“I’m here to bolster the film industry and I won’t be able to do that from overseas. I need to be in-country, on the continent.” This is what Idris Elba told to the BBC, referring to the African continent as a land full of great opportunities in films. And it seems like he clearly knows what he wants for himself and his fellow filmmakers over there.
The African star of the acclaimed show The Wire, and countless other film projects, has already announced his involvement in various emerging projects aimed at establishing a film studio in Zanzibar and another one in Accra. He basically intends to use his celebrity status to support the growing film industry, emphasizing the importance of stories told from the perspective of African people.
Hence, in the spirit of this nationalistic sentiment, we would love to repropose a few African films that already gave birth to worldly acclaimed masterpieces. These works are emblematic of African cinema and could serve as the foundation for a renewed African avant-garde for future generations.
Breaking Conventions in 5 Simple Steps
Cairo Station (1958)
Back then, Africa had not played a significant role in the film industry yet. There was a need for Youssef Chahine, a rebel Egyptian director, who wrote, directed, and starred in the complex melodrama Cairo Station – the first great African film.
The film was selected as the Egyptian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 31st Academy Awards, but it wasn’t accepted as a nominee. Since then, it found renewed interest with new generations of international film buffs for Chahine’s rendering of his “antihero.” Also, the film received an overall score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Yeelen (1987)
A captivating tale from Malian director Souleymane Cissé, this film was a standout at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival, where it received the Jury Prize.
Set in a remote past, the film focuses on the conflict between a father and son. The young protagonist, Niankoro, departs from his family home on a quest for the spiritual enlightenment (Yeelen) and strength necessary for an inevitable confrontation with his old man, who abandoned him and his mother. New Yorker’s Richard Brody defined it “a masterwork of metaphysical realism.”
Abouna (2002)
Sometimes, the most profound stories emerge from the tiniest moments in the simplest narratives, as it is clearly demonstrated in Chadian director Mahamat Saleh Haroun’s second feature, Abouna.
Two kids wake up one morning to find that their father has abandoned them (yes, another abandonment). They decide to set out to find him, but without success. Deeply shocked by the situation, they begin to skip school and go to the cinema. And it is on the big screen that they believe they recognize the face of their father. Beautiful premise, right? The movie is even better…
Le Noire de… (1966)
Throughout the ’60s, a true film revolution broke out in Senegal. After its independence, the former French colony began to head towards a cultural renewal. And from these socio-political conditions was born the first innovative African feature film: Le Noire de… by Ousmane Sembène.
The story follows a black girl who finds work with a white French family. The woman finds herself immersed in a new reality and impressed by all sorts of advanced technology and equipment. However, her profound sense of marvel cannot keep up with the exploitation she has to endure. This film is an authentic punch to the guts when it comes to anticolonialism and African identity, and it’s a must-watch.
Touki Bouki (1973)
Selected as the 93rd greatest film of all time by the Sight and Sound Critic’s Poll, Djibril Diop Mambéty’s film stands in stark contrast with the work of Ousmane Sembène. While Sembène’s perspective was more ideologically grounded, Mambéty’s approach challenged every conventional method.
His innovative style influenced many future filmmakers, earning Touki Bouki the title of the first avant-garde African film contributing to the emergence of African modernism. Its iconic scenes have inspired numerous generations, including artists like Beyoncé and Jay-Z, for its symbolism and its powerful aesthetics.
Although Touki Bouki addresses classic themes such as the illusion of emigration in Africa and the confrontation between modernity and tradition, the film does not employ the academic and linear language typical of the African cinema of the time: the film is in search of a new style, and it finds it through its audacious editing, its frantic camera work and soundtrack.
A Document for Posterity
This tireless search is probably what brought me to write this article, as it is through experimental exercises like this that a voice can be heard in a forgotten place. Touki Bouki is so vibrant in every frame that you can immediately feel the urgency of an entire continent to tell its stories to the world, in its own way. Hopefully, that’s how Idris Elba will approach his African projects in the upcoming years.
