Cameroon, Senegal, Israel and France / 2016 / 56mins / Documentary / French, English and Hebrew

Over the course of the 20th century, a large number of groups in Sub-Saharan Africa spontaneously converted to Judaism and claimed Jewish identity. These communities respect the worship rituals and dietary restrictions of Judaism, which they often learn from the Internet, as well as through Jewish culture (including cuisines, music, and language). Laurence Gavron’s film gives an account of this black Judaism through an African community— that of Cameroon, with Serge Etélé as its spiritual leader. Featuring an interview with Rabbi Capers Funnye, Michelle Obama’s cousin and leader of the black Jewish community in the United States.

Laurence Gavron

Laurence Gavron, born in Paris, specialized in documentaries about film history and filmmakers, after having written about films in several French newspapers and magazines. She made her first film in Senegal in 1991, about the late filmmaker Djibril Diop Mambéty, followed by a number of documentary films about griots and musicians. She has also written several novels and had a couple of photo exhibitions as well, mainly in Senegal. Learn More