The first-ever Berlinale Spotlight Screening in Ghana—and on the African continent—will take place from November 13 to 17, 2024. This event is being organized in partnership with GIZ, the Goethe-Institut, UniMac-IFT, and GAFTA.
As one of the world’s top five A-list film festivals, alongside Cannes, Venice, Toronto, and Sundance, Berlinale aims to enhance the visibility of African films and filmmakers within the continent through this Spotlight event. The primary goal is to encourage African film submissions while fostering a stronger connection between these films and African audiences. Previously, many of these films have circulated mainly at international festivals like the Berlinale, with limited exposure in Africa.
At the 2024 Berlinale, 14 African films were showcased, most as co-productions with European partners. For this inaugural Berlinale Spotlight Screening in Accra, seven selected films will be featured, including Who Do I Belong To? (Tunisia/Canada), the debut feature by Meryam Joobeur; Dahomey (Benin/France) by Mati Diop; The Nights Still Smell of Gun Powder (Mozambique/Germany) by Inadelso Cossa; Black Tea (Taiwan/Côte D’Ivoire/Cape Verde/China) by Abderrahmane Sissako; and Disco Afrika (Madagascar/Germany) by Luck Razanajaona. Also included are Certain Winds from the South (Ghana), directed by Eric Gyamfi, and Letter from My Village (Senegal) by the late Safi Faye.
These films explore themes such as identity, cultural heritage, and gender roles. In Dahomey, for instance, students in Benin engage in a vibrant discussion about cultural identity, while Disco Afrika and The Nights Still Smell of Gun Powder highlight issues of corruption, civil war, and collective memory. Who Do I Belong To? delves into the experiences of women in Islamic societies, and Certain Winds from the South examines gender dynamics and rural-to-urban migration in traditional family structures. Sissako’s Black Tea reflects on migration to the East and the evolving relationships between Africans and Chinese.
The event will also feature three panel discussions on the themes present in the films. Screenings are set to take place at NAFTI Hostel, NAFTI Studio, and the Goethe-Institut, with further details to be announced soon.