Film Africa at The Garden Cinema

Film Africa is London’s biggest biennial festival celebrating the best African cinema from across the continent and diaspora brought to you by the Royal African Society.

Established in 2011, the festival brings diverse London and UK audiences a high quality and wide-ranging film programme accompanied by a vibrant series of events.

At The Garden Cinema, Film Africa will show:

Mambar Pierrette (18)

Fri 1 Nov, 8pm

The city of Douala, Cameroon is getting ready for the start of the school year. A long line of customers come to Pierrette to prepare their clothes for upcoming social events and ceremonies. More than a seamstress, she is the confidant of her customers and community. But when it starts pouring and the rain threatens to flood her workshop – one of many misfortunes – Pierrette will have to struggle to stay afloat. Marked by moments of beauty and quiet grace, Mbakam’s naturalistic approach favors a portrait of resilience in the face of adversity and socioeconomic hardship.

Everybody Loves Touda (18)

Sat 2 Nov, 6pm

Touda only dreams of one thing: being a Sheikha, a traditional Moroccan performer. She belts out songs about resistance, love and emancipation, passed down from generation to generation. Every evening, she performs in bars under the gaze of men in her tiny village while hoping for a better future for her and her son. Disrespected and shamed, she sets her sights on leaving for the bright lights of Casablanca.

Al Djanat the Original Paradise (18)

Sun 3 Nov, 2pm

After the death of her uncle, a dignitary Mandingo Islam, the director films her family courtyard. A dispute over the estate has burst out between advocates of traditional law and proponents of official law, inherited from European colonization. The courtyard becomes the theatre where the future of an emblematic family is played out.