This year for the first time, the UK’s four biggest African film festivals – Africa in
Motion (AiM) in Edinburgh/Glasgow, Afrika Eye in Bristol, the Cambridge African Film
Festival and Film Africa, London – are uniting to share films and filmmakers in a drive
to bring a greater variety of contemporary African cinema to a broader UK audience.
The festivals have joined forces to tour a quartet of highly-rated new feature films
from Africa and to enable UK cinema-goers to talk to three of the filmmakers makers
about their work. The shared programme includes:
• Judy Kibinge, a rising star on the Kenyan cinema scene, presenting Something
Necessary, her riveting drama about political violence in Kenya, followed by a Q&A at
AiM, Afrika Eye and Film Africa (with a screening at the Cambridge African Film
Festival).
• South African Jahmil XT Qubeka presenting and discussing Of Good Report, his
controversial, Lolita-inspired, film noir, at AiM and Film Africa.
• Franco-Senegalese director Alain Gomis presenting and discussing his multiple
award-winning latest film Tey – a contemplative drama following a man (Saul
Williams) through his last day of life – at Film Africa and Afrika Eye, with a screening
at the Cambridge African Film Festival.
• Screenings at AiM and Afrika Eye of David “Tosh’’ Gitonga’s Nairobi Half Life, a
fast-paced urban thriller about a young, aspiring actor surviving on the mean streets
of Nairobi.
Speaking on behalf of the four festivals, AiM’s founder and curator Lizelle Bisschoff
said: “The collaboration by these four African film festivals, taking place in Edinburgh,
London, Bristol and Cambridge in October and November this year maximises our
ability to showcase the best of African cinema and excite audiences with what’s
available.’
Filmmaker Simon Bright, the Zimbabwe-born co-director of Bristol’s Afrika Eye festival,
held at Watershed, added: “Currently only 0.01 % of cinema screenings in the UK
show African films. Yet Africa is where storytelling first began and a new generation
of Africans is finding exciting ways to bring this ancient talent to the screen via
features and documentaries that thoroughly deserve the attention of UK cinema-
goers.’
The season of festivals begins with the Africa in Motion (AiM) Film Festival in
Edinburgh and Glasgow (Thursday 24 October – Sunday 3 November) then continues
with Film Africa in London (Friday 1 November to Sunday 10 November) and the
Cambridge African Film Festival (3 – 7 November and other dates) before concluding
with Afrika Eye in Bristol (Friday 8 November to Sunday 10 November).
All four festivals are showing many other films as well as the shared content and
most also feature debates and African cultural celebrations. For programming details
and bookings, please see:
Africa in Motion (AiM) Film Festival – www.africa-in-motion.org.uk – taking place at
Filmhouse Cinema, Edinburgh – www.filmhousecinema.com and at Glasgow Film
Theatre – www.gft.org.uk
Film Africa, London – www.filmafrica.org.uk
Cambridge African Film Festival – www.cambridgeafricanfilmfestival.org.uk – taking
place at Cambridge Arts Picturehouse
www.picturehouses.co.uk/cinema/Arts_Picturehouse_Cambridge/
Afrika Eye – afrikaeye.org – taking place at Watershed, Bristol –
www.watershed.co.uk
The visits to the UK by Judy Kibinge and Jahmil XT Qubeka are being made possible
thanks to funding from the British Council.
