After great anticipation, the annual New York African Film Festival (NYAFF) returns under the banner, Visions of Freedom. With both in-theater and virtual offerings, the 29th edition of the NYAFF tunes into diverse and interconnected notions of freedom pertinent to Africa, the diaspora, and the world at large. This year’s festival furthers the NYAFF tradition of offering accessible educational programs, screenings, and discussions with filmmakers and artists, in addition to presenting an interactive art exhibition and complimentary social events. 

The festival opens at Film at Lincoln Center (FLC) with the New York premiere of the Haitian drama, Freda, by acclaimed director Gessica Généus, an inspiring story about the realities of a working-class Haitian family amid the witnessing of a mass movement for liberation and social reform in Haiti. Further exploring this subject, the festival showcases the Centerpiece Night film, Tug of War, by the brilliant Tanzanian director Amil Shivji, a galvanizing story of the Zanzibari revolution, coinciding with the end of British colonial rule—told through the lens of a young couple contending with the notion of personal freedoms.

To celebrate the legacy of the late Senegalese director Ababacar Samb-Makharam, the NYAFF presents Jom, The Story of a People, a classic drama recounting Senegal’s collective memory of the past and present through the perspective of a griot, in the hopes of inspiring a dignified future for all. In line with the themes of social reform and self-reflection, the NYAFF presents Simply Black, a mockumentary co-directed by the gifted rapper and actor Jean-Pascal Zadi, which shines a satirical yet honest light on racial dynamics currently unfolding in France.

The FLC segment of the NYAFF also features accessible educational programs such as the annual Youth Matinee Program, dedicated to high school students, and a master class taught by highly-acclaimed Ethiopian filmmaker, author, and L.A. Rebellion member, Haile Gerima—the force behind the classics, Sankofa, Bush Mama, and Teza. In addition to these programs, the festival presents a series of shorts produced in collaboration with the Yennenga Center in Dakar, Senegal, and Mayors Make Movies, entitled African Voices in Changing Climates: Post-Production and Social Impact Cinema. This program of films and conversations tackles questions pertaining to water security, while fostering dialogue for collective climate action. Delving deeper into this necessary conversation, the festival presents Above Water, a documentary by renowned Senegalese-French actress and director, Aïssa Maiga.

The plurality of the African and diasporic experience is explored in the Through the New York Lens shorts program, which highlights New York’s very own talent; the Mzansi Shorts program, reflecting on history, memory, and personal narratives in South Africa; and the virtual Freedom Songs program, a series of shorts evoking the sounds of liberation, self-expression, and love. Somali cinema is also a highlight of this year’s festival line-up, which includes the 2021 FESPACO Etalon de Yennenga winner, The Gravedigger’s Wife by Khadar Ahmed, and the U.S. Premiere of Ayaanle by Ahmed Farah.

In collaboration with Maysles Cinema, the second segment of the festival opens with the New York premiere of The Last Shelter, a documentary by the brilliant Malian director Ousmane Samassékou, which recounts the journey of two teenage girls aiming to cross the Sahara to Europe for a better life. The documentary highlights the trauma and sacrifices of migrating through the Sahara, as well as the community’s response to the crisis. Shedding further light on community support and grassroots efforts, the festival presents Night Nursery, a documentary by the acclaimed Burkinabe filmmaker Moumouni Sanou. Recounting the daily lives of sex workers in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, the film shows how community elder, Mrs. Coda, helps to keep their children safe at night, allowing them to work and sustain their families.

At the center of these grassroots efforts lies a deep understanding of freedom as a collective concern, a belief that continues to be nurtured by the legacy of Thoma Sankara. In this vein, the NYAFF presents two films dedicated to the memory of the late revolutionary and champion of freedom: Thomas Sankara, The Human by Burkinabe journalist and filmmaker Richard Tiéné; and Sankara’s Orphans by Géraldine Berger. Films such as El Maestro Laba Sosseh by Maky Madiba Sylla, an homage to the late prolific Afro-Cuban singer, Laba Sosseh, and a selection of shorts that highlight concepts pertaining to freedom of self amid social and global transformation, further celebrate the festival theme.

Looking back at the decade-plus history of FilmAfrica with the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), the final leg of the NYAFF gathers recent work with hits from past festivals presented with BAM each year during DanceAfrica, the nation’s largest festival dedicated to African dance and music. To commemorate the 25th anniversary of TGV by Senegalese filmmaker Moussa Touré, the NYAFF presents this comedic chef-d’oeuvre as the opening film for the last leg of the festival. Welcoming the audience to reconsider societal norms, FilmAfrica includes a series of comedic features such as Head Gone by Dare Fasasi—a Nollywood comedy of errors in which a bus driver loses psych patients and tries to cover it up; and Sex, Okra, and Salted Butter by veteran Chadian filmmaker, Mahamat Saleh Haroun—a separation comedy in which a traditional African man copes with his wife’s extra-marital affair.

Other FilmAfrica highlights include Clouds Over Conakry by the late Cheick Fantamady Camara, a family drama in which the son of a village imam must choose between a life of tradition and a life of free will; Amleset Muchie’s Min Alesh?—a tale of perseverance in which a passionate runner is given the chance to achieve her dreams; and Andrew Dosunmu’s Hot Irons, which screens with Jacqueline Kalimunda’s About Braids, both stories of extravagant hair styling, offering windows into the personal, cultural, and political. FilmAfrica also includes two exciting contemporary and retrospective programs of shorts.

The 29th New York African Film Festival boasts a lineup of more than 70 films, educational programs, and social events, to welcome you back with open arms—awaiting the opportunity to collectively reflect on what “visions of freedom” means to us all.

The 29th New York African Film Festival was organized by Mahen Bonetti, Founder and Executive Director, African Film Festival, Inc. with Dara Ojugbele, Farima Kone Kito, Fred Zucule, Sinat Giwa, Francoise Bouffault, and Jacki Fischer in collaboration with Film at Lincoln Center, Dennis Lim, Director of Programming, Erin Delaney, Manager, Operations & Productions, Dan Sullivan Junior Programmer, Matt Bolish, Vice President of Marketing and Communications, Jeff Delauter, Director of Theater Operations; Jesse Trussel, Senior Programmer, BAM Film; and Allason Leitz, Theater Manager and Programmer, Maysles Cinema.

Thanks are due to the AFF Board of Directors, Luca Bonetti, Belynda Hardin, Mansita Diawara, Zainab Aliyu, Shirine Gill, Alonzo Speight, Malika Lee Whitney, Cheryl Duncan & Company Inc. Public Relations, Kojo Associates, and AFF’s volunteer team.