2016-17 Academic Catalog

Born as a response to the colonial gaze and discourse, African cinema has been a deliberate effort to affirm and express an African personality and consciousness. Focusing on the film production from West and Southern Africa since the early fifties, this course will entail a discussion of major themes such as colonialism, nationalism and independence, and the analysis of African symbolisms, world-views, and their links to narrative techniques. In this overview, particular attention will be given to the films of Ousmane Sembène, Souleymane Cissé, Mweze Ngangura, Zola Maseko, Oliver Schmitz, Abderrahmane Sissako and many others.