Checks and Balances

[caption id="attachment_12865" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Senegalese documentary The Revolution Won’t Be Televised[/caption] The Seattle International Film Festival will continue its African Pictures program at the upcoming festival, thanks to a $25,000 FilmWatch grant from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Since 2013, African Pictures has presented 67 films from 37 countries, including 6 World premieres, 17 North American premieres, and 3 US premieres. Engaging once again with critical issues of our time, African Pictures for 2016 presents two looks at political unrest among youth with the thrilling first-hand Senegalese documentary The Revolution Won’t Be Televised, making its US Premiere at SIFF, and the touching Tunisian narrative drama As I Open My Eyes. Film festival veteran Lamb, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and was Ethiopia’s official submission for Best Foreign Language Film at the 2015 Academy Awards, explores the different ways its young characters react and rebel when they encounter tradition and social status quo, in this enchanting directorial debut set against the breathtaking backdrop of east African countryside. SIFF alumna filmmaker Nadine Angel Cloete (short film Miseducation, SIFF 2013) will return to Seattle in person with the World Premiere of her first feature, Action Comandante, an eye-opening documentary about South African freedom fighter Ashley Kriel. The first African Pictures feature from Burkina Faso, multiple-award-winning Eye of the Storm, explores the issues, corruption, and damaging legacy surrounding child soldiers through the fictionalized tale of a war crimes trial. The full 2016 African Pictures lineup for SIFF 2016 is below. Feature Films Action Comandante d. Nadine Angel Cloete | South Africa, Lesotho 2016 | 90 min The sister of South African anti-apartheid freedom fighter Ashley Kriel, who was shot and killed by police at age 20, reflects on how he became a symbol of youth resistance in the 1980s. World Premiere Aisha d. Chande Omar | Tanzania 2015 | 112 min When a Tanzanian businesswoman experiences a brutal attack upon returning to her home village, she discovers that friends and family are willing to turn a blind eye to the abuse that women suffer and decides to fight for justice no matter the consequence. As I Open My Eyes d. Leyla Bouzid | Tunisia, France, Belgium, United Arab Emirates 2015 | 102 min On the eve of the Jasmine Revolution, a young Tunisian woman must balance the expectations of her family, who would love to see her go to medical school, with her creative life as a singer in a politically charged rock band that is just beginning to get noticed. Atlantic Heart d. Robbie McCallum | Cape Verde, United Kingdom 2016 | 87 min After losing their dog amid the chaos of Mardi Gras on the African island country of Cape Verde, teenage siblings Lucas and Telma begin a quest that leads them through bars, bordellos, and back streets, exposing them to the harsh realities of island life. Checks and Balances d. Malek Bensmaïl | Algeria, France 2015 | 97 min Experience firsthand the struggles and triumphs of fiercely independent Algerian newspaper El Watan, whose staff have been targets of attacks from both the government and Islamist insurgents, but who continue to fight for freedom of the press. North American Premiere Eye of the Storm d. Sékou Traoré | Burkina Faso, France 2015 | 101 min In a small African country, an idealistic lawyer reluctantly defends a rebel, and former child soldier, on trial for war crimes, and begins to understand the psychological ramifications and effects on adults of brainwashing youth for war. Lamb d. Yared Zeleke | Ethiopia, France, Germany, Norway, Qatar 2015 | 94 min After he is sent to live with his uncle in a small farming village, 9-year-old Ephraim must protect his beloved pet lamb from a traditional holiday sacrifice. Meanwhile, his headstrong female cousin challenges customs in her own way. Much Loved d. Nabil Ayouch | Morocco, France 2015 | 103 min Banned in Morocco due to its controversial content, Much Loved tells the stories of four sex workers in Marrakesh operating on the margins of society. From Nabil Ayouch, the Golden Space Needle Award-winning director of Horses of God (SIFF 2013). Nakom d. Kelly Daniela Norris, TW Pittman | Ghana, USA 2016 | 90 min Talented medical student Iddrisu returns to his native Ghanaian village after his father’s death only to be dragged back into family obligations in an intimate yet universal story of the struggles between tradition and progress, family and career. The Revolution Won’t Be Televised d. Rama Thiaw | Senegal 2016 | 110 min In a campaign to unseat president Abdoulaye Wade, three young Senegalese rappers began a protest movement called “We Are Fed Up,” taking their message across Dakar to spread a message of freedom and emphasizing the importance of voting through their rap music. US Premiere Short Films Alive & Kicking: The Soccer Grannies of South Africa d. Lara-Ann de Wet | USA, South Africa 2016 | 20 min Awa’s Dream d. Zena Zeidan, Yancouba Dième | Senegal 2015 | 5 min US Premiere Battalion To My Beat d. Eimi Imanishi | USA, Algeria, Western Sahara 2016 | 14 min Hope d. Aïda Senna | Morocco 2015 | 15 min North American Premiere New Eyes d. Hiwot Admasu | France, Great Britain 2015 | 12 min US Premiere Thunderstruck d. Brent Dawes | South Africa 2016 | 5 min

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