Women Centered Films

MAMA AFRICA: MIRIAM MAKEBA + ACES

MAMA AFRICA: MIRIAM MAKEBA + ACES

Regular price $395.00
/

MAMA AFRICA: MIRIAM MAKEBA

DIRECTED BY MIKA KAURISMÄKI
SOUTH AFRICA AND GERMANY / 2011 / ENGLISH / 90 MIN


SYNOPSIS

Mama Africa: Miriam Makeba focuses on the life and influence of the South African singer and civil rights activist, Miriam Makeba. The film's segment concerning her time in the USA is particularly significant, as it showcases her impact on the Civil Rights Movement and her artistic collaborations in the country.

During her time in the United States, Makeba's music and activism became deeply intertwined with the African-American experience. Her marriage to Stokely Carmichael, a prominent figure in the Black Panther Party, marked a crucial period where her artistry and advocacy for African rights gained prominence, but also led to controversy and eventual exile from the USA. The documentary explores how Makeba used her voice not only to enchant American audiences with her music but also to raise awareness about the struggles against apartheid in South Africa, making her a vital cultural and political link between Africa and the African-American community.

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Mika Kaurismäki
Starring: Hugh Masekela
Starring: Angélique Kidjo
Starring: Harry Belafonte
 

GENRES

  • Documentary

 

BONUS FILM

ACES

DIRECTED BY NTANDAZO "DIDI" GCINGCA 
SOUTH AFRICA / 1999 / ENGLISH / 17 MIN


SYNOPSIS

Aces is the story of a young man who fights against the battering of his mother by his drunken father. The situation escalates until Ace desperately stabs his father to death, and is sent to jail for a period of 15 years. Nine years later he is out on parole. He kills again within a day's time of his release.

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Ntandazo "Didi" Gcingca 
GENRE
  • Short Drama


 

Cart
SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE
SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE
SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE
SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE
SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE
SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE
SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE
SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE
SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE
SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE

SCHEHERAZADE, TELL ME A STORY + FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE & ROTATING SQUARE

Regular price $395.00
/

Scheherazade, Tell Me A Story Trailer from ArtMattan Productions on Vimeo.

SCHEHERAZDE, TELL ME A STORY

DIRECTED BY YOUSRY NASRALLAH
EGYPT / 2009 / ARABIC WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES / 135 MIN

SYNOPSIS

SCHEHERAZADE: TELL ME A STORY is a tale ripped from today’s headlines and yet a clever reference to the myths and lore of the Middle East.   When her husband (Hassan Saeed) asks her to tone down the subversive political rhetoric on her program, Egyptian talk show host Hebba (Mona Zaki) draws even more heat by beginning a series that explores the experience of women in contemporary Egypt. As three women speak out about the mistreatment they've suffered in a deeply patriarchal society, Hoda must contend with her own disintegrating marriage. Yousry Nasrallah directs this drama.

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Yousry Nasrallah
Starring: Mona Zaki
Starring: Rehab El Gamal
Starring: Hassan El Raddad
 

GENRES

  • Drama 
  • Also features Fallen Angels Paradise

FALLEN ANGELS PARADISE
(GANNAT AL SHAYATEEN) 

DIRECTED BY OUSSAMA FAWZI
EGYPT / 1999 / ARABIC WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES / 80 MIN

SYNOPSIS

A homeless man dies of an overdose in a popular Cairo neighborhood. He was once an ideal husband and represented security for his family. Then one day, everything changed. Upon his death his friends from the underworld drag the corpse around for a whole night of madness, drinking and hallucinating situations. A game with death where the dead man becomes more alive than the living and fallen angels live according to their own rules, laws and desires in the chaos of the Egyptian capital. The film is based on a famous short story written by the Brazilian writer Jorge Amado. 

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Oussama Fawzi
Starring: Mahmood Hemaidah
Starring: Lebleba
Starring: Caroline Khalil

GENRE

  • Dramatic Comedy
Cart
AN UNCOMMON WOMAN

AN UNCOMMON WOMAN

Regular price $245.00
/

AN UNCOMMON WOMAN

DIRECTED BY DAO ABDOULAYE
BURKINA FASO / 2009 / FRENCH WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES / 101 MIN

SYNOPSIS

Mina is tired of her husband's infidelity and decides to take a drastic decision: She takes a second husband. Based on his conversations with women involved in polygamist relationships, he illustrates - to very funny effects - the daily life of two persons - in this case two men - who share a spouse. On a comedic tone, Abdoulaye Dao tells us a story of jealousy, infidelity, romance and revenge.

 

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Dao Abdoulaye
 

GENRES

  • Social Comedy 
Cart
SUSANA BACA; MEMORIA VIVA

SUSANA BACA; MEMORIA VIVA

Regular price $245.00
/

SUSANA BACA: MEMORIA VIVA

DIRECTED BY MARC DIXON
PERU ND BELGIUM / 2003 / SPANISH WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES / 54 MIN

SYNOPSIS

Susana Baca is not only a champion in the performance and preservation of Afro-Peruvian heritage, but also an elegant singer whose shimmering voice sings of love, loss and life. Susana and her husband Ricardo Pereira have founded the Instituto Negrocontinuo “Black Continuum” in Lima, a spirited facility for the exploration, expression, and creation of Black Peruvian culture. While Baca has dedicated herself to researching and performing virtually all forms of Afro-Peruvian folklore, it is the lando that has become her trademark. This slow to mid-tempo, highly evocative mix of Spanish, Indigenous and African rhythms has become what the son is to Cuba, or the samba to Brazil--the lando is the sound of Black Peru.

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Marc Dixon
 

GENRES

  • Musical Documentary
Cart
WHITE LIKE THE MOON

WHITE LIKE THE MOON

Regular price $145.00
/

WHITE LIKE THE MOON 

DIRECTED BY MARINA GONZALEZ PALMIER
U.S.A. / 2001 / ENGLISH / 23 MIN

SYNOPSIS

A Mexican-American girl struggles to keep her identity when her mother forces her to bleach her skin. White Like the Moon is a revealing film about a dilemma not very well known outside Latino communities; that of the myth of the light skin superiority in Indigenous and Indigenous descendant communities.

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Marina Gonzalez Palmier
Starring: Misha Aziz
Starring: Diana Burbano
Starring: Crystal Leah Chacon
 

GENRES

  • Drama 
Cart
FEMININE DILEMMA

FEMININE DILEMMA

Regular price $195.00
/

FEMININE DILEMMA 

DIRECTED BY ZARA M. YACOUB
CHAD / 1994 / ARABIC ND FRENCH WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES / 22 MIN

SYNOPSIS

Images presented in Feminine Dilemma are almost unsustainable to watch. One witnesses the circumcision operation performed on two young girls as women surrounding them in a courtyard clap their hands, dance and sing "you will not cry or we will never forgive you". Following this harrowing sequence, the film presents a series of interviews with religious leaders, women group representatives, health workers, everyday people and the girls themselves and asks the question: why female circumcision? Should it be performed and how? And what are the consequences? Following the making of this film, scandal broke and threats and attacks against the filmmaker followed. But once the dust settled, a debate started in Chad which allowed for open discussions of a topic that is still taboo in many parts of the world today. As for the filmmaker, Zara M. Yacoub, she will remain marked for life by her experiences making and defending this very courageous and disturbing documentary.

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Zara M. Yacoub
 

GENRES

  • Documentary 
Cart
CHILDHOOD DESTROYED

CHILDHOOD DESTROYED

Regular price $195.00
/

CHILDHOOD DESTROYED

DIRECTED BY ZARA M. YACOUB 
CHAD / 1999 / ARABIC DIALECT AND FRENCH WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES / 26 MIN

SYNOPSIS

Eleven year old Mariam works as a domestic to provide for her guardian, her unemployed Uncle Djimet, and his family. Mariam wakes up early each day to go to work while Djimet, his wife Isabelle and their children are still asleep. Mariam works as an all-purpose maid, housekeeper, cook and baby sitter for the Nadji family. With her many tasks, she is constantly under pressure from Nadji and his son Moussa, and must answer to the whims of his wife, and young children. One day, Mariam is arrested for having unwittingly thrown rubbish in a prohibited place. She is detained for five days in prison without her uncle or employer even inquiring of her whereabouts. "Childhood destroyed" denounces the living conditions of young girls in Chad in a delicate yet powerful way.

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Zara M. Yacoub
 

GENRES

  • Drama 
Cart
FARAW! MOTHER OF THE DUNES

FARAW! MOTHER OF THE DUNES

Regular price $295.00
/

FARAW! MOTHER OF THE DUNES 

DIRECTED BY ABBDOULAYE ASCOFARÉ
MALI / 1997 / SONGHOÏ WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES / 90 MIN

SYNOPSIS

Zamiatou is the mother of two quarrelsome boys and a depressed teenage girl. She is also the wife of a man arrested for political reasons who returns from prison mentally and physically destroyed. She struggles hard to survive in a poor and desolate area. She is ready to face anything to keep the family alive except prostituting her beautiful daughter. Her determination will take her far from her family… 

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Abbdoulaye Ascofaré
Starring: Aminata Ousmane
Starring: Balla Moussa Keita
Starring: Safiatou Mahamane
 

GENRES

  • Drama 
  • DVD entitled GREAT AFRICAN FILMS - VOL 1 - also includes feature film Haramuya
Cart
DESIREÉ

DESIREÉ

Regular price $245.00
/

DESIREÉ

DIRECTED BY FELIX DE ROOY 
NETHERLANDS AND USA / 1984 / ENGLISH SUBTITLES / 96 MIN

SYNOPSIS

Set in Brooklyn, New York this Dutch film is based on a true story that appeared on a New York newspaper in 1980.

Desirée lives in the past. A series of flashbacks expose us to her psychologically troubled childhood very much affected by a promiscous mother. Her present life evolves around three people: her employer Mrs. Resnick, Freddy, her lover and Father Siego, leader of the church "The True Confessors".

Desirée's relationship with each one of these characters is at the origin of her falling apart. Freddy is an insecure black man who finishes their love affair with a sad note, Father Siego is the leader of a rigid narrow-minded religious sect and Mrs Resnick is a racist, prejudiced white woman who feels black people are inferior and incapable of living their own live.

Rejected by all because of her pregnancy, Desirée blames her child as the source of evil. She is then possessed by evil and wants to exorcise it. The only way is to get rid of her daughter... 

 

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Felix de Rooy
 

GENRES

  • Drama 
Cart
THE CATHEDRAL

THE CATHEDRAL

Regular price $195.00
/

THE CATHEDRAL 

DIRECTED BY HARRIKRISNA ANENDEN 
MAURITIUS / 2006 / CREOLE WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES / 78 MIN
SYNOPSIS

The Cathedral is a lyrical narration set in the beautiful and unusual setting of Port-Louis, capital of Mauritius. Lina, a young woman in search of her identity interacts daily with friends and family in a carefree happy manner that will be challenged when one day her dancing catches the eye of a photographer... The Cathedrale is based on a sort story by his wife Ananda Devi.

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Harrikrisna Anenden
Starring: Ingrid Blackburn
Starring: Ashwin Anenden
Starring: Gaston Valayden
 

GENRES

  • Drama/Comedy
Cart
CAPE VERDE MY LOVE

CAPE VERDE MY LOVE

Regular price $245.00
/

CAPE VERDE MY LOVE 

DIRECTED BY ANA LUCIA RAMOS LISBOA
CAPE VERDE / 2007 /  CREOLE WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES / 77 MIN

SYNOPSIS

Praïa, Cape verde. Laura, Flavia and Bela are childhood friends. Each leads her own life and they sometimes meet to dance, dine and have fun. But one day the calm rivers of their lives break their banks and become wild torrents: Ricardo, Flavia's husband, rapes his pupil Indira, Laura's 13-year old eldest daughter. A film that takes a critical look at the lives of women in Cape Verde.

DIRECTOR AND CAST

Director: Ana Lucia Ramos Lisboa
Starring: Eric Bridges Twahirwa
Starring: Cleophas Kabasita 
Starring: Davis Kagenza 
 

GENRES

  • Drama 
Cart