THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
‘AFRIKAMERA – Latest Cinema from Africa’ presents, from 13 – 18 November, a selection of current feature and documentary films from the Horn of Africa, a region associated more with political, social and military conflicts than its cinema culture.
The fact is however that the cinema can look back on a long tradition in the region. Ethiopia was the first African country to introduce cinema. Emperor Menelik II imported a projector in 1897 to watch a movie about the miracles of Jesus. Only a year later, the first cinema opened in Ethiopia.
Despite the early arrival of cinema culture in Ethiopia the number of local film productions is relatively small compared to, for example, the continent’s Francophone countries in the following decades. However, the Horn of Africa has recently seen a brisk film scene.
‘AFRIKAMERA 2018 – Horn of Africa’ presents a selection of current feature and documentary films from and about the region as well as from neighbouring East African countries, such as Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda, dealing with current developments and everyday lives of the people.
As a detour, the festival will also present two recent documentary films from Gabon and Ivory Coast.
Altogether more than 17 feature films in addition to shorts will be screened at the week-long festival.
With ‘AFRIKAMERA – Latest Cinema from Africa’, the non-profit cultural association toucouleur e.V. using the medium of film presents to the Berlin audience the diversity of the African continent, which does not only consist of problems such as violence, diseases and natural disasters. These stereotypical images and opinions are juxtaposed with the diverse facets of everyday life in Africa and brought to life for the moviegoers.
The festival’s venue is the prestigious Kino Arsenal at the Postdamerplatz in the centre of Berlin.
Femi Awoniyi
For the full programme of AFRIKAMERA 2018, visit: http://www.afrikamera.de
