France and Senegal / 2001 / 90mins / Drama / French and Wolof

This winner of the Silver Leopard for Best First Feature at the 2001 Locarno International Film Festival looks at the problems of migration and identity faced by most young Africans in Europe. Set in Paris, the film centers on El Hadj, a young Senegalese student whose legal residency has come to an end. He is torn between his wish to remain in Paris and his desire to return home and serve his country. Juxtaposing images of El Hadj's sometimes troubled memory of Africa with the harsh realities of young Africans living a penurious existence in downtown Paris, director Alain Gomis shares with us El Hadj’s torment as he teeters on the brink of suicide. Making the most of his talented young cast, particularly Djolof Mbengue in the lead role, Alain Gomis has fashioned a film from the heart.

Alain Gomis

Alain Gomis, born in France, is of Senegalese origin and studied cinematography at the Sorbonne. After graduating he organized and facilitated video production workshops for immigrant youth in Nanterre. By the age of twenty-six, he had already made three short films: Tourbillons, Tout le monde peut se tromper, and the documentary Caramels et chocolats. In 2001, Gomis directed his first feature film, L’Afrance. Gomis' 2012 film, Tey, was awarded the Etalon de Yenenga at FESPACO in 2012. His films often fall under the subject of young immigrants from Sub-Saharan Africa. His 2017 film Félicité won the grand jury prize at the Berlinale and the Étalon d’or again at FESPACO. It was also selected as the Senegalese entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards, making the December shortlist. Alain Gomis regularly gives production and writing workshops, and, in 2019, he and Aissatou Diop created the Yennenga Center in Dakar to promote independent film production in Senegal and Africa. Learn More