Sembene Across Africa: the largest community screening in history!

On June 9-11, 2017, Galle Ceddo Projects, in conjunction with dozens of African institutions, presents The Sembene Across Africa project, a three-day series of free public screenings, house parties and streams featuring our award-winning documentary film SEMBENE! The film celebrates Ousmane Sembene, the "father of African cinema," who spent decades shaping a meaningful, visionary cinema for a newly independent Africa. We have confirmed 60 public screenings in 25 African countries, from Ouagadougo to Maputo, Nairobi to Luxor. We are adding more every day. Are you are in Africa or the Diaspora? You can attend one of the public screenings, invite friends over for a house party or stream the film. SEMBENE! will be broadcast across Africa, too. We are calling it the biggest community screening in history because we know, with your participation, it will be!

We are raising funds through Kickstarter. We need your help! Please click here!

Interested in in hosting a screening? Click here!
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Or please spread the word, through social media or by forwarding this message.

SEMBENE! premiered in competition at the Sundance and Cannes film festivals and was included in seven best-of-2015 lists, including a top-ten-of-2015 notice from New York magazine, and has won multiple festival awards. But it has barely been seen in Africa.

For decades, African culture was criminalized and marginalized. Many Africans lost connection with their pasts. But from 1962, Sembene, a former dockworker, set out to use movies as what he called "an evening school" for Africans. He told stories from African perspectives, called out corrupt leaders and celebrated what he called "the heroes of the everyday." Sembene's desire-to return African stories to the African people-was unfulfilled in his lifetime, even after 50 years of making films and writing books. Today, 10 years after his death, Sembene-a true hero of cinema and of self-empowerment-remains tragically unknown to most young Africans. We hope this intense burst of screenings will restore Sembene to his rightful place, as a true hero of African culture and resistance. We'll be posting more information about Sembene Across Africa-stay tuned!

edited by Thierno I. Dia
Africiné Magazine / Africultures