Événements

Africa in Motion (AiM) 2007 : Edinburgh African Film Festival
Des films de tout le continent, avec une attention particulière portée aux classiques des pionniers du cinéma africain que sont Sembène, Mambéty, Cissé…

Français

The festival will again take place at Filmhouse Cinema. For AiM 2007 we are planning to bring a similarly broad range of brilliant African films and complementary events to Edinburgh, including films from even more African countries and covering more genres. We will continue our goal to showcase the best African films, past and present. We plan to bring more classics from the pioneering African filmmakers such as Ousmane Sembene, Djibril Diop Mambety, Idrissa Ouedraogo and Souleymane Cissé, as well as expand our programme of contemporary films. Our geographical scope will remain continent-wide, including more films from North, East and Central Africa.
Tickets are already available for sale from the Filmhouse box office, book now to avoid disappointment! We have a fantastic ticket deal which allows you to see any three programmes in the festival for £12/£7.50 conc, or all twenty for £50/£30 conc. To book tickets, visit Filmhouse in person or call the Filmhouse box office on 0131 228 2688. (Screenings at the Edinburgh College of Art are free and non-ticketed.)


People
Africa in Motion was initiated and is organised and managed by Stop and Stir Arts Ltd, a small Edinburgh-based not-for-profit company. The company grew out of its founders’ passion for and interest in African film and a strong desire to make marginalised and under-represented art more widely available to Scottish audiences.

Founding directors
Lizelle Bisschoff: Festival Director
Melissa Trachtenberg: Festival Co-director


Board of Advisors
AiM’s Board of Advisors provides specialist advice on the organisation of the event. The Board consists of:

Mark Cousins: High-profile Film Critic and author of The Story of Film (2004)
David Murphy: Senior Lecturer at the University of Stirling’s School of Languages, Cultures and Religions
Paul Nugent: Professor of Comparative African History and Director of the University of Edinburgh’s Centre of African Studies
Noe Mendelle: Head of Film and TV at the Edinburgh College of Art and Director of the Scottish Documentary Institute
Andrew Lawrence: Lecturer in Comparative Politics and African Studies at the University of Edinburgh’s Centre of African Studies

Staff and Volunteers:
Africa in Motion is dependent on the support of a number of committed part-time staff and volunteers:

Vale Benson: Synopsis writing
Kofi Boateng: Film selections
Anna Devine: Opening event and sponsorship
Kirsty Dickson: Press Officer
Claire Hall: Opening event organisation
Dan Hammett: Film selections, photography and exhibition planning
Charlotte Hastings: Database management and academic event planning
Leila Kardan: Opening event organisation
Avril Kunzel: Music events
Louis Minnaar: Exhibition planning, film selections and synopsis writing
Mara Menzies: Opening event
Kari Ann Shiff : Film selections and invitees
Leo Wood: Press Officer

English

Welcome to the second Africa in Motion (AiM) film festival. After the massive success of last year’s festival we bring you another fantastic programme of more than 30 brilliant films from all over the continent – features, documentaries and shorts – spanning more than half a century of filmmaking in Africa. You will see depictions of the expansive panoramas of rural Africa alongside the dense urban landscapes of modern Africa, experience the richness and diversity of African histories, cultures and traditions, and hear stories of struggles and victories – told with humour, passion and creativity.

AiM 2007 is dedicated to the memory of Senegalese director Ousmane Sembene, often hailed as « the father of African cinema », who passed away in June this year at the age of 84. A highly political artist, his films were often fired by anger at injustice but were also comic, moving and beautifully crafted. We are screening two of his greatest films – Xala (the opening film of the festival) and Black Girl.

The festival has three further thematic strands: The Bicentenary of the Abolition of the British Slave Trade is celebrated by a number of screenings and other events; AiM has a spotlight on Ghana to mark 50 years of independence from Britain; and we have a focus on women directors – a not-to-be missed opportunity to see three pioneering classics and the UK premieres of two contemporary films by female filmmakers.

Several directors will be in attendance to talk to audiences after screenings, and brief introductions before screenings will put the films in context. A range of talks and discussions will further enhance screenings. Filmhouse café bar will host performances by African musicians and an exhibition by internationally acclaimed Nigerian cartoonist Tayo Fatunla. Books, posters and DVDs will be for sale in the foyer for the duration of the festival.

Tickets will go on sale on Friday, 21 September. Book early to avoid disappointment!

Endorsements:
Midge Ure:
« Live Aid was an entertainment format that was used to highlight the humanitarian issues in Africa through music. Now, through Africa in Motion some great African filmmakers are being given a long overdue opportunity to screen their work and tell their own thought-provoking and innovative stories about Africa ».
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