Africa Film TT (AFTT), the only film festival of its kind in the region, will begin on May 24 and end on May 28 in Trinidad, followed by its debut in Tobago from June 1-3.
“We are finally be making our way to Tobago, thanks to sponsorship by Shell. It’s will be a condensed version of the Trinidad festival and we hope to make it an annual event,” festival founder and director Asha Lovelace said.
The festival, now in its ninth year, was held virtually in 2020 and 2021 because of the covid19 pandemic.
“We came back out last year on a smaller scale, and this year we are out in full force, with opening night being an evening of film, fashion and festivities at the Central Bank Auditorium,” and all other screenings taking place at the at Big Black Box in Woodbrook.
"Opening night in Tobago will take place at Shaw Park Cultural Centre on June 1, and screenings and workshops at the Scarborough library."
The festival in both in Trinidad and Tobago will open with the screening of much-touted Senegalese film Xalé, by director Moussa Sène Absa. The film was selected as Senegal's first Oscar submission in the Best International Feature category and tells the story of 15-year-old schoolgirl Awa who is happily living her teenage years with her twin brother Adama who dreams of Europe. When their grandmother dies, her aunt Fatou and her uncle Atoumane promise to marry in order to preserve the family union. But Fatou does not love Atoumane and the latter, tired of waiting to consummate his marriage, commits an act from which there is no going back.
[caption id="attachment_1017234" align="alignnone" width="579"] AFTT founder and director Asha Lovelace, left, with festival co-ordinator Melanie Jones-Powell. -[/caption]
"This film has been making waves in festivals," Lovelace said.
The festival will close with the screening of Walter Rodney: What they don't want you to know, an original 72-minute documentary featuring a murder, Cold War conspiracies, Black Power, the end of Empire, and how that connects to the policing, surveillance practices and social movements of today. Rodney was a Guyanese historian, political activist and academic who was assassinated in Guyana, in 1980.
"I decided to close with this film because I always look to make a link with Caribbean content to promote and boost our own regional input."
She said the films curated for the festival are among the most highly-rated, award-winning productions from the continent and the diaspora, with a strong focus on TT and Caribbean films, and the entire programme will feature a wide range of genres and will include workshops, presentations, and events featuring visiting filmmakers.
For its first installation of a workshop, the Bridge Session, Lovelace said AFTT continues its partnership with FilmTT.
“This connection with Africa and the diaspora creates a valuable opportunity for collaboration and exchange. It can help facilitate co-productions as well as a huge distribution channel for our local filmmakers.”
The three-part workshop will be facilita
