African cinema

Part of third cinema (first – Hollywood, second European art film).

Reactive: “As a cinema of emancipation it articulates the codes of an essentially First World technology into indigenous aesthetics and mythologies.”

Inspiration was sought also from Soviet cinematographic traditions, Latin American cinema novo, and Italian neo-realism.

When a strong tradition exists before the introduction of Western forms, the two cultures can exist side by side, like in music. But with cinema, Western cinema entered a space where no history existed.

African filmmakers face a public with often already Western taste. Though that’s not always their first preference! In Tanzania, Kenya, , Cameroon, Sierra Leone: Indian films very popular.

Tanzania 1920s-1980s: people went to see a (usually Indian) film every day. Opening nights important, black market flourished; ticket boys, “reeling”. In the 1990s most cinemas closed down.

African cinema has been called even “The Last Cinema” but films have been present in Africa for a long time, since the beginning of cinema: - screening perhaps already 1896, South Africa (projector stolen from London) - 1905 onwards mobile cinemas in Dakar, animal cartoons and Lumiere films

- also as a film shooting location from 1905-> but for a long time only foreigners made films, and often they were not even shown in Africa - stereotypes of Africans, the exoticism of Lumiere, Tarzan films from 1918 onwards --> lasting mark: “the dark continent”, the savages o major concern for African film directors: to provide a more realistic image of Africa - ethnographic films focused on exotic places, urban Africa was not shown - also documentary films copied explorer films and exotic fiction films

Nianga 1925 (BFI website) one of the first films showing African actors screened in London Film as propaganda and education during the colonial era - “We have to educate the Africans” - Charlie Chaplin considered too technically complex for Africans and a bad choice because presented Western people in a negative light - Berlin Conference 1884-85 where the colonies were divided: colonial governors, missionaries and anthropologists  the same groups had effect on the films made and shown in Africa

Three main groups, both geographical and language groups: Anglophone, Francophone, Lusophone

- the Brits: Bantu Educational Kinema Experiment o The colonial office of the British Film Institute o 1935-37 o 35 short films o lorry tours o cinema as extension of colonialism o dealt with European customs, farming education, health education, customs o Africans in the production in order to cut costs o The whole production, also editing, done in Africa – ironical, considering today!

Some anti-colonial films, but they were banned for decades Marc Allegret: Voyage au Congo (France 1926) René Vautier: Afrique 50 (France/Burkina Faso 1950)

- 1939-55 Colonial Film Unit, East African Branch, Central (present-day Zimbabwe), West African (present-day Nigeria and Ghana) o first goal apparently war propaganda, African soldiers were needed in the WWII o more than 200 films, mainly for African audience o problems: produced so simple films (slow, one take, few characters, one theme) that they were boring, plus no connection with Africans o 1949 it was realized that Western films don’t work, Africans don’t identify with them – it was decided they have to be let to make their own films, film school in Accra (Gold Coast), till 1955 – but the graduates mainly never had the chance to direct their own films o Ghana: 1957 after independence the first president Nkrumah nationalized the film production and created an advanced film infrastructure – when he was replaced, the films were destroyed (because they were considered “cult of personality”)

“Three stages”: assimilation confrontation – look for a past culture combative (needs of the people)

Importance of oral tradition! - The camera as a griot. The main character doesn’t have similar importance as in Western films. - Digressions are common. There are no subplots like in Western films. - Concentration on the actions of a group. - The spiritual connected to the everyday

Anglophone Africa: the scarcity of films - no assimilation policy - no film schools, the film schools in Britain didn’t accept African students - compare: “Nos ancetres les gaulois”, our French ancestors - more pragmatic attitude: films not so important in the development of the society - no film screenings like in the French embassies

Francophone Africa

- assimilation politics - education in France and in Africa - market for French films - tight control about the films made in Africa - The French were worried about negative Africa representations in Western films, too, because of their own reputation (“as if nothing had improved in Africa after we started our colonies”)

Ousmane Sembene 1923-2007 “father of African cinema” - early life: automobile mechanics, carpentry, fisherman - served in French army in both Europe and Africa - social realist - novelist – because such a high illiteracy rate, turned into films - studied film in Moscow - used bike to take the films for screening around Senegal - began to make films in French, turned into indigenous languages, Wolof and Diola (compare with Ngugi who first published in English, then in Kikuyu) - 12 films plus documentaries - Often discussed women’s position in the society (Moolaade: female genital mutilation) - La Noire de… / Black Girl, based on his own short story (and first on a newspaper article)

Senegal: “Golden years” in the 1970s - Even in 1980s Senegal had more filmmakers than all other African countries in the sub- Saharan region (although Burkina Faso near; nowadays Nigeria and South Africa)

Djibril Diop Mambety 1945-1998 - director, actor, orator, composer, poet - came to film from theatre background - mythological, as opposed to Sembene the social realist

Touki Bouki (Wolof for: The Journey of the Hyena) 1973 - shows how young people still oriented towards the colonial past - outsiders of the society - not slow, not linear <-> stereotypes of African film - Western analysis: avant-garde – but in reality represents a contemporary African worldview

Lusophone Africa – 1970s - Angola, Guinea-Bissau, - revolutionary films made for the liberation movement by foreign directors - (Yugoslav, African American) - Lusophone Africans selected the image, ideology and audience - realized the importance of cinema – illiteracy rate of 95% - instructive, about revolution - unlike in other countries, in Angola the guerillas were involved in the production - after independence films were briefly used for development, but the film production decreased after 1975 - Mozambique: Kuxa Kanema = Birth of Image 1978-79 o 70 documentaries and 4 feature films o spread government ideology, also rural areas - Mozambique succeeded in creating a national cinema, unlike other Lusophone African countries - Robert F. van Lierop: A luta continua 1972 (about Mozambique) o FRELIMO o later shown in Soweto where the film was smuggled, before the uprising, the text “A luta continua” appeared in city walls mythical narratives: Souleymane Cissé Yeelen 1987 Mali (= Light, brightness) - set in undefined mythical past - but critical about traditions - in South Africa, many adaptations of African literature written during the apartheid era, but in Francophone West Africa, many adaptations of canonical literature another canonical adaptation, first adaptation of Carmen: Karmen Gei (2001 Senegal) – Joseph Gai Ramaka First bisexual character in African cinema (the film was banned, threats of burning the theatres down) Current trends:

- Festivalisation of films o FESCAPO (Ouagadougou) bi-annual o ZIFF o Durban o FiSahara (in a refugee camp in Algeria) o Madagascar, Rwanda o African film festivals outside Africa o Senegale Moussa Sene Absa: “Without festivals, African cinema wouldn’t exist.” o danger: aimed for international market o no visibility in Africa - no economic independence  no independence of production nor distribution, no real national cinema - even when some countries had nationalized their cinemas, they didn’t open them up for African directors but imported the films - even now many films cannot be seen in Africa - most films made these days are NGO films, donor films – continuation of the colonial films! - very few cinemas: French West Africa had over 2000 in the 60s, now a handful; Burkina Faso 12, Niger 5, Namibia - amount of languages in Africa, lack of dubbing/subtitles - new forms: film jockeys! Especially - video films – different kind of social environment - state and cinema: often contradictory over decades, from indifference to sabotage and some support - last years show promising interest, plus support from individual countries – Spain, Portugal, Brazil (in the 80s—2000s decreased because World Bank and IMF advocated minimal participation and privatizing) - and film festival funds

Africa First (2008-2013) New York - First Kenyan science fiction film (short) – Wanuri Kahiu: Pumzi (breath) 2010 Most East African film makers are women!

BUT: Nollywood and all the other “woods” Usually film production does not work without any support of state/sponsors – Nollywood has succeeded against all odds (no support from critics, no festival visibility, no international support) - AND it is Anglophone (whereas most other successful films come from other language cinemas, especially Francophone) - background: Yoruba Travelling Theatre - end of 1980s, Nigeria and Ghana - cinema or video? - “video films” – but some shown in cinemas - alternative model of production and distribution - quick production, chaotic DVD distribution - commercial, melodramatic - combination of different genres - global pop culture meets stories that normal Africans can relate to - open to global cultural traffic; e.g. films called Lady Gaga, Margaret Thatcher - new audiences, new ways of influencing people - high degree of tolerance for interrupted viewing, sequelisation, loosely knit mini-narratives - can be seen as a reaction to the lack of state support - safety – of shooting and of cinemas was low, so safer to shoot in private houses etc, and to watch in the safety of one’s own home - pricing – intentionally super cheap - piracy (ironically also one of the main reasons of its success, but nowadays also a problem) - First Blockbuster Nollywood film: Chris Obi: Living in Bondage (1992) (the main character joins a cult, has to kill his wife, becomes very rich, the ghost of the wife haunts him) - there are also high quality Nollywood films (Figurine)

What is African cinema? Cinema made by Africans, but who is African? diaspora – and how about production? schooling? (still done mainly outside Africa) co-operations of African and European/Western countries

Congo: it was believed that Congolese will replace the Belgians in film making as soon as they have been educated – then no films at all for 25 years! Viva Riva – first ever in Lingala (also French and Portuguese) action film, extremely entertaining

Jahmil XT Qubeka: Of Good Report (South Africa 2013) , opening film at Durban - return to black and white, horror, partly mute (the lead character doesn’t speak at all)

Screaming man (un homme qui crie) France-Chad 2010

Mahamat Saleh Haroun (b. 61, lived in France since 82) civil war in Chad (abstract, distant) Adam is “screaming against the silence of God” there was a break in filming due to rebel forces entering the Chadian capital

The film extracts watched during the lecture:

Nionga (1925) Ousmane Sembène: La Noire de… (Senegal 1966) Djibril Diop Mambéty: Touki Bouki (Senegal 1973) Robert F. Van Lierop: A Luta Continua (1972) Souleymane Cissé: Yeelen (Mali 1987) Joseph Gai Ramaka: Karmen Gei (Senegal 2001) Wanuri Kahiu: Pumzi (Kenya 2010) Chris Obi: Living in Bondage (Nigeria 1992) Djo Munga: Viva Riva! (Democratic Republic of Congo 2010) Jahmil XT Qubeka: Of Good Report (South Africa 2013)