African Diaspora Film Festival Schedules

Heritagekonpa Magazine

The 13th ANNUAL AFRICAN DIASPORA FILM FESTIVAL IN NYC presents

Haitian-themed films.

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR DANY LAFERRIERE ON DECEMBER 9 That Teacher College ( 6 PM).

“ON THE VERGE OF A FEVER/LE GOUT DES JEUNES FILLES. FILLES” & “BLACK SOUL/ÂME NOIRE” on Saturday, Dec.3rd as part of their AFRO-QUEBEC NIGHT. These screenings are co-sponsored by Cultural Services of the Quebec Government House.

“ON THE VERGE OF A FEVER” by John L’Ecuyer., will take place at Florence Gould Hall – 55 East 59th Street,in Manhattan @ 8:30pm. A Q&A and catered reception will follow the screenings.

In addition, Montreal-based Haitian-born filmmaker Dany Laferrière will participate in a question and answer session on December 9th at Columbia University, as his 2004 film ”HOW TO CONQUER AMERICA IN ONE NIGHT” will be presented during the 17-day ADFF.

ON THE VERGE OF A FEVER/ LE GOUT DES JEUNES FILLES, NY Premiere, Canada/Haiti, 2004, 88 min., drama, French with English subtitles, John L'Ecuyer, dir. Against the backdrop of poverty, fear and the brutal dictatorship in Haiti in 1971, 'On the Verge of a Fever' ('Le goût des jeunes filles') tells the story of Fanfan, a 15-year-old boy who just wants to experience life for himself with his streetwise friend Gégé. Having lived a somewhat sheltered life with his protective mother, Fanfan experiences a bizarrely terrifying incident involving a Tonton-Macoute. As a result, he decides to hide out at his beautiful neighbor's house for the weekend. There, he is trapped between his fear of being caught and the fulfillment of his deepest fantasy. Shown with “Black Soul.”

BLACK SOUL/ÂME NOIRE Canada; 2000;10 min.; animation; English, Martine Chartrand, dir. Black Soul, by Haitian Québécois animator Martine Chartrand, is a poetic film about memory. Its evocative soundtrack is a mix of the Boütz dancers´ irresistible rhythms, Lilison T.S. Cordeiro´s mellow African music, the magnificent voice of Ranee Lee backed up by a gospel choir, and instrumentals composed by the great Montreal jazz pianist Oliver Jones.

HOW TO CONQUER AMERICA IN ONE NIGHT; Haiti/Canada, 2004, 90 min., comedy, French with English subtitles, Dany Laferriere, dir. Montreal-based-Haitian-born Dany Laferrière is a prolific writer (How to Make Love to a Negro Without Getting Tired, On the Verge of a Fever) whose books have turned into critically acclaimed films. This time Mr. Laferrière is the director of a hilarious comedy on the life of Haitians in Montreal. In How to Conquer America in One Night, Gegé arrives in Montreal determined to conquer the city by charming blonde women. Part of Multiracial Quebec Program. Tue. Dec. 6 @ 2:00 pm. Anthology Film Archives, 32 Second Ave. @ 2nd St.,

HARLEM'S MART 125: THE AMERICAN DREAM, World Premiere

USA, 2005, 68 min., documentary, English, Rachelle Gardner, dir.Harlem’s Mart 125: The American Dream is an in-depth analysis of the history of Mart 125 and how it correlates to the “revitalization” at 125 th Street, Harlem’s main commercial hub. Mart 125, formerly located in the heart of Harlem, was an indoor market place that housed African vendors from all over the Diaspora. It was developed by government agencies to remove street vendors in the mid-1980’s. Due to a host of politics, poor management and the redevelopment of Harlem, the Mart was forced to close down in 2002. The building is now up for bid, and the vendors have either been fortunate enough to get their own storefronts in Harlem or are back to vending in the streets.

LOVE'S A SWEET THING, USA, 2003, 93 min., comedy, English, David Wright, dir. Alix Jean-Francois, producer. Love’s Sweet Thing is a story of family, love and the issues of dating and finding one’s soul mate in this day and age in the African American community. Sun. Nov. 27 @ 9:00 pm. Q&A after the screening.

WOMEN INDIES' NIGHT, Thursday, December 8 @ 8:30pm at the Schomburg Center
ROBBER SOLES, by Christine Turner, US Followed by NY premiere .
FACES OF CHANGE, by Michele Stephenson, USA, Q&A after the screening, followed by a CATERED RECEPTION, Admission $25 for entire program

RUBBER SOLES, USA, 2005, 10 min., fiction, English, Christine Turner, dir.An 11-year-old music collector trades in his prized soul records when he falls for a 13-year-old girth with a nice jump-shot. Part of School Program African American Shorts. Also part of Women Indies’ Night. Wed, Nov. 30 & Wed, Dec. 7 at 12 noon. AFA

FACES OF CHANGE, NY Premiere, USA/Brazil/Bulgaria/India/Mauritania/South Africa, 2005, 80 min., documentary English and Hassaniya, French, Portuguese, Romanes, Bulgarian, Tamil with English subtitles, Michele Stephenson, dir.

Grassroots activists go behind the camera to find a voice denied to them because of their social, racial, gender or ethnic background. They live in five different countries, but they share the common trait of being members of a marginalized group. Their cameras show strikingly similar vistas of broken-down homes, dust and threadbare clothing to demonstrations of profound social inequity. Recorded from within the communities, the videos capture the hopes and dreams that echo each other across the five countries. Faith and perseverance embody this courageous work of patience and dedication by filmmaker Michele Stephenson, who wowed together these testimonies to make a powerful film for change. Part of Women Indies’ Night at the Schomburg Center. Thu. Dec. 8 @ 8:30 pm. SCBC - Q&A after the screening.

http://www.nyadff.org/specialevents05.htm

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FACES OF CHANGE

A new documentary by Michèle Stephenson

New York City Premiere Screening at the Schomburg Center

The African Diaspora Film Festival is honoring the documentary film, FACES OF CHANGE, as part of its Women’s Indie Night Gala screening, and reception. The film will screen on Thursday, December 8 at 8:30pm at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. For more information on the screening check the ADFF web site at www.nyadff.org.

FACES OF CHANGE highlights the lives of five activists from five different continents who relay unique video dispatches from their respective corners of the world, telling individual stories through images unlike anything audiences have seen. The film interweaves their engaging narratives and close encounters with racism and discrimination. With their cameras in hand these community activists walk us through their lives, experiences and societies, as we see the world through their eyes.

The activists in FACES OF CHANGE are highly focused and passionate. They are fallible and conflicted, yet not without humor and wit. They are: Elodia, an African-American woman organizing her neighborhood of homeowners living on a condemned toxic site in, pre-hurricane Katrina, New Orleans, Louisiana (since Katrina Elodia has lost everything she owns); Mohamed, a man from Mauritania, West Africa campaigning to end slavery in his country via an underground political movement; Ivan, a Roma (Gypsy) attorney and doctor struggling with discrimination and his own self-esteem in Eastern Europe; Kathir, a Dalit (Untouchable) man fighting to eliminate caste discrimination in South India; and Nara, an Afro-Brazilian woman working to instill self-empowerment in black teenage girls. Through this whirlwind journey into their lives, the audience gets a glimpse of how much like the rest of the world we all are.

"Video can be a powerful tool to engage a broad audience around racial issues. Images stir people's emotions' and evoke empathy," explains director, Michèle Stephenson. Working with the production company, Firelight Media, Stephenson trained each activist to use video cameras and create a story that would best capture the meaning and power of their work. With support from The Ford Foundation, the documentary followed the activists to the UN World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa and documented how they each discovered the stunning commonalities of their history and experiences.

FACES OF CHANGE premiered domestically at the distinguished SILVERDOCS Documentary Film Festival in June 2005, which marked the national premiere for the documentary produced and directed by Haitian-Panamanian filmmaker Michèle Stephenson. The film was also an official selection of the Locarno International Film Festival in August 2005, and the Rio International Film Festival in October 2005.

Michele Stephenson was co-director of the Haiti-On-Screen Film Festival at NYU in 2004.