The festival opens with L'ARMÉE DU SALUT,the Berlin premiere of the debut film by Moroccan writer and director Abdellah Taïa (Morocco/France 2013, 1. & 2.11., screening attended by the director). L'ARMÉE DU SALUT is the adaptation of a semi-biographical novel from 2006. It follows two phases in the life of a Moroccan man named Abdellah. After growing up in a large family in a working class district of Casablanca, he discovers his (homo)sexuality as a teenager and is confronted with the taboos of conservative Moroccan society, which rejects homosexuality. He decides to move to Geneva to study and give up a life in hiding. But despite all his newly won freedoms, he still wrestles with the loss of his homeland. Abdellah Taïa is the first Arabic writer to make his homosexuality known. His coming out triggered a debate about gay rights in North Africa and the Arab world. L'ARMÉE DU SALUT was screened at various festivals, including Venice. LOVE THE ONE YOU LOVE (South Africa 2014, 2.11.), Jenna Cato Bass's feature debut is a utopian account of a functioning multi-ethnic society in South Africa, told in the form of a romantic comedy. Terri works at an erotic telephone hotline, but yearns for freedom and would like to go to South Korea to work as an English teacher. Yet she hasn’t banked on the resistance of her family and friends, who pressure her to stay with her boyfriend Sandile. When the lovesick Eugene turns up one night at the hotline however, things start to change. KINDIL EL BAHR (Algeria 2016, 3.11.) is a horror parable by Algerian director Damien Ounouri. Young mother Nfissa is attacked by an unseen group of young men while swimming in the sea and drowns. Nfissa's husband goes to the police, but no trace of his wife can be found. Shortly afterwards, there is a mysterious series of deaths among the male bathers at the beach – a sea monster taking revenge? Ounouri’s first feature premiered at the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs in Cannes earlier this year. Beforehand, the short fiction film AMAL (Morocco 2015, 3.11.) by Aida Senna is being shown. Amal, a medicine student, is raped. She continues her studies and doesn't tell anyone about what happened. It's only when her best friend Hicham comes out as gay that she finally reveals her dark secret. With AFRICA RISING (4.11.), AFRIKAMERA presents a selection of outstanding current short films from Burkina Faso, Egypt, Ethiopia, Mauritius and Lesotho – including MOSONNGOA – THE MOCKED ONE by Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese. Young Mosonngoa is an outsider, not least because her father wanted a son rather than a daughter. She secretly trains to become a master of stick fighting. When there is danger of her father losing his farm, she begins to fight. Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese will be present at the screening. AFRIKAMERA is showing Jonny von Wallström’s current feature THE PEARL OF AFRICA (Uganda/Sweden 2016 I 4.11.) as a work-in-progress private screening. In 2014, the Ugandan tabloid Red Pepper published the personal data of 200 LGBT people in Uganda. Cleopatra Kambugu's name was included in the list. The film tells the story of Cleo’s resultant decision to leave Uganda with her husband Nelson Kasaija in order to be able to have a sex change in Thailand. The screening will be attended by leading actress Cleopatra Kambugu. CALL ME KUCHU (USA/Uganda 2012, 5.11.) by Malika Zouhali-Worrall and Katherine Fairfax Wright is a portrait of David Kato, the first out gay activist in Uganda who was murdered in 2011, and his colleagues. The film's calm observation paints a picture of extreme homophobia, Christian religious fanaticism, and an LGBT community that only grows in strength as a result.The OUT IN AFRICA program (5.11.)is a selection of LGBT short films from the last years from Ghana, Mali, Morocco, Ruanda, and Senegal – including the father-son drama AS THEY SAY (Morocco/UAE 2011) by Hicham Ayouch and RELUCTANTLY QUEER by Akuosa Adoma Owusu (Ghana/USA 2016), in which a young Ghanaian man grapples with the question of what it means to be queer here and now. AFRIKAMERA is showing PRICE OF LOVE (Ethiopia 2015, 5.11.) as a special screening, the feature debut of Ethiopian director Hermon Hailay. Teddy is a taxi driver in Addis Ababa. He grew up on the street and is doing everything he can to avoid falling back into old habits – chewing khat and drinking alcohol. Yet when he intervenes in a fight between a prostitute and her ex-boyfriend who sells women in the Middle East, his car is stolen. Teddy is suddenly without any source of income, but now has an unknown young women at his side... This touching romantic comedy provides a rare look at everyday life in Addis Ababa. PRICE OF LOVE has received numerous awards, including the Special Prize of the Jury at FESPACO 2015. DAKAN (Guinea 1997, 6.11.) by Mohamed Camara is a classic of Africa queer cinema and is regarded as the first feature about gay love from Africa. Manga and Sori are still at school when they fall for one another. The fact that their schoolmates make fun doesn’t bother them. But after telling their parents about their love, they are met with rejection and incomprehension. As their parents apply pressure, both boys try to fight being gay. But in the end, they realize they are only actually fleeing from themselves and their love triumphs against all the odds. The premiere was received controversially at FESPACO in Ouagadougou in 1997. Later, the film received numerous awards, including the Grand Jury Prize at the renowned gay-lesbian film festival Outfest in Los Angeles.Teboho Edkins is presenting a work-in-progress version of his current film MY NAME IS SHERIFF NOW (Lesotho/South Africa/Germany 2016, 6.11.) at AFRIKAMERA. This intimate film tells the story of the life of Sheriff Mothopeng and how he deals with being born as the "wrong" sex. The reactions of his surroundings, which alternate between astonishment and curiosity on the one hand, and remarkable warmth, love, and acceptance on the other finally lead him to make the right decision. The director of the film and its protagonist Sheriff will be present at the screening. Beforehand, the South African production SEBONTA by the two AFDA graduates Habiso Ranthoyakgale and Ellen Phooko will be shown, in which a teenager falls in love with an older, out gay man and attempts to emancipate himself from his homophobic circle of friends.The festival closes with an additional German premiere, the thriller THE CEO (Nigeria 2016, 6.11.) by Nigerian director Kunle Afolayan. The multinational communication company TransWire Communications is looking for a new CEO for its Nigerian branch. An assessment center is set up at a beach resort for the five most promising candidates. Although the group treat one another warmly, they all know what's at stake. For some of the potentials, the resort will become a death trap. (ams/fw)AFRIKAMERA takes place under the patronage of Dr. Uschi Eid. More information at www.afrikamera.de.
AFRIKAMERA 2016: African Queers – African Movies – African Cultures
Queer ways of life have become a central area of social and cultural dispute on the African continent that has frequently been instrumentalized for political means. In its ninth edition, the AFRIKAMERA – CURRENT CINEMA FROM AFRICA festival organized by toucouleur e.V. is showing a selection of current features and documentaries which grapple with LGBT themes and stand up for the acceptance of queer ways of life in Africa.
