SEMBENE !

Nine films in 38 years. Ousmane Sembene was the first African director to make films in and about his continent. His career, characterized by fierce activism and deep political commitment, was always beset by obstacles (censorship, outright bans, etc.). Through the eyes and voice of Sembene’s biographer Samba Gadjigo and co-director Jason Silverman, we discover the Senegalese director, literary figure, activist and, above all, the man. Presented in chapters, like a biography, this feature film covers the key moments in the acclaimed filmmaker’s life, from his days as a young fisherman who discovered literature while in Marseille, to his desire to teach and be a voice for an Africa where 85% of people were illiterate as recently as the 1960s. The film even explores the deep creative block that left him unable to make films and drove him to steal a script from a student. Both academic and informative, Gadjigo and Silverman’s documentary nevertheless displays a heartfelt appreciation for the late director. The co-directors capture, with subtlety and honesty, the symbol of resistance and rebellion that was Sembene, a titan of the cinema.

Presented by The Festival international de cinéma Vues d’Afrique