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.
Director/Directrice, Centre for the Study and Research of African Women in Cinema | Centre pour l'étude et la recherche des femmes africaines dans le cinéma
“With my camera I don’t shoot, I heal,” Euzhan Palcy said about her filmmaking philosophy as she accepted an Honorary Oscar last November as a pioneering filmmaker whose groundbreaking significance in international cinema is cemented in film history. Her classic Sugar Cane Alley (1983), selected by Ava DuVernay for this year’s Berlinale Retrospective on Coming of Age, helped put her native Martinique on cinema’s world stage, and went on to win over 17 international prizes. For Euzhan, filmmaking is a mission. Her spirit of collaboration and communication, be it with studio executives, Hollywood icons like Marlon Brando or technicians on set, has allowed her to deal with unpredictable circumstances on various film sets. Always true to her storytelling vision, she has become an inspiration for many, fighting for gender parity, and for a stronger representation of marginalised groups in front of and behind the camera. For the first time with us at the Berlinale, here is a chance not to be missed in joining her on this important journey.
Synopsis
A barber school haircut training video on how to give a white person an "Afro" hair-do.
The final film in Owusu’s hair trilogy, White Afro (2019), employs an archival instructional video produced by the educational department of the Barbers, Beauticians, and Allied Industries Association on how to offer curly perms or body waving services to their white clientele, ostensibly for financial gain. The training video is intermingled with Owusu’s mother’s experience working as a hairstylist at a predominantly white hair salon called Fantastic Sam's in Alexandria, Virginia. Offering a rare perspective on the Afro hairstyle—as an unmistakable marker of Black collective power that becomes a desirable, and appropriated, aesthetic during liberation movements—the film also expands on the abilities of non-Black beauticians and barbers to wield their shops as spaces for political change. -- CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts
Clémentine Dramani-Issifou : Franco-Beninoise chercheuse et curatrice indépendante de films | French-Beninese researcher and independent film curator ) https://www.semainedelacritique.com/fr/comite-de-selection
Séance Spéciale - Longs métrages | Features
Hafsia Herzi (Tunisia-Algeria-France) Tu mérites un amour (You Deserve a Lover), 2019. 102 min.
Kantarama Gahigiri is a Rwandan-Swiss filmmaker. Her first feature film Tapis Rouge has received awards worldwide, including TV5Monde Best Picture, followed by a theatrical release in France in May 2017. She is now developing Tanzanite, an Afrofuturistic thriller that takes place in colorful Nairobi, and she participated in Realness, an African screenwriters’ residency, with the film.
Marwa Zein, Sudanese director-producer, is among the seven young filmmakers attending the festival | La cinéaste-productrice soudanaise fait partie des sept jeunes cinéastes assistants au festival.
IEFTA (International Emerging Film Talent Association) once again partners with the renowned Marché du Film at the 72nd Cannes Film Festival to offer seven young filmmakers the opportunity to attend the festival, participate in career-changing Industry Workshops, develop their projects, build their networks and raise their ambitions.
L’IEFTA (International Emerging Film Talent Association) s'associe à nouveau au célèbre Marché du Film lors du 72ème Festival de Cannes pour offrir à sept jeunes réalisateurs la possibilité de assister au festival, de participer à des ateliers de réorientation professionnel, de développer leurs projets, de construire leurs réseaux et réaliser leurs ambitions.
Festival Africain des Films de Femmes Cinéastes (FAFFCI)
Huguette Goudjo
Tiffany Haddish
Nadjibatou Ibrahim Philippa Ndisi-Herrmann
Priscilla Nwanah
Monique Mbeka Phoba
Apolline Traoré
African Women Filmmakers
African women filmmakers breakdown barriers and challenge taboos. 08 March 2018. Emmanuelle Landais. dw.com - http://www.dw.com/en/african-women-filmmakers-break-down-barriers-and-challenge-taboos/a-42886479
Josza Anjembe
J’ai decouvert la fiction comme si je decouvrais une planete. Par Falila Gbadamassi | Publié le 02/03/2018. Geopolis - http://geopolis.francetvinfo.fr/josza-anjembe-j-ai-decouvert-la-fiction-comme-si-je-decouvrais-une-planete-180925
Angela Aquereburu
Angela Aquereburu, la Shonda Rhimes togolaise. Intothechic. Leslie Muya. 19 février 2018. intothechic - http://www.intothechic.com/32438/culture/angela-aquereburu-la-reine-des-series-togolaises-la-femme-a-sa-place/
Amma Asante
Amma Asante To Direct Drama Thriller ‘The Billion Dollar Spy’. 15 March 2018. Hollywoodsblackrenaissance - http://hollywoodsblackrenaissance.com/amma-asante-direct-drama-thriller-billion-dollar-spy/
Awotele No. 9 - Mars/March 2018 Focus: Succès Feminins en Afrique | Women Triumphing in Africa
- Marie-Laurentine Bayala: Produire au Sud - Des femmes apportent de nouvelles perspectives au Burkina Faso | Producing in the South: Women Bring New Perspectives to Burkina Faso
- Martial Nguea: Re(belles) Pionnières | Pioneering Rebels
- Fatou Kiné Sene: Succès Feminins dansle 7e art | Female Success in the 7th Art Close-up
Michel Amarger: Entretien/interview avec/with Rahmatou Keita Focus: Ciné et TV: Quel espace pour les femmes? | Film & TV: What Role for Women?
- Bitania Tadesse: Les Femmes dans le cinéma et à la télévision éthiopienne | FemaleForces in Ethiopian TV and Film
- Aderinsola Ajao: Nigeria: Les femmes impactent le cinéma et la télévision | Women impacting Nigerian Film and TV
- Domoina Ratsara: Quand femme et cinéma font bon ménage | When women and cinema make a good pair Flashback: Journées Cinématographiques de Carthage
Claire Diao: The Train of Salt and Sugar Claire Diao
JCFA 2018 : qui est Claire Diao?. Assétou Maiga. 03-05-2018. Queenmafa - https://queenmafa.net/2018/03/05/jcfa-2018-claire-diao/
Festival Africain des Films de Femmes Cinéastes (FAFFCI)
La première edition du FAFFCI a porté ses fruits. 21 mars 2018. L’œil d’afrique - http://loeildafrique.over-blog.com/2018/03/genre-et-cinema-une-approche-inclusive.html
Huguette Goudjo
Costumière de cinéma et fière d’être. 14-03-2018. EcranBenin - https://ecranbenin.net/2018/03/14/huguette-goudjo-costumiere-de-cinema-et-fiere/
Tiffany Haddish
Tiffany Haddish Talks About Upcoming TBS Comedy ‘The Last OG,’ the Oscars, & the Importance of Authenticity. K. Nicole Mills. 13 March 2018. Hollywoodsblackrenaissance - http://hollywoodsblackrenaissance.com/tiffany-haddish-sxsw-the-last-og/
Nadjibatou Ibrahim
Tout sur l’actrice béninoise Nadjibatou Ibrahim. 07 mars 2018. EcranBenin - https://ecranbenin.net/2018/03/07/tout-sur-lactrice-beninoise-nadjibatou-ibrahim/
Master class à Isma. 08 mars 2018. Isma-benin.org - http://isma-benin.org/2016/?p=3809
Apolline Traoré
Burkina Faso director gives African women authentic voice
Joe Bavier. 05 March 2018. Reuters - https://www.reuters.com/article/us-burkina-filmfestival-director/burkina-faso-director-gives-african-women-authentic-voice-idUSKBN16C0WP
VIDEO:
Philippa Ndisi-Herrmann
https://vimeo.com/177446004
Trailer for Feature-length Documentary, New Moon, by Philippa Ndisi-Herrmann (2018).
The 5th edition of the Journées Cinématographiques de la Femme Africain de l'Image (JCFA): the theme “The African woman professional meeting the challenges of the digital age”. According to the responses of some professionals, this is a timely theme. Digital technology is a tool that should be of great assistance to women.
Claire Diao, distributor
For the distributor the medium itself is the challenge, how to render on the screen the same good quality in terms of what was shot. As a distributor this is important because it incurs costs. Should it be distributed in DCP, on DVD, Blue Ray, using a USB stick? There is also the issue of sending the files. What do we do when we send a USB stick that never arrives, when sending a link to be downloaded and then there is the complaint that there is not a good Internet connection. I think that there are solutions, means to be devised so that the films can circulate, otherwise, films will be made and it will be impossible to diffuse them even in the digital age.
Kadi Sanogo, filmmaker
Nowadays, digital technology is in the process of taking the lead, facilitating the work of professionals in the film. If we look in our countries, as more and more films are being made every year, because of the accessibility of digital technology, the equipment is light and the cost is lower. It is therefore the moment to seize this opportunity in order to develop the cinema culture; however there needs to be training to better adapt to it.
Georgette Paré, actress
The advent of digital technology has triggered a kind of disruption. This is a boon to cinema in light of the possibilities that this technology offers. We were even lead to believe that with this tool, we would not be unemployed, which is not the case. It is true that it is accessible, that anyone can make images, but should this be considered compared to actual films? Things must be restructured; in order to know this technology better and to take advantage of it as it should be done.
By Bengnime Rachelle Some
A gallery where you get to to see cameras
Different types of cameras are exposed at the l’Institut de l’Image et du Son. Whether old or the latest trend, these tools are unveiled to the public for a better understanding of their attributes. Known as the "Galerie ciné équipement" [Cinema Equipment Gallery], this initiative aims to create exhibition and marketing spaces for film production equipment.
Film professionals and the public have the opportunity to revisit the evolution of the film camera and photo camera over time. They also have the possibility of having their devices repaired thanks to the technicians who are on site. Since the opening of the stands of the "Galerie ciné équipement", students from the city of Ouagadougou have been able to satisfy their curiosity by operating the rails or cranes. In addition to this moment of discovery, there is an impromptu workshop that allows young professionals to have feedback on their film projects: "it is an opportunity to have the point of view and the advice of Guy Désiré Yaméogo, a expert in screenwriting. This feedback will allow them to work through blockages" explains Mamounata Nikièma the initiator of the gallery.
She hopes to repeat this initiative at the fiftieth anniversary of FESPACO if the targeted audience shows interest in the event.
By Laurentine Bayala
"Tes cheveux démêlés cachent une guerre de sept ans’’ [Your untangled hair hides a seven-year war], the third documentary feature film by Algerian Fatima Sissani
"Tes cheveux démêlés cachent une guerre de sept ans’’is the third documentary feature film by Algerian director Fatima Sissani. Released in 2017, the film tells the story of three women involved in the National Liberation Front (FLN). "Why did you become involved in Algeria's independence by joining the FLN?" This question was asked to Zoulikah Bekkadour, Alice Cherki and Eveline Safir Lavalette who decided to fight against the colonisation of Algeria in their youth. Silent for years, today, they agree to revisit colonial Algeria and convey the "secrets" of their fight. A fight, which according to them "is above all a duty of all citizens". Through newspapers, archival photos, nostalgic music, everything, the portrait of these three women brings us closer to understanding the war, the pangs of colonization, segregation, racism, anti-Semitism. Despite the clandestine activities, prison, torture, the psychiatric hospital, nothing could stop the determination of these fighters. An act of resistance hailed by the public who were touched by the experience of these women. One of the filmgoers says in this regard that this part of the history of Algeria is a landmark and must inspire the youth facing the new form of colonisation that Africa is presenting living. Thanks to the documentary, the venture has been won for the director who wants to revisit the history and preserve the memory of her country.
‘‘Même pas mal’’ de Nadia El Fani : Le retour d’une guerrière. Fawz Ben Ali. 13 Nov 2017. Kapitalis.
Cheryl Dunye
The Watermelon Woman (Feat. Cheryl Dunye of Queen Sugar). 10 October 2017. Theextraordinarynegros.
VIDEO – EXTRAITS – CLIPS
Angela Aquereburu
YoBo Studios on her dramedy Hospitalite about a doctor and a traditional healer. YouTube.
Claire Diao, Rahmatou Keïta, Aïcha Macky
La chronique cinéma avec Claire Diao d"Awotele : Le Niger à l'honneur avec les films " Zin'naariya !" de Rahmatou Keïta ou "L'arbre sans fruit" d'Aicha Macky à l'occasion du festival Afrikamera 2017. YouTube.
Watch Films by Womxn Directors, Girls in Film in Mauritius, RECIDAK 2018 - La remise de distinctions | Presentation of Awards, Visions de femmes, Queen of Zambian TV Becky Ngom, Joburg Film Festival Women’s Event
African Female Filmmakers, Rungano Nyoni, June Givanni, Le Grand Débat: Un autre visage du cinema français : Claire Diao, Aset Malanda, Nina Melo, Josza Anjembe, Jihan El-Tahri,
African Film and Media -Three Women Making Films in Zimbabwe -Nollywood and Women, Stephanie Dongmo, Rwandan Women in Film, A Conversation with Tala Hadid, Afrique Plurielle TV5Monde : Alimata Salambéré, Dada Stella Kitoga, Monique Mbeka Phoba, In My Father’s Village by Tapiwa Kapuya
Stéphanie Dongmo, Nadja Harek, Oshosheni Hiveluah, Fatou Kandé Senghor, Laureates: Mashariki Film Festival Awards 2017 (Rwanda), Laureates: Zambia Film and Television Awards (ZAFTAs) 2017
Véro Tshanda Beya, Félicité (Alain Gomis) analyse, Issa Rae, Juliet Yaa Asantewaa Asante, Khady Sylla in Memoriam, Tsitsi Dangarembga, Rumbi Katedza, The Republic – a pilot series by Nicole Amarteifio
Liyana an animation film, executive-produced by English-Zimbabwean actress Thandie Newton. A Swazi girl embarks on a dangerous quest to rescue her young twin brothers.liyanathemovie.com.
Claire Diao
Double vague : mettre en lumière 10 ans de cinema. 9-06-2017. Entretien de Claire Tomasella. Africultures.
Bruktawit Tigabu
Bruktawit Tigabu, l'institutrice qui sauve des vies. Laura Carreno. 05-06-2017. Journal des Femmes.
Akosua Adoma Owusu
Ghanaian-American Filmmaker Gets 2017 African Movie Academy Awards (Amaa) Nomination. threesixtygh.com
Trailers | Bande annonce
Akosua Adoma Owusu
On Monday of Last Week Trailer by Akosua Adoma Owusu
