A film in honour of Senegalese film director, producer and writer Ousmane Sembene will be screened in Kigali today. The film, Sembene, will be screened at the Rwanda Arts Initiative (RAI) premises in Kimihurura at 6pm. The screening is part of the Sembene Across Africa project, under which a series of free public screenings are being staged across the continent in celebration of the legacy of the Senegalese film maker who passed away in 2007. The film delves into Sembene’s illustrious film career that spanned over 50 years, earning himself the title of “father of African cinema”, besides writing several novels. The Kigali screening is organised by Samcity Film House and Imitana Productions in collaboration with the Rwanda Arts Initiative. Screenings of the film kicked off in June last year, with public runs in schools, theaters, cultural spaces and through free streaming. The goal, according to organisers, is to take the screenings to all 54 African countries, several cities in the Diaspora, and introduce African lovers to a real life hero who dedicated his entire life to the crafting and telling of African stories mostly through the film medium. Admission to the screening is free. About Ousmane Sembene Sembene was Africa’s pre-eminent cultural hero who used the mediums of film and books to re-tell the African story from an Afro centric point of view. He was expelled from school at the young age of 13, and for more than 20 years, took solace in work as a manual labourer. Desperate to improve his literacy, Sembene taught himself how to write at the advanced age of 30. Despite this late education, he would go on to pen several novels that espoused his wish for self-determination in Africa. His first film, Borom Sarret, was released in 1962, at a time when agitation for political independence was rife across the continent. Sembene famously described his films as “an evening school for Africans”, and some of the more popular ones include; Black Girl, Mandabi, Emitai, Ceddo, Xala, Camp de Thiaroye,and Moolaade. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
