Kwibuka, a drama film starring Rwandan-French actress Sonia Rolland, has been selected for the Brussels International Film Festival (BRIFF) 2026. Rolland plays Lia, a Belgian-Rwandan international basketball player nearing the end of her career who returns to Rwanda after fleeing the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi as a child. Directed by Belgian-Rwandan filmmaker Jonas D’Adesky, the film follows Lia as she is recruited to join the Rwandan national basketball team. But her return soon becomes about more than sport. Back in Rwanda, Lia is forced to confront memories of her childhood and search for answers about her family, including reconnecting with her father, whom she has not seen for many years. For Rolland, Lia is more than a character navigating a difficult homecoming. She describes her as strong but enigmatic, driven by a need to understand her origins. “Lia is a very strong character, and in many ways, she is quite close to me. She remains quite enigmatic, with a strong sense of justice and a desire to understand her family history,” Rolland said. “She never gives up, but she is also a wounded child who grew up with a lot of turmoil and is trying to heal herself through this search for her family.” A story of return Rather than presenting Lia’s return simply as a homecoming, Kwibuka examines what it means to carry a place, a family history and childhood memories after years away. The film explores the tension between the life Lia has built abroad and her connection to Rwanda as she tries to make sense of a past that continues to shape her. The title, Kwibuka, is the Kinyarwanda word for “remember”, reflecting the film’s focus on memory and the ways the past can remain part of the present. Selected for BRIFF Kwibuka is part of the National Competition at BRIFF, where it will compete alongside a selection of films presented during the festival’s 2026 edition. Now in its ninth edition, BRIFF brings together filmmakers, actors and film professionals from Belgium and abroad, with a programme spanning feature films, documentaries and other cinematic works. The National Competition highlights films connected to Belgian cinema, giving Kwibuka, se souvenir a place in a programme showcasing the diversity of stories told by filmmakers working in and around Belgium. The selection also provides an important festival platform for D’Adesky’s second feature, bringing his Rwanda-focused story to audiences and industry professionals in Brussels.
