Burkina Faso / 1995 / 94mins / Drama / French and Jula

Dani Kouyate mourns the passing of the authentic griot, the storyteller who was once the African custodian of cultural wisdom and information, counselor of kings, genealogist, historian, musician, artist – Belen Tigui (Keeper of the Word) of any community. In Keita, he tells the story of Djeliba Kouyate, an old griot who charged in the twilight of his life to recount to young Mabo Keita the origin of his name, a name that carries with it an epic saga of the founder of the Madingo Empire.

Dani Kouyaté

Born to a Griot family in June, 1961, in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, Dani Kouyaté was early on involved with performance theatre. He entered the Ouagadougou African Institute of Cinematic Studies where he graduated in Cinematic Creation. He then pursued his studies in Paris where he obtained a Masters of Cultural and Social Coordination at Sorbonne University. He also graduated from the International Anthropology School of Paris and has received a Diploma of Extended Studies in Cinema. After living in France for several years, he has been living in Sweden since 2007. He frequently works in theatre as a theatrical director as well as an actor. He has directed several short films: Bilakoro in 1989, Tobbère kosam (Poussière de lait) in 1991 and Les Larmes sacrées du crocodile in 1993. Dani Kouyaté is most comfortable with legends. This was true of his first full-length film, Keïta ! L’héritage du griot (Keïta! The Heritage of the Griot) in 1995. It was the opportunity to retrace the legend of Soundjata Keïta, founder of the Mandinka Empire. In 1999 he worked for Burkina Faso Television, directing several episodes of a series, À nous la vie. In 2001, he decided to bring to the screen the legend of Wagadu (a 7th century Soninké myth): Sia, le rêve du python was inspired by the play by Mauritanian writer Moussa Diagana and stars Malian actress and singer-songwriter, Fatoumata Diawara. Dani Kouyaté’s other films include Ouaga Saga (2004), Joseph Ki-Zerbo – Identités/Identité pour l’Afrique (2005), Souvenirs encombrants d’une femme de ménage (2008) and Soleils (2012). His first Swedish film While We Live was released in 2015. It deals with identity issues in the globalized world. Dani Kouyaté teaches at Uppsala University in the Department of Cultural Anthropology and Ethnology and at Uppsala Wiks Folkhögskola in the department of Theater. Learn More