The films in the 17th Annual African Diaspora International Film Festival do what much media and even the public school system fail to do: educate. Through robust programming that gives meaning to the word “diverse,” the selections in this year’s festival illuminate the experiences of those living in the African diaspora around the world. The New York-based husband-and-wife programmers, Reinaldo Barroso-Spech and Diarah N’Daw-Spech, have chosen more than a dozen films that, through a variety of modes and genres, further dimensionalize already complex issues specific to those living in these communities. Naturally, documentary lends itself to this mission, though several narrative features and a short fiction add to the plenitude of information.
Dieudo Hamadi’s Kinshasa Makambo, one of my favorite films in the festival, documents a contemporary struggle in a decidedly forceful and necessarily straightforward manner. It follows three young men in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as they protest against then-president Joseph Kabila, who at one point intended to circumvent the country’s constitution, which was only adopted in 2006, and run for a third term. The young men—Ben, Jean Marie, and Christian—face their own obstacles, from exile to imprisonment, and have their own ideologies regarding contemporary politics in their country. The most impactful parts of the film are scenes that document gunfire between the police and the protesters. They’re jarring, to be sure, but necessary in terms of accurately reflecting the struggles faced by this particular resistance.
Fri 6/21-Thu 6/27: dates and times vary, see website, Facets Cinémathèque, 1517 W. Fullerton, 773-281-9075, nyadiff.org, $85 festival pass, $60 weekend pass, $10-$12 individual screening, $8 students and seniors.
