African film festival 2011 - 12th Summer outdoor screenings series: Cinema Under The Stars (Cinéma sous les étoiles).

EVERY SUNDAY IN JULY & AUGUST!

African Film Festival, Inc. and Mid-Manhattan Library
Presents
The Sunday Movies at Mid-Manhattan Library


MID-MANHATTAN PUBLIC LIBRARY, ANNEX
40th Street and 5th Avenue, 6th Floor - New York, NY

@ 2:00 p.m.
Every Sunday, in the months of July and August, join African Film Festival, Inc. and the Mid-Manhattan Library as we present the best in classic and contemporary African cinema.

Sunday, July 17, 2011
2 p.m.

Film:
Shoot the Messenger*
Ngozi Onwurah, UK, 2006, 100 min.

Joe is determined to save the black youngsters at his school from a life of gangs, crime and underachievement. When a seemingly minor incident escalates out of control, Joe loses his job, turns against his community, and descends into madness before realizing he still has a lot to learn. This film was the winner of the Dennis Potter Screenwriting Award and two BAFTA TV Awards.

* Director will be in attendance.



*****

Sunday, July 24, 2011
2 p.m.

Film:
Cosmic Africa
Craig & Damon Foster, South Africa, 2002, 72 min.

Astronomer Thebe Medupe embarks on a quest to reunite his science with the origins of celestial knowledge in Africa. His journey takes him to the ancestral lands of the Ju/'hoansi in Namibia, whose ancient creation myths link terrestrial mysteries with the movements of the stars; to the Dogon people of Mali, whose night sky maps provide signposts on how to live on earth; and deep into the Sahara, where a cosmic clock attests to the African origins of astronomy.

*****

Sunday, July 31, 2011
2 p.m.

Film:
Saint Louis Blues
Dyana Gaye, Senegal/France, 2009, 48 min.

At a taxi stop in the capital, Dakar, people gather and wait for the battered old Peugeot station wagon to depart; the taxi won't leave until the driver finds a seventh passenger. Along the journey from Dakar to Saint Louis, the passengers of the taxi meet each other's destiny and tell their lives through songs.


Preceded by:

Festival in the Desert: The Tent Sessions
Sean Barlow and Banning Eyre, Mali/U.S., 2003, 42 min.

An intimate performance documentary about the 2003 festival featuring Ali Farka Touré, Tartit, Robert Plant and Justin Adams, a host of exquisite musicians playing astounding music-and plenty of camels! Held outside Timbuktu, the festival was initially conceived as a way for the nomadic Tuareg people to unite with their brethren who had been dispersed by political upheaval. From magnificent camel riders to enchanted lantern-lit sand dunes, this film captures the sights and sounds of the event so well that it is the next best thing to making the arduous journey yourself.


*****

Sunday, August 7, 2011
2 p.m.

Film:
U-Carmen Ekhayelitsha
Mark Dornford-May, South Africa, 2005, 120 min.

Based on Bizet's opera Carmen, U-Carmen eKhayelitsha takes place in Khayelitsha Township in Cape Town. Sung and spoken in Xhosa, this is a story of seduction, love, jealousy and betrayal. U-Carmen eKhayelitsha is an operatic tour-de-force by an incredibly talented cast of performers which will make you forget all previous representations of Carmen on film. U-Carmen was the winner of the Golden Bear for Best Film at the 2005 Berlin International Film Festival and an Official Selection in the Cannes Film Festival.


*****

Sunday, August 14, 2011
2 p.m.

Film:
The Importance of Being Elegant
George Amponsah, U.K./U.S./Ghana, 2004, 69 min.

This is the story of one of the most unusual clubs in the world: La SAPE, or the Société des Ambianceurs et Personnes Élégantes. Its members, the Congolese Sapeurs, have elevated fashion to the status of a religion. Papa Wemba, a well-known Congolese singer, is one of Le SAPE's most prominent figures. This film is a splendid evocation of Papa Wemba's music, and it presents an unusual insight into what it means to be an immigrant in contemporary Europe.

*****

Sunday, August 21, 2011
2 p.m.

Film:
From a Whisper
Wanuri Kahiu, Kenya, 2008, 90 min.

This film commemorates the 10th anniversary of the August 1998 terrorist bombing of the US Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, in which over 250 people died and more than 5,000 were injured. The film tells the story of an artist and an intelligence officer, and how they find unique ways to move on from the tragedy that shattered their lives.

*****

Sunday, August 28, 2011
2 p.m.

Film:
The Great Dance
Craig & Damon Foster, South Africa, 2000, 75 min.
The Great Dance is a fascinating documentary that examines the unique relationship between Kalahari Desert Bushmen, or the San people, and the harsh landscape of the Kalahari Desert in Southern Africa. Filmed through the eyes of !Nqate, a hunter and one of the Kalahari Desert bushmen, The Great Dance follows the life of !Nqate as a hunter and tracker. It's a raw and poignant story of !Nqate's survival, as told in his own words.


For more information about this program, please visit -
* AFF's Facebook Page
* AFF's Twitter Feed
* Mid-Manhattan Library Website


For more information on our programming, please contact us by phone or email or check our social networking sites:

Facebook African Film Festival, Inc
for in-depth information on films, including photos...

Twitter @AfricanFilmFest
for up-to-the-minute updates during the festival...

Youtube AfricanFilmFest
for teasers and previews from this year's film selection!


For almost twenty years, African Film Festival, Inc. (AFF) has bridged the divide between post-colonial Africa and the American public through the medium of film. AFF's unique place in the international arts community is distinguished not only by leadership in festival management but by a comprehensive approach to the advocacy of African film and culture. AFF established the New York African Film Festival (NYAFF) in 1993 with Film Society of Lincoln Center. The New York African Film Festival is presented annually at the Walter Reade Theater by African Film Festival, Inc. and Film Society of Lincoln Center, in association with Brooklyn Academy of Music. AFF also produces a series of local, national, and international programs throughout the year.

African Film Festival, Inc. (AFF) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) arts organization.