Dynamic Africa

Dynamic Africa strives to be a multi-media information sharing curated blog that aims to function as a diverse platform for all things African and/or African-related (i.e. Diaspora) - from the classic to the contemporary.

Formerly, "This is Africa/fyeahAfrica".

(Profile Photo by Mama Casset)

DISCLAIMER:

I do not endorse any of the products or opinions shared on this site, nor do I claim any of the work posted here to be my own - except where stated. All posts originally made by me are credited. If no credit is given then the work is either my own/written by me or reblogged from another source.

A LITTLE ABOUT ME:

Student, 24

Based in Cape Town, South Africa
From Lagos, Nigeria

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(As an unemployed media student, all donations go into ensuring my survival in this cruel world and future projects I hope to embark on).

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(since Oct. 21th 2012)

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Posts tagged "DOCUMENTARY"

The New African Photography - Emeka Okereke: Invisible Borders

“100 years ago, photography was a colonial tool…”

“A photography is a window and not the view” - Emeka Okereke

For decades, the camera was used as a tool through which colonial governments and Western photojournalists alike imposed their own views on Africa through the restrictions of 2D imagery, defining Africa without much, if any, input from those whose faces were plastered on postcards, posters, magazines and media platforms across the world.

Profiling a new crop of African photographers using their lens to transform and inspire both change and development, Al Jazeera opens us up to the world of Nigerian photographer Emeka Okereke, founder of Invisible Borders - a organization that gives ‘African artists a space to define Africa for themselves’. In this video, the group travels on their annual roadtrip within Africa, going from Lagos to Kinshasa, as a means of developing young African artists through the lens of photojournalism.

A must-watch journey.

thedorseyshawexperience:

The Cola Road (2013)

(via bougieasshoodlum)

The POV Call for Entries is now open! Films submitted to this open call will be considered for the 2014 broadcast season and beyond. The deadline for submission is Friday, June 28, 2013.

POV continues to accept digital content delivery via download-enabled links or content on flash drives. It is not required but we strongly encourage every filmmaker who can deliver digitally to do so. Why? About 1,000 entries will be considered in this submission round and digital submissions help us be more efficient. Digital submissions allows us to work with pre-screeners across the country and around the world, and enables the programming team to travel a bit lighter. (Think backpack with an iPad vs. backpack with 40 DVDs).

If you submit a link, the video MUST BE DOWNLOAD ENABLED. If you don’t feel comfortable enabling download, then please submit your film on a DVD. You can password protect to ensure the privacy of your link, but don’t forget to send POV the password (look for the password field on the form).

Our updated Call For Entries Guidelines explain everything you need to know about how to submit to POV, no matter what format you choose. POV will still accept DVDs and flash drives this year for those who can’t make the jump to streaming video.

Please don’t send us a fancy thumb drive, because it will not be returned. Additionally we cannot accept uncompressed, full HD files for submission. Our digital specs are similar to DVD specs in order to keep the playing field (and our servers) level.

We are excited to see what filmmakers from around the world have been working on! The full Call For Entries cycle at POV begins with the June 28, 2013 deadline and lasts about six months — thanks in advance for your patience!

Have questions? Please send an email to cfe[at]pov.org and thanks, as always, for your interest in POV.

If you want better idea of whether the film you’ve made is a good fit for POV and to learn more about what POV looks for in a film during our selection process, check out a past blog post from 2007, “For Filmmakers: What Does POV Look For in a Film?”. If you want to inquire with someone who is currently in our programming department, drop us a line at cfe[at]pov.org or call 212-989-8121 x380.

Go to the POV Call for Entries online submission system »

For specific tips on how to navigate our online form, read on…

Standard: Finished films, or films that are at rough/fine cut stage. (Will be ready for broadcast in 2014.)
Shorts: Finished films, or films that are at rough/fine cut stage AND whose final running time is 30 minutes or less. (Will be ready for broadcast in 2014.)
Completion Funds: Films that are at assembly/rough/fine cut stage AND are seeking completion funds. (May or may not be ready for broadcast in 2014.)
Early Introduction: This category is exclusively for projects that are either too early in development or production to be considered in POV’s highly competitive selection process. If you plan on submitting to our open call in the future but would like to introduce your project to POV’s programming team now, this is the way to do it.

If you’re ready to begin your application please visit http://cfe.pov.org, read the guidelines, then follow the instructions to complete the entry form.

Here is a quick primer on how to use the online POV submission form:

Add cfe[at]pov.org to your email address book so that none of our correspondence to you is lost in a spam folder.
Make sure your browser will accept pop-up windows, and visit http://cfe.pov.org.
Click either of the two “Register” links (at the top and middle of the page) and complete the registration page.
Check your email for your registration confirmation. The confirmation email will usually arrive instantly, but may take up to 24 hours. Check your spam folder as well.
Click on the link within the confirmation email to activate your account. This is an obvious, but important step.
Once you’ve activated your account, log in at http://cfe.pov.org to complete your application. Enter your film’s title and click the button that says “Create New Call for Entries form.”
And that’s it! You’ve started a new entry! The rest of the form is pretty self-explanatory.

All films must be submitted through our online submission system. The arrival deadline is June 28, 2013. We grant extensions on a case-by-case basis. If you need an extension please email cfe[at]pov[dot]org with the subject line “Extension.”

POV (a cinema term for “point of view”) is television’s longest-running showcase for independent non-fiction films. POV premieres 14-16 of the best, boldest and most innovative programs every year on PBS. Since 1988, POV has presented over 300 films to public television audiences across the country. POV films are known for their intimacy, their unforgettable storytelling and their timeliness, putting a human face on contemporary social issues.

Get more documentary film news and features: Subscribe to POV’s documentary blog, like POV on Facebook or follow us on Twitter @povdocs.

Read more posts like this one…

POV’s Annual Call for Entries is Now Open!

blackfilm:

Messenger of the Great River (trailer)

This film is a poetic and musical journey along the Niger River with Malian musician Afel Bocoum.

Come and discover his ancestral connection with the Great River whose messenger he has become. via

Excerpt from the documentary: “Adire - Indigo Textiles amongst the Yoruba”

Yoruba women dressed in Adire textiles, in a still taken from the documentary “Adire - Indigo Textiles amongst the Yoruba”.

yourhue:

Afro-Cubans and Sierra Leoneans bridge the gap in documentary, They Are We

Can a family separated for 170 years by the transatlantic slave trade sing and dance its way back together again? THEY ARE WE tells a story of survival against the odds, and how determination and shared humanity can triumph over the bleakest of histories.

#towatch

(via blackfilm)

DOCUMENTARY: Hillbrow: Between Heaven and Hell (Dir. Clifford Bestall via Al-Jazeera, 2012

South African filmmaker Clifford Bestall traces the history of the once thriving and all-white downtown Johannesburg neighborhood of Hillbrow, through the life stories of various different inhabitants of the now deeply congested melting pot in one of Africa’s most economically prosperous cities.

As I watch this documentary, I can’t help but think Bestall’s narration and use of music paints the very real and painful stories of some of these individuals as romanticized stories of struggle.

FILM: ‘The Secret Capital’ (Dir. Mukhtar Saad Shehata and Samuli Schielke)

Was there a revolution? “The Secret Capital” follows the struggles, hopes and frustrations of people who between February 2011 and June 2012 brought the revolution to their village in northern Egypt.

thefemaletyrant:

A Gateway into Kano

This documentary follows the story of a Kano monument as it undergoes over 200 years of renovations. As the monument changes, so too does the city.

This story brings to light the reality of modernization in this African city. Some challenges have been overcome; some have led to failure.

The real-life stories shared by these citizens push us to ask the hard questions regarding change, culture, and community.

via African Unchained

In light of the recent UN report that was published and circulated earlier this week, highlighting the ‘misdeeds’ of United Nations Peacekeeping forces globally - including sexual abuse, money laundering, fraud and illegal transportation of minerals across international borders, I remembered a highly disturbing documentary I watched in one of my political science classes whilst in college.

The documentary, ‘Blue Helmets: Peace & Dishonor’, focuses on the heinous sexual abuse crimes committed by UN peacekeeping forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo and other African countries.

Unfortunately, my internet won’t allow me to watch the film at a normal rate but based on my first viewing of the documentary, it provides a critical insight into the systematic criminal activities that take place through the abuse of power of UN peacekeeping forces, and the injustices that are insufficiently dealt with punished.

firecrotchgif:

Brenda Fassie, Not A Bad Girl Documentary

Was watching and live-tweeting this documentary a few days ago - incredibly powerful look into the life of the later South African artist during the formative years of her career in the early 1990s.

Unsure of where you can watch it outside of South Africa but if you’re in the country and have DSTV, I believe it aired on Mzansi Magic Music and should repeat some time over the next few days.

DOCUMENTARY: ‘As Old As My Tongue: The Myth and Life of Bi Kidude’

Released in 2006, this documentary directed by Andy Jones chronicles the life of the late Taarab singer Bi Kidude.

DOCUMENTARY: Twelve Disciples of Nelson Mandela

Twelve Disciples of Nelson Mandela is a 2006 documentary film about a generation of men who left South Africa to form the African National Congress and spread their message across the world.

Considered terrorists by the U.S. government, filmmaker Thomas Allen Harris focuses on his stepfather Benjamin Pule Leinaeng, who was among the first ANC members to leave South Africa in 1960.

Part documentary, part dramatic re–enactment, The Twelve Disciples of Nelson Mandela is both a story about the African National Congress in exile from the perspective of the footsoldiers, and also a son’s journey towards reconciliation with a father. Harris began the film as a tribute to Benjamin Pule Leinaeng, his late stepfather. The project soon became a full exploration of one of the most eventful times in South African history, mixed with personal remembrances of Leinaeng’s time in the United States. Twelve Disciples of Nelson Mandela won Best Documentary Awards at the 2006 Los Angeles Pan African Film Festival and the Santa Cruz Film Festival, received Honorable Mention as Audience Favorite at the Bermuda International Film Festival, and was nominated for a 2006 Independent Spirit Award.

Directed/Written by Thomas Allen Harris

b-sama:

AFRICAN INDEPENDENCE

African Independence is a feature-length documentary covering the history of the African continent since enslavement and colonization by Europeans.

The film highlights the birth and realization of and the problems confronted by the movement to win independence in Africa.

The story is told through the voices of freedom fighters and leaders who achieved independence and justice for Africans.

It seeks to enlighten and provide audiences with African insights into the continent’s past, present and future through the lens of four watershed events: World War II, the end of colonialism, the Cold War and the era of African republics.

On my ‘to watch’ list.

Dynamic Africa

Afro-Cubans and Sierra Leoneans bridge the gap in documentary, They Are We