AFRICAN FILM SERIES Fall 2006

Tuesdays at 6 pm in Biology/Physics 130
Each screening will be preceded by a brief introduction
Free Admission

Recovering the African Past
8/29 Destiny (Egypt, 1997, 135 minutes): Youssef Chahine (Prize for Lifetime Achievement, Cannes) presents the clash between liberal and fundamentalist Islam amidst the splendor of 12th century Andalusia; based on the life of the renowned Muslim philosopher Averroës.
9/5 Keïta! The Heritage of the Griot (Burkina Faso, 1995, 94 minutes): Dani Kouyaté introduces the Sundjata, the celebrated West African epic of the establishment of the Mali Empire, featuring the distinguished actor Sotigui Kouyaté.
9/12 Yaaba (Burkina Faso, 1989, 90 minutes): Idrissa Ouedraogo offers a morality tale of prejudice and tolerance that touchingly conveys the humanity of its characters. International Critics' Prize at Cannes, Sakura Gold Prize at Tokyo.

Fighting Colonialism
9/19 Flame (Zimbabwe, 1996, 85 minutes): Ingrid Sinclair tells of women guerrillas in Zimbabwe fighting the settler army as well as sexism in their own ranks. Nestor Almendros Award at Human Rights International Film Festival.

The Struggle for Majority Rule in South Africa
9/26 A Dry White Season (1989, 106 minutes): Euzhan Palcy presents André Brink’s novel of an Afrikaner who comes to challenge repression at the time of the 1976 Soweto Uprising.
10/3 Zulu Love Letter (2005, 104 minutes): Ramadan Suleman employs a challenging aesthetic to immerse viewers in the continuing trauma of the destruction wrought by apartheid.
10/10 The Wooden Camera (2003, 90 minutes): Ntshavheni Wa Luruli holds out hope of crossing the barriers of race and class in the new South Africa.

Political Failures
10/24 Guelwaar (Senegal, 1992, 115 minutes): Ousmane Sembène delves into the troubles with Senegal’s dependency on foreign aid.
10/31 Tableau Ferraille (Senegal, 1997, 85 minutes): Moussa Sene Absa presents Ismaël Lô, the popular Senegalese musician, in the role of an honest politician who falls victim to the corruption surrounding him.
11/7 Ali Zaoua, Prince of the Street (Morroco, 2000, 90 minutes): Nabil Ayouch transcends the harsh reality of street children with a poetics of childhood. Grand Prize at FESPACO.
11/14 Closed Doors (Egypt, 1999, 110 minutes): Atef Hetata shows how an adolescent gets drawn to join fundamentalists in Egypt, all the while spelling out the very real political grievances fundamentalists effectively articulate. Cinema for Peace Award at Venice.

Africa and the West
11/28 Bedwin Hacker (Tunisia, 2003, 103 minutes): Nadia El Fani presents a story of two women — a hacker challenging Western domination of the global media in cyberspace and a French secret service agent in hot pursuit.
12/5 Nha Fala / My Voice (Guinea-Bissau, 2002, 90 minutes): Flora Gomes proposes a musical — and asks us to remember Amilcar Cabral, the distinguished intellectual and guerrilla leader.

For further information, contact Josef Gugler
Department of Sociology, U-2068
phone 860-429-3417, fax 860-486-6356, e-mail josef.gugler AT uconn.edu