17th Festival of African Films
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We are now into the second week of the 17th Festival of African Films. This week's films are a real mix of styles and regions. Thursday evening initiates the Documentary Series with a brand new documentary on the coffee trade in Ethiopia, BLACK GOLD. Its villain (sort of) is Starbucks; its hero is an Ethiopian businessman and activist, Tadesse Meskela, who manages a cooperative of farmers trying desperately to make a living through coffee production. But they are up against a global marketplace where prices are set according to the whims of New York traders, and which bear little resemblance to the needs of the farmer. Though the film is an emotional roller coaster, the overall impact of Tadesse's story is a powerful and uplifting one. We'll have Alem from Queen of Sheba Restaurant (a great place for Ethiopian food if you've never tried it) to answer questions after the film. He'll be joined with some people from Stumptown Roasters, who will definitely have a lot to say on the subject of fair trade and the global coffee market. It should be very, very interesting. Friday evening's film, DELWENDE, from the West African nation of Burkina Faso, is also a story of resoluteness in the face of adversity, with a positive ending. Its protagonist is a woman falsely accused of witchcraft, betrayed by her husband, who is acting out of self-interest and greed. Beautifully filmed, it takes us from village life to the urban environment, where the victimized women are finally able to take their stand. Saturday evening's film is a delightful piece of cinematic magic, a musical from Guinea-Bissau set in Cape Verde and Paris. It's a crazy little film, filled with gorgeous people and gorgeous music--with songs that break out with very little prompting. It's pure fun, but there's also a point to it that is very traditional, with a young woman who uses her cleverness, her beauty, and her ingenuity to turn her mother's thinking around. It's very, very far from the stereotyped misery that our media associates with the African continent. Along with the evening screenings (which will include post-film Q & A sessions), DELWENDE and NHA FALA can also be seen at Cascade on Thursday afternoon. You can find program notes and other resources for the first weekend's films, and additional information about the Week 2 films at http://spot.pcc.edu/~mdembrow/cfaf17.htm. Hope to see you there!!! Here are detailed synopses and screening times: DELWENDE: GET UP AND WALK (Burkina Faso, 2005, 90 min.), directed by S. Pierre Yameogo. A cinematic critique of the self-serving misuse of traditional cultural practices, Delwende tells the story of an older woman who, with her husband’s connivance, has been labeled a “soul eater witch” and ostracized from her village. She finds refuge in a “home for old women” in Ouagadougou, where she languishes. Her only hope is rescue by her daughter, herself the victim of her father’s patriarchal prerogatives. This is ultimately an uplifting call for women’s self-assertion, empowerment, and mutual support. In Moré with English subtitles. Thursday, February 8, 12:00 p.m., and Friday, February 9, 7:30 p.m., Moriarty Arts & Humanities Building 104, PCC Cascade Campus. NHA FALA/MY VOICE (Guinea Bissau/Cape Verde, 2OO2, 85 min.), directed by Flora Gomes. By the excellent director of Mortu Nega and The Blue Eyes of Yonta, this film is a light-hearted, musical look at the clash between cultural tradition and modernity. Vita is a young girl from Guinea-Bissau with a gorgeous voice; the problem is, in her family tradition, singing brings with it the curse of death. Vita goes to France, where she of course falls in love and of course cannot help bursting into song. Before she knows it, she is a pop star. But how can Vita keep her family from finding out about her transgression? This audience favorite is a tribute to the power of youthful dreams and hopes for the future. In Kabuverdianu/Criolo with English subtitles. Thursday, February 8, 1:45 p.m., and Saturday, February 10, 7:30 p.m., Moriarty Arts & Humanities Building 104, PCC Cascade Campus. Thursday Evening Documentary Series BLACK GOLD (U.K./Ethiopia, 2006, 78 min.), directed by Marc and Nick Francis. A hard-hitting new documentary on the impact of the global coffee trade on Africa, this is the film that is driving Starbucks crazy. Coffee is now the world’s #2 traded commodity (after oil), an industry topping $80 billion a year; only a tiny fraction of that amount goes to the producers. This film introduces us to the Oromia Coffee Farmers Co-operative Union and its remarkable director, Tadesse Meskela, working to improve conditions for 74,000 growers in Ethiopia, where some of the world’s finest coffee is grown, through. The film contrasts the comfortable world of boutique coffee consumption with the everyday realities of farmers in desperate need of Fair Trade. An inspiring story of Africans working to control their own destiny. In English and Amharic with English subtitles. Thursday, February 8, 7:30 p.m., Moriarty Arts & Humanities Building 104, PCC Cascade Campus. Michael Dembrow Dept. of English Portland Community College P.O. Box 19000 Portland, OR 97280-0990 503 978-5213 mdembrow@pcc.edu http://spot.pcc.edu/~mdembrow/index.html When We Can See Life Through the Eyes of Others, We Are Transformed |
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