Media only: Kimberly Mayfield (202) 357-4600 ext. 291
Janice Kaplan (202) 357-4600 ext. 290
Public: (202) 357-2700
March 23, 1999
IVOIRIAN FILM SERIES AT THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN ART
The Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art will offer a free film series in April and May in conjunction with the exhibition "Baule: African Art/Western Eyes." This exhibition (on view through May 9) of more than 150 works presents the full range of objects created by Baule artists and contrasts how the Baule experienced these objects with how Western museums have presented them.
Côte d'Ivoire, one of Africa's major filmmaking nations, will be the focus of the first series, "Films from Côte d'Ivoire." It will highlight the works of Desiré Escaré, Roger Gnoan Mbala, Jacques Trabi and Fadika Kramo Lanciné.
"This film series was organized to expose the American public to the best in Ivoirian cinema," says Aboubakar Sanogo, fellow and film programmer, National Museum of African Art. "It is the first ever series specifically dedicated to the cinema of Cote d'Ivoire to be organized in the U.S. Different generations of filmmakers reflect on the various aspects of and issues facing their country, their continent and our world, by stylishly
exploring religious sects, tradition and modernity, identity, and mother and son relationships."
Several of these films have won major awards at international film festivals. Films will be screened at different Smithsonian museums, all located on the National Mall. Please see the attached schedule for listings.
The National Museum of African Art is located at 950 Independence Ave., SW, and is easily reached via Metro's blue/orange line, exit Smithsonian station. Admission to the museum is free. TTY: (202) 357-4814. Home Page: www.si.edu/nmafa.
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"The Cinema of Côte d'Ivoire"
Saturday, April 3, 7 p.m.
"In the Name of Christ" (81 mins., 35mm, 1992) by Roger Gnoan Mbala will be screened. In a country where religious sects are proliferating, a swineherd who claims he is the cousin of Jesus Christ, proclaims himself Prophet Magloire I and takes advantage of gullible individuals. (Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, 7th St. and Independence Ave., SW)
Saturday, April 17, 7 p.m.
"Faces of Women" (105 mins., 16mm, 1985) by Desiré Ecaré will be shown. This satire looks at women as wives, lovers and entrepreneurs in a male-dominated society.
Frank Ukadike, professor of Film Studies, Tulane University, and author of Black African Cinema will introduce and discuss the film. Content my beunsuitable for children. (S. Dillon Ripley Center Lecture Hall, 1100 Jefferson Drive, SW)
Saturday, April 24, 7 p.m.
"Faces of Women" (105 mins., 16mm, 1985) by Desiré Ecaré will be shown. This satire looks at women as wives, lovers and entrepreneurs in a male-dominated society. Content may be unsuitable for children. (S. Dillon Ripley Center Lecture Hall, 1100 Jefferson Drive, SW)
Saturday, May 1, 7 p.m.
Two films will be screened. "Bouzié" (27 mins., 35mm, 1996) by Jacques G. Trabi will be shown. Zebia, an Ivoirian immigrant living in France invites his mother, Bouzié, to come and stay with him. When Bouzié arrives, Zebia turns all his attention to his mother and neglects his wife. Events take a different turn when Bouzié discovers that her grandson is more French than Ivoirian.
"Wariko (The Jackpot)" (95 mins., 35mm, 1993) by Fadika Kramo Lanciné will be shown. Ali, a civil servant having a hard time making both ends meet, lives with his family and relatives in a small apartment in a poor neighborhood. One day his wife, Awa, buys a lottery ticket and misplaces it. When her ticket turns out to be the winning number, their lives are forever changed.
(Both films will be screened at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, 7th St. and Independence Ave., SW)
Saturday, May 8 , 7 p.m.
"Djeli (The Griot)" (90 mins., 35mm, 1981) by Fadika Kramo Lanciné will be shown. Fatima and Karamoko are students living in Abidjan, deeply in love and planning to marry. They have similar backgrounds, come from the same village and their parents know each other. What they don't know is that their marriage is impossible.
Françoise Pfaff, professor of African and Caribbean Cinema, Howard University, and author of The Cinema of Ousmane Sembene and Twenty-five Black African Filmmakers will introduce and discuss the film. (S. Dillon Ripley Center Lecture Hall, 1100 Jefferson Drive, SW)
Coming up in the Summer: A Retrospective on South African Cinema
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