Moving Africa: African Film Festivals Outside of Africa

Abstract

The first Third World, Black, and African film festivals outside of continental Africa began to appear in 1979, and include (in chronological order of their founding): the Festival des 3 Continents in Nantes, France (1979); the Festival International du Films d’Amiens, France (1980); the one-off Black Film Festival organized by Parminder Vir and Jim Pines in the UK (1981); the Verona African Film Festival, Italy (1982); the one-off Third Eye Festival of Third World Cinema, held in London and Birmingham in the UK (1983); Vues d’Afriques (Views of Africa) in Montreal, Canada (1985); Africa in the Picture in the Netherlands (1987); the Festival Cinema Africano Milano in Italy (1991); the Cascade Festival of African Films in Oregon, US (1991); the non-annual Africa at the Pictures screening initiative founded by Keith Shiri in London (1991); the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles (1992); the New York African Film Festival (1993); and the African Diaspora International Film Festival in New York (1993) [see Appendix 2 for complete list]. Mostly founded in Western Europe, these African film festivals can be interpreted in two broad ways: first, as relating to representational politics around the concept of “Africa” (particularly as curated into being through “A-list” film festivals and the mainstream news media); and, second, as relating to the increasing presence of diverse African diasporas in the post-WWII era. In the latter sense, these festivals can also be read alternately as responses to, and expressions of, African immigrant minorities.