Category: PAFF

Nasser’s Republic: The Making of Modern Egypt

Nasser's Republic: The Making of Modern Egypt (PAFF 2017)
Documentary/Egypt/82min/2016
Director: Michal Goldman

The first film for an American audience about one of the Arab world’s most transformative leaders. Seemingly coming out of nowhere, Gamal Abdel Nasser overthrew the Egyptian monarchy and soon became a symbol of Egyptian/Arab progress and dignity. From 1952 to 1970, he challenged Western hegemony abroad, confronted Islamism at home, and faced deep divisions among the Arabs. He also established the region's first military authoritarian regime. A man of enormous charisma and ambition, Nasser had begun a revolution he could not complete. But his ideas, dilemmas, and decisions continue to shape and influence the current world issues. Special Jury Recognition-Documentary Feature, PAFF 2017

41st & Central: The Untold Story of the L.A. Black Panthers

41st & Central: The Untold Story of the L.A. Black Panthers (PAFF 2010)
Documentary/US/130min/2010
Director: Gregory Everett

The first of a two-part documentary follows the Southern California Chapter of the Black Panther Party from its glorious Black Power beginnings through to its tragic demise. Despite the Party’s formation of free medical clinics and a successful children’s breakfast program, the L.A. chapter was known as the most violent Black political group in the United States. Through interviews and archival footage, this must-see film explores the Black Panther ethos, its conflict with the L.A.P.D. and the US Organization as well as the events that shaped its complicated and often contradictory legacy. Detailing the history of racism in Los Angeles and the communities response, it includes a historical analysis of the Watt’s uprising from the perspective of the participants, the formation of the Party as told by the original surviving members, and an eyewitness account of the Alprentice “Bunchy” Carter and John Huggins murders at UCLA in 1968. Featuring are interviews with Black Panther Party leaders Geronimo Ji Jagga, Elaine Brown, Ericka Huggins, Roland & Ronald Freeman, Wayne Pharr, Jeffrey Everett, Long John Washington, and Muhammad Mubarak, as well as, former L.A.P.D. Chief Bernard Parks, US Organization member Wesley Kabaila, UCLA Professor Scot Brown, and many others.
Audience Award Documentary Feature Film, PAFF 2010

Firestarter – The Story of Bangarra

Firestarter - The Story of Bangarra
Documentary/Australia/96min/2020
Director: Wayne Blair & Nel Minchin

Featuring authentic storytelling, mesmerizing technique, and deeply moving and spectacular performances, combined with inimitable soundscapes, candid interviews, and a treasure trove of archival footage, this beautifully executed film evidences why Bangarra Dance Theater developed from a little-known Indigenous dance group into one of the nation’s most powerful cultural institutions. Historically important, Firestarter explores the loss and reclaiming of culture, the burden of intergenerational trauma, and crucially, the extraordinary power of art as a messenger for social change and healing. Taking the viewer through Bangarra’s birth and spectacular growth to where it is now entering its 4th decade, this historically important film recognizes Bangarra’s early founders, telling the story of how three young Aboriginal brothers – Stephen, David and Russell Page – turned the newly born dance group into one of Australia’s leading performing arts companies. Feature Documentary Award and Inaugural Change Award, Adelaide Film Festival 2020; Best Documentary, Australian Academy of Cinema & Television Arts Awards

Viva Riva!

Viva Riva! (PAFF 2010)
Narrative/Democratic Republic of the Congo/96min/2010
Director: Djo Tunda Wa Munga

The film follows a fuel smuggler, Riva, after he brings a fuel shipment into Kinshasa. Riva is pursued by an Angolan gangster, Cesar, who wants the fuel. Cesar uses blackmail to gain the help of a local military officer, the Commandant, who then accesses a local informant and church resources to aid Cesar's search. Meanwhile, Riva falls for Nora, the partner of a local gangster, Azor. Riva gains the trust of a local boy and uses his help to find Nora again. The conflicts turn out to be deadly for almost all the main characters. 2011 Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography & Best Production Design AMMA, 2011 MTV Movie Awards for Best African Movie

The Forgotten Kingdom

The Forgotten Kingdom (PAFF 2014)
Narrative Feature/Lesotho/South Africa/98min/2013
Director: Andrew Mudge

Grown accustomed to the hustle and bustle of Johannesburg, a young Johannesburg hustler, Atang, reluctantly embarks on a journey to bury his estranged father. As he travels to his ancestral land in the rural mountain kingdom of Lesotho to fulfill his father’s last wish, he must quickly adjust to the more spiritual rhythms of the Basotho people. What begins as an inconvenience quickly becomes a magical rite of passage charged with humor and self-discovery. Stirred by memories of his youth, Atang’s journey takes an unexpected turn as he falls in love with Dineo, his childhood friend, now a radiant young schoolteacher. Atang asks Dineo’s father for her hand in marriage, but because he is unable to pay the bride price, her father removes Dineo to an even more remote village to keep them separated. Atang pawns his only article of value, the ring he took from his father’s finger, to finance his journey to follow his love. He also befriends a precocious eleven-year-old orphan, who becomes both his companion and spiritual guide of sorts during the arduous journey across the breathtaking mountains of Lesotho. Throughout his journey, Atang begins to encounter villagers who lead him further on this unexpected, often mystical, journey into his past. Beautifully shot, written, and acted, this epic-like film reveals a pilgrimage of hope, family, and maturity as Atang surrenders to the rhythm and traditions of his homeland. In the process, he, along with anyone watching, is transformed by the mystical beauty and hardships of the people and the land he had forgotten. Stars Zenzo Ngqobe, Nozipho Nkelemba, Jerry Mofokeng, Moshoeshoe Chabeli, Lillian Dube, Lobohang Ntsane and Sam Phillips. Best Director-First Feature Narrative, PAFF 2014; Audience Award, Best Narrative Feature, Woodstock Film Festival, 2013; Best Fiction Feature, Golden Punt Audience Award, Cambridge Film Festival 2013

October 1

October 1 (PAFF 2015)
Narrative/Nigeria/143min/2014
Director: Kunle Afolayan

Set in 1960, this psychological thriller details the investigation of police detective Dan Waziri, who is dispatched to a small town in western Nigeria to find the serial killer of young women. Set against the backdrop of the national celebratory mood of the impending Nigerian independence, Waziri is pulled into a game of cat and mouse as he and the killer try to outwit one other. Nominee, Jury Best Narrative Feature, PAFF 2015; Programmers’ Award-Narrative Feature, PAFF 2015

The Case of the Three Sided Dream

The Case of the Three Sided Dream (PAFF 2015)
Documentary/US/87min/2014
Director: Adam Kahan

Rahsaan Roland Kirk was a one-of-a-kind musician, satirist, and windmill-slayer, who despite being blind, becoming paralyzed, and facing America’s racial injustices – did not relent. His life’s work was exploring sound and making music. As an outspoken activist, he started a political movement to get more exposure to Jazz on American television. A generous musical soundtrack, archival footage, and interviews with family, friends, and colleagues create a mesmerizing portrait of this super-human, multi-instrumental musical force who played his music literally until the day he died. Special Jury Recognition-Documentary, PAFF 2015

Rattlesnakes

Rattlesnakes (PAFF 2019)
Narr/UK/US/86min/2019
Director: Julius Amedume

Based on Graham Farrow's acclaimed stage-play RATTLESNAKES, award-winning writer/director Julius Amedume’s Neo-Noir psychological thriller tells the story of Robert McQueen, whose typical day takes a turn for the worse when he’s ambushed by three masked men who accuse him of sleeping with their wives. He pleads his innocence, but what he does reveal will not only change all of their lives forever – but will it be enough to save his? Stars Jimmy Jean-Louis. Audience Award - Narrative Feature, PAFF 2019; Best African Diaspora Director, AMAA 2019; Best Feature Film, Africa International Film Festival, 2019

Of Good Report

Of Good Report (PAFF 2014)
Narrative Feature/South Africa/101min/2013
Director: Jahmil X.T. Qubeka

Parker, a shy and mysterious high school teacher, arrives at his new assignment in a rural school. While he is earnest in his passion for teaching, his extra-curricular attentions are drawn to a gorgeous young girl. When he realizes she is a student at his very school - and forbidden fruit - he grows increasingly obsessed. When the girl goes missing, a female detective comes snooping around, fueling Parker’s unstable, even dangerous, behavior. A modern-day classic film noir that will in time prove to be a milestone in Pan African film. Stars Mothusi Magano, Petronella Tshuma, Thobi Mkhwanazi, Nomhlé Nkyonyeni and Tshamano Sebe. Best Feature Film, Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) in Nigeria. Jury Best Narrative Feature, PAFF 2014; PAFF/BAFTA LA Prize, PAFF 2014

Coming From Insanity

Coming From Insanity (PAFF 2020)
Narrative/Nigeria/99min/2019
Director: Akinyemi Sebastian Akinropo

In the mid-nineties, 12-year-old Kossi, with genius-level intelligence, is one of many children trafficked through the Nigerian borders from Togo. He ends up with the Martin Family, an upper-middle-class family of four in Lagos. At their home, he will work overtime for his meals and shelter as a houseboy. Fast forward to the present day, Kossi is still a houseboy with the Martins. He dreams of a better life, but with barely any education, he knows his future is compromised. He relies on his natural abilities and talent to carve out a way for himself, soon discovering the art of counterfeit money printing and floating the most flawless counterfeit dollars in the Eastern Hemisphere. Soon out on his own, he employs the services of a few friends and grows the operation substantially, landing him on the radar of a young determined currency agent who will stop at nothing to bring him to justice. A genuine thriller that will have you on the end of your seat! Nominee, Best International Narrative Feature, American Black Film Festival 2020; Nominee, Best First Feature, PAFF 2020