From February 22nd to March 1st, the 29th edition of FESPACO took place - the Pan-African Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou. For 8 days, the Burkinabé capital lived and breathed African film. Among filmmakers from all over the continent and other actors active in the film industry, Africalia was also present at the festival, to encourage exchanges on the development of the sector and facilitate networking among African artists.
Soirée Africalia
On February 26th, Africalia joined forces with Cinéma Numérique Ambulant (CNA)-Afrique and its other Burkinabé partners, the Fédération du Cartel and the Plateforme Culturelle Burkina Faso, to organise the ‘Soirée Africalia’. This special evening takes place every edition on the sidelines of the festival. To enable everyone to enjoy the celebration of cinema, this time, it was held in Ouidi, a popular neighbourhood of Ouagadougou. Through a rich and varied selection of performances, the gathering offered an overview of the wide range of activities Africalia supports and their impact. This edition of the ‘Soirée Africalia’ was all the more symbolic as it marked our 25th anniversary.
We kicked off the evening with the mesmerising voice of Forla Paré. After a thrilling puppet show by Bissongo Tissongo, the stage then made way for humour, with a stand-up performance by Jhoness. And of course, during a festival dedicated to the seventh art, the audience was also treated to a screening of two short films from the CNA Burkina Faso project ‘À la découverte de nos villages’. The programme thus truly reflected the diversity of the artistic activities we are accompanying in Burkina Faso!
The words of Claude Guingane, who took the floor on behalf of all of our Burkinabé partners, translate our commitment to supporting the creativity in the country:
“Thanks to Africalia, we have contributed to promoting the diversity and richness of the Burkinabé culture; we have been able to support artistic creation and the rise of new talent; we have facilitated access to culture for all.”
The evening was a great success. Under Ouagadougou’s night sky, many culture professionals, grantees and partners, as well as the Belgian Ambassador in Burkina Faso and the Enabel Burkina Faso team, joined the event. It was an excellent opportunity to reaffirm culture’s irrefutable value in fostering sustainable human development.
Images Soirée Africalia ©CNA Afrique
Cinema Masterclass
For several editions now, the cinema masterclass organised by the Institut Supérieur de l’Image et du Son (ISIS) and Africalia has been an must-attend event at FESPACO. Aimed at students from the various African film schools present at the festival, as well as other professionals from the sector, the masterclass falls within the framework of the ‘Fenêtre des écoles’.
For this edition, the masterclass was dedicated to Youssef Chebbi, winner of the Étalon d'or de Yennenga in 2023 with his film ‘Ashkal, l'enquête de Tunis’. On February 25th, students from Burkina Faso, Togo, Benin and Ivory Coast gathered at the ISIS to listen to the Tunisian director's insights. It was an enriching session, which enabled the new generation of African filmmakers to better understand the challenges of producing and directing this feature film.
Cultural mobility
Promoting and facilitating cultural mobility are among Africalia’s key objectives. On the occasion of the 29th edition of FESPACO, 5 professionals from the DRC and Burundi benefited from mobility grants. In this way, Africalia allowed them to strengthen their network on an international level at one of Africa’s largest film festivals.
Mickael Mbanza, who received an Africalia mobility grant through our partner Yolé!Africa in the DRC, comments:
«Thanks to this experience, I could further discover the universe of African cinema end learn more about the many aspects of our industry. Africalia’s support made living this unforgettable adventure possible. The FESPACO will remain a highlight of my career."
Indeed, FESPACO turned out to be an particularly rewarding experience for the three grantees of Yolé!Africa. Don Chirhuza was invited to speak at the colloquium ‘Mémoire et souveraineté’ (Memory and sovereignty) and shared his perspective on the need for cinematographic auto-dependency and African nationalism in the era of mundialisation. Furthermore, the production 'The Rwhoo' by Safar Sengaïre, a short film documentary about the journey of a refugee, took the prize in the category ‘FESPACO Shorts’. The documentary was produced by Yolé!Africa with support from Africalia. We congratulate director Safari Sengaïre, ex-resident of Yolé!Africa, on this tremendous recognition of his work.
