The Herman C. Hudson Symposium, “Black Is… Black Ain’t”: Reconceptualizing the African Diaspora, is an annual event organized by the African American and African Diaspora Studies (AAADS) Graduate Society. The purpose of the symposium is to provide a formal space in which students, faculty and others can share their knowledge and productions among one another to contribute to the greater conversation of the dynamics of the African Diaspora, and address various phenomena that affect black communities globally.
Michele Wallace, PhD will give the keynote address. Wallace is a feminist author and daughter of artist Faith Ringgold, most noted for her book Black Macho and The Myth of The Superwoman.
The event is sponsored by Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies, IUSA, Office of Women’s Affairs, Department of History, Office of Multicultural Initiatives, Black Film Center/Archive, and the IU New Perspectives Grant.
For more information, contact send an e-mail or visit the website.
When: March 26, 8:00am – 5:30pm
Where: Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center
Cost: Free
Robert Redford Bringing Mini-Sundance to London
“Time will tell how it works,” said the actor-director-producer, “but we’re coming in very small. We’re here four days, we’re not bringing the full complement of Sundance – we’re bringing film and American music.” The festival debuts in April 2012 at the O2 arena.
The Guardian (UK) 03/15/11
2011 Erskine Peters Fellowship Symposium: The Power of Image, March 24th
A Black Norse God? Debates Ensue Over Casting
“When Kenneth Branagh cast Idris Elba as Heimdall in the upcoming summer tentpole Thor, a furious debate erupted among fanboys, with some insisting it was wrong for a black man to play a Nordic god.
“But the London-born actor has no patience for the debate. “It’s so ridiculous,” he said Feb. 24 at Rutgers University in Newark, N.J.
“‘We have a man [Thor] who has a flying hammer and wears horns on his head. And yet me being an actor of African descent playing a Norse god is unbelievable? I mean, Cleopatra was played by Elizabeth Taylor, and Gandhi was played by Ben Kingsley.'”
Click here to read the entire article.
NYU: The African Diaspora And/In the World; March 26-April 25
Click on the images above for more information.
An Evening with Cauleen Smith: March 23 at 7pm
The Spook Who Sat by the Door: March 22nd, 4:00 pm at IU Cinema
Evening on Senegalese Film: April 13th, Washington, D.C.
Soirée autour du cinema sénégalais
Evening on Senegalese Film
La Maison Française
Wednesday April 13 at 6:30 pm
La Maison Francaise, French Embassy, 4101 Reservoir Rd NW, Washington, DC
Free event, but reservation required; make reservations at: http://www.francophoniedc.org
IDs will be checked at the door. Parking available at the Embassy.
Dr. Françoise Pfaff, professor of French and Francophone Studies, Howard University, author of four books on African cinema, will present her latest work, A L’ECOUTE DU CINEMA SENEGALAIS (Paris: L’Harmattan, 2010), on Senegalese cinema 50 years after its emergence, explored in the voices and productions of filmmakers representing various generations and diverse cinematic trends. What does the new wave of directors have to say?
The book presentation (in English) will be followed by the screening of Mère-Bi (Mother, Senegal, 50 minutes, 2009, French and Wolof, English subtitles) by Ousmane William Mbaye.
This sensitive portrait by a son of his 82-year-old mother, Annette Mbaye d’Erneville, illustrates the life of Senegal’s first journalist and indefatigable defender of women’s rights. An innovative supporter of arts and culture, Mbaye d’Erneville founded the Musée de la Femme Henriette Bathily on Gorée Island and organized multiple symposia and film festivals, including RECIDAK (Rencontres Cinématographiques de Dakar). Her life and career are intertwined with events in the history of Senegal.
A reception follows the film, and Professor Pfaff will sign her new book, which will be available for purchase.
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Mère-Bi (Mother), produced by Films Mame Yandé (Dakar), Autoproduction (Paris), and INA (Institut National de l’Audiovisuel, Paris), can be obtained through o.williammbaye@gmail.com, autoprod@clubinternet.fr
Mère-Bi has received awards at film festivals:
• Mention spéciale : Prix du personnage, Compétition Documentaire long métrage Journées cinématographiques de Carthage 2008
• Prix DGCD du Meilleur Documentaire 5ème Festival des Cinémas Africains de Bruxelles, Afrique Taille XL 2009
• Mention Spéciale au Festival des ECRANS NOIRS de Yaoundé 2009
• Grand Prix du Documentaire au festival « IMAGE et VIE » Dakar 2009
• FEMI d’OR 2010 du Documentaire au Festival International du Cinéma de Guadeloupe
• Prix du Meilleur Documentaire au FESTICAB (Burundi) 2010, and was featured at the opening night of the Festival du cinéma africain de Khouribga
Ousmane William Mbaye’s filmography: http://mameyande.e-monsite.com/
The Burkina Faso Film Festival Fit a President
“It is late afternoon in Ouagadougou, a landlocked city in one of the world’s poorest countries. Forty thousand people are packed tightly into a vast stadium, originally built to celebrate the renaming of Upper Volta as Burkina Faso, “the land of upright people”. A thermometer shows that it is 100˚ in the shade. A posse of soldiers in bright red ceremonial uniforms and gold-braid shoulder pads march forward in two columns, sabres drawn, as a band strikes up the national anthem. Everyone in the stadium stands up – the president is about to arrive. Are we all here to honour visiting royalty? Only when a giant 6ft-square electronic clapperboard is activated does the reality hit home. This is the opening ceremony of Fespaco, the bi-annual celebration of African cinema.”
The Guardian, 10 March 2011, Don Boyd
Click here to read the entire article.
Cannes 8th International Pan African Film Festival: April 13-17
