Cinema Can do University: Shaihu Umar

SHAIHU UMAR, set in the north of Nigeria at the end of the 19th century, begins with a conversation between students of Islam and their wise teacher Shaihu Umar. After being asked where he’s from, he begins to tell his story. The novel of the same name was written by Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Nigeria’s first president, who led the country to independence, and was obligatory school reading.
The film was thought lost. In 2016, Didi Cheeka discovered several rolls in the archive of the Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC). Following the restoration carried out by Arsenal, SHAIHU UMAR was shown at the Berlinale Forum in 2018 and at the Zuma Film Festival in Abuja. A broad network was created: in 2019, the University of Jos Master started the Master program in Film Culture which the Goethe-Universität has been offering in Frankfurt since 2013. The partners here are the NFC, to which the National Film Institute and the National Film, Video and Sound Archive belong, as well as the Lagos Film Society. Arsenal is expanding its training opportunities for Frankfurt students together with the DFF for the cooperation in Jos. (stss)