the filmmaker, the detail of the faces of the lovers becomes a true reflection of their soul.

Wanuri Kahiu produced a real gem that was born, in part, on the Croisette. Her selection is akin to a homecoming. Thanks to la Fabrique Cinéma of the French Institute, a program that supports young talents of the world, she completed the scriptwriting for Rafiki. "It's an honour and a privilege to be here (in Cannes)," said the Kenyan filmmaker at the presentation of her film. Proud to be at the Cannes Film Festival but also proud of her native Kenya. "Even if we are heartbroken by what is happening in our country," said Wanuri Kahiu, "we are proud to be Kenyans." And the future audience of Rafiki will be able to boast of having chosen a good film.

[Français]
Falila Gbadamassi est rédactrice à Africiné Magazine
Rafiki: à nos amours interdites !  Festival de Cannes (8-19 mai 2018)

Un film d'amour… entre deux lycéennes qui vaut à sa réalisatrice d'être menacée d'emprisonnement au Kenya. Rafiki, drame solaire, est l'un des trois films africains en compétition à Un Certain Regard.

"Nous sommes ici pour célébrer l'amour parce que nous sommes venues de loin pour raconter cette histoire. Il ne peut pas être projeté au Kenya (il est interdit depuis le 27 avril 2018, parce que le film est accusé de "promouvoir" le lesbianisme) mais nous pouvons vous le montrer", a déclaré la cinéaste kényane Wanuri Kahiu lors de la projection de son film le 9 mai 2018 sur la Croisette. Rafiki ("Ami" en swahili), adaptation du livre de l'Ougandaise Monica Arac de Nyeko, a lancé la compétition à Un Certain Regard. Lire l'intégralité de l'article @ http://www.africine.org/?menu=art&no=14442

14 May 2018

Call for submissions: Udada (SISTERHOOD) International Women’s Film Festival - Kenya

Call for submissions:
Udada (SISTERHOOD) International Women’s Film Festival
16-20 October 2018

Submission deadline: 30 July 2018

The festival is the first of its kind in the region to feature the works of women in different genres; drama, comedy, fiction, documentary, animation and experimental film productions. It aims to empower women film makers from all walks of life. We believe that through this initiative, we will provide a platform for established and emerging female talents in the film industry. This platform avails opportunities for women film makers to exhibit their work, discuss and share their experiences and challenges. Network with professional film makers, meet their supporters and interact with other major players in the industry. In so doing, we aim to encourage social change and elevate women’s status at home and in the workplace. The festival has been running for four years now featuring, 

- Film screenings. 
- Filmmakers’ forum. 
- Capacity building workshops. 
- Co-productions with other festivals in Africa and the world over.

The 5th edition of UIWFF is slated for the 16th to 20th of October, 2018. This year’s theme is “If We ran The World…” We aim to have women from around the world, particularly Kenyan and African women to participate in this year’s theme by submitting a short video answering the question “IF WE RAN THE WORLD…” A hashtag will also be created to engage women and men around the world via social media.

Workshops that will be carried out during the festival:

- Sound capture, design and mixing and film scoring. 
- Creative writing 
- Acting 
- Dada Pitch, distribution and marketing



Wild Track Newsletter 27 – March-April 2018 about African women in cinema in Zimbabwe


Wild Track Newsletter 27
March-April 2018

about African women in cinema in Zimbabwe

The Wild Track Newsletter is published by the Institute of Creative Arts for Progress in Africa (ICAPA TRUST) 

The Wild Track Newsletter covers information, issues and events relevant and related to African women in cinema in general and specifically those from Zimbabwe, including coverage of the International Images Film Festival for Women (IIFF), the annual film festival which takes place in Zimbabwe. In addition, it covers gender related arts-based activities in the Zimbabwe area.

Back issues are also available on the ICAPA Trust site: Issue 26, Issue 25, Issue 24, Issue 23, Issue 22, Issue, 21, Issue 20, Issue 19, Issue 18, Issue 17, Issue 15, Issue 14, Issue 13, Issue 12, Issue 11, Issue 10, Issue 9, Issue 8, Issue 7.



Filmmakers have come together to form the Zimbabwe Film Industry Development Platform

ICAPA delegation at the Brussels Conference on the results of EU supported ACP projects

ICAPA director Tsitsi Dangarembga had a chance to network with other African Women Filmmakers at the Berlinale

Statement about sexual harrassment in local film industry read more 

More Festival Honours!
ICAPA's "In My Father's Village" has been selected as the opening film for The Maysles Cinema venue in Harlem at the New York African Film Festival 2018

11 May 2018

Matamba Kombila: “Sens Dessus Dessous” crowdfunding campaign | campagne Indiegogo

Matamba Kombila:
“Sens Dessus Dessous” crowdfunding campaign | campagne Indiegogo

JOIN THE INDIEGOGO CAMPAIGN | REJOINDRE LA CAMPAGNE INDIEGOGO

A mini-series of nine short films of nine minutes each, "Sens Dessus Dessous" (tr: turn upside down) has as its main theme the experiences of four deaf and mute children, frustrated by their difficulties in communicating with their families. They decide to invent a machine in order to break the barriers of language and the prejudices they face daily.

Mini-série de neuf courts-métrages de neuf minutes chacun, «Sens Dessus Dessous» a pour trame de fond quatre enfants sourds et muets, frustrés par leurs difficultés de communiquer avec leurs familles. Ils décident d’inventer une machine qui permettra de briser les barrières de la langue et les préjugés auxquels ils sont confrontés quotidiennement.



SYNOPSIS

THE STORY Sens Dessus Dessous is a mini series of 9 shorts of 9 minutes each where we follow the troubled lives of four deaf friends Anoushka, Chris Levy, Livia and Pierre.

L'HISTOIRE Sens Dessus Dessous est une mini série de 9 courts métrages de 9 minutes chacun où nous suivons la vie troublée de quatre amis sourds Anoushka, Chris Levy, Livia et Pierre.


BIO

Matamba Kombila is a filmmaker who lives between New York City and Libreville…She made two experimental shorts in 2014, A Walk in Beauty and A Walk in Purpose. A Walk in Purpose screened at various festivals and shows in Europe and the USA. Her third film Telesourd, shot in 2015, screened at Real Sisters Film Fest 2015, AFRIFF2015 and LAFF2016 among others, and received two awards. Her fourth installment DD Teddy Bear, was released early 2016. In 2016, she produced award winning director Ekwa Msangi’s film, Farewell Meu Amor; and Gabon filmmaker Fernand Lepoko’s feature, Matris.

Matamba Kombila, une réalisatrice gabonaise qui se donne pour objectif de réduire la frontière de communication, entre les sourds et personne dites normales…Styliste et designer à l’origine, sa créativité mêlée à son âme humaniste lui ont donné la capacité d’écrire sur des aspects à forte tonalité sociale, singulièrement celles qui sont perceptibles dans son pays le Gabon.


SOURCE


10 May 2018

Noire n’est pas mon métier - 16 comédiennes noires françaises publient un livre collectif | Black is not my profession - 16 Black French actresses collectively publish a book

 

Noire n’est pas mon métier - 16 comédiennes noires françaises publient un livre collectif

Black is not my profession - 16 Black French actresses collectively publish a book

A few days before the opening of the Cannes Film Festival they appeal to the cinema community. Sixteen black French actresses, including Firmine Richard and Sonia Rolland, respond to Aïssa Maïga's call. Together, on 3 May, they published a collective book that reads like a manifesto: Noire n’est pas mon métier (Black [with feminine noun] is not my profession (ed. Seuil). Through their stories and their journeys, these actresses, passionate about their profession, testify to the double glass ceiling – racism and sexism – that they experience as a woman and Black person.

The book is a call for parity in the representation of French society in cinema, theater, television and in the cultural field in general.

***

Elles interpellent le milieu du cinéma à quelques jours de l'ouverture du festival de Cannes : 16 comédiennes noires françaises, dont Firmine Richard ou Sonia Rolland, répondent à l'appel d'Aïssa Maïga. Ensemble, jeudi 3 mai, elles publient un livre collectif qui sonne comme un manifeste : Noire n'est pas mon métier (éd. Seuil). À travers leurs histoires et leurs parcours, ces actrices passionnées par leur métier témoignent du double plafond de verre – racisme et sexisme – qu'elles subissent en tant que femmes et Noires.

Le livre est un appel à une représentation plus juste de la société française au cinéma, au théâtre, à la télévision et dans le domaine culturel en général.

***

And they were all present at the Cannes Film Festival to share their thoughts. On the terrace of UniFrance, they first explained their approach: "We would like for the cinema to include us as we are today, not like images from Épinal. We do not want to be a diversity display, Rachel Khan clarifies, alluding to the subordinate roles (of the nurse type) generally confined to black actresses. And Aïssa Maïga continues: "We want to speak to French cinema, but also to the youth, to the elites, to the teachers who have failed us... To say to the Republic that we are here".


Et ils étaient tous présents au Festival de Cannes pour partager leur façon de penser. Sur la terrasse d'UniFrance, ils ont d'abord expliqué leur démarche : "Nous voudrions que le cinéma nous intègre tels que nous sommes aujourd'hui, pas comme les images d'Épinal. Nous ne voulons pas être un gage de diversité", précise Rachel Khan, faisant allusion à les rôles subalternes (de type infirmière) généralement confiés à des actrices noires. Et Aïssa Maïga de poursuivre : "Nous voulons parler au cinéma français, mais aussi à la jeunesse, aux élites, aux enseignants qui nous ont laissé tomber... Dire à la République que nous sommes là". (Source: https://www.public.fr/Toutes-les-photos/Cannes-2018-Noire-n-est-pas-mon-metier-Quand-16-actrices-noires-denoncent-le-racisme-1471892)

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