Ateneo - UPO

Introduction to Black Cinema: representation and self-representation of Africans and Afro-descendants in African, European and US cinema from its origins to the present day

anthology of essays provided by the teacher ----- filmography: At least five films per group must be seen a) Film africani 1. La Noire de... (Ousmane Sembène, Francia-Senegal 1966) 2. Jemima + Johnny (Lionel N’Gakane, Sud Africa-Regno Unito 1966) 3. Soleil Ô (Med Hondo, Francia-Mauritania 1970) 4. Sambizanga (Sarah Maldoror, Francia-Angola 1972) 5. Il viaggio della iena (Touki Bouki, Djibril Diop Mambéty, Senegal 1973) 6. Toula ou Le génie des eaux (Moustapha Alassane, Niger 1973) 7. Muna Moto (Jean-Pierre Dikongué Pipa, Camerun 1975) 8. Yeelen, la luce (Yeelen, Souleymane Cissé, Mali-Burkina Faso-Francia-Germania Ovest 1987) 9. Tilaï (Idrissa Ouédraogo, Burkina Faso-Svizzera-Regno Unito-Francia-Germania 1990) 10. Guimba, un tyran, une époque (Cheick Oumar Sissoko, Mali 1995) 11. Mossane (Safi Faye, Senegal 1996) 12. Daratt - La stagione del perdono (Daratt, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, Ciad-Francia-Belgio-Austria 2006) 13. Teza (ጤዛ, Haile Gerima, Etiopia-Germania-Francia 2008) 14. Timbuktu (Abderrahmane Sissako, Mauritania-Francia 2014) 15. I Am Not a Witch (Rungano Nyoni, Regno Unito-Francia-Germania-Zambia-Ghana 2017) 16. Atlantique (Mati Diop, Senegal-Francia-Belgio 2019) 17. Mami Wata (C.J. Obasi, Nigeria-Francia-Regno Unito 2023) b) Film statunitensi 1. Within Our Gates (Oscar Micheaux, USA 1920) 2. Alleluja! (Hallelujah, King Vidor, USA 1929) 3. Ombre (Shadows, John Cassavetes, USA 1959) 4. La calda notte dell'ispettore Tibbs (In the Heat of the Night, Norman Jewison, USA 1967) 5. Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song (Melvin Van Peebles, USA 1971) 6. Killer of Sheep (Charles Burnett, USA 1978) 7. Fratello di un altro pianeta (The Brother from Another Planet, John Sayles, USA 1984) 8. Il colore viola (The Color Purple, Steven Spielberg, USA 1985) 9. Bird (Clint Eastwood, USA 1988) 10. Fa’ la cosa giusta (Do the Right Thing, Spike Lee, USA 1989) 11. Boyz n the Hood - Strade violente (Boyz n the Hood, John Singleton. USA 1991) 12. Beloved (Jonathan Demme, USA 1998) 13. Alì (Ali, Michael Mann, USA 2001) 14. Django Unchained (Quentin Tarantino, USA 2012) 15. Barriere (Fences, Denzel Washington, USA 2016) 16. High Flying Bird (Steven Soderbergh, USA 2019) 17. Noi (Us, Jordan Peele, USA 2019) c) Film europei e sudamericani 1. Senza pietà (Alberto Lattuada, Italia 1948) 2. Il nero (Giovanni Vento, Italia 1967) 3. Seduto alla sua destra (Valerio Zurlini, Italia 1968) 4. Il leone a sette teste (Der Leone Have Sept Cabeças, Glauber Rocha, Francia-Italia-Brasile, 1970) 5. La paura mangia l'anima (Angst essen Seele auf, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Germania Ovest, 1974) 6. Come sono buoni i bianchi! (Marco Ferreri, Italia-Francia-Spagna 1988) 7. Chocolat (Claire Denis, Francia-Camerun 1988) 8. Un incendio visto da lontano (Et la lumière fut, Otar Ioseliani, Francia 1989) 9. Pummarò (Michele Placido, Italia 1990) 10. Kirikù e la strega Karabà (Kirikou et la Sorcière, Michel Ocelot, Francia-Belgio-Lussemburgo 1998) 11. Verso il sud (Vers le sud, Laurent Cantet, Francia-Canada 2005) 12. Venere nera (Vénus noire, Abdellatif Kechiche, Francia-Belgio-Tunisia 2010) 13. Miracolo a Le Havre (Le Havre, Aki Kaurismäki, Finlandia-Francia-Germania 2011) 14. Paradise: Love (Paradies: Liebe, Ulrich Seidl, Austria-Germania-Francia, 2012) 15. Diamante nero (Bande de filles, Céline Sciamma, Francia 2014) 16. Saint Omer (Alice Diop, Francia 2022) 17. Io capitano (Matteo Garrone, Italia-Belgio 2023) d) Documentari 1. Voyage au Congo (Marc Allégret, Francia 1927) 2. Moi, un noir (Jean Rouch, Francia 1958) 3. Africa in crisi (Come Back Africa, Lionel Rogosin, USA-Sud Africa 1959) 4. Appunti per un'Orestiade africana (Pier Paolo Pasolini, Italia 1970) 5. I Am Somebody (Madeline Anderson, USA 1970) 6. Style Wars (Tony Silver, USA 1983) 7. Hoop Dreams (Steve James, USA 1994) 8. Quando eravamo re (When We Were Kings, Leon Gast, USA 1996) 9. Hillbrow Kids (Jacqueline Görgen, Michael Hammon, Sud Africa-Germania 1999) 10. ABC Africa (Abbas Kiarostami, Iran 2001) 11. I Am Not Your Negro (Raoul Peck, Svizzera-Francia-Belgio-USA 2016) 12. Makala (Emmanuel Gras, Francia 2017) 13. Le Loup d’Or de Balolé (Aïcha Chloé Boro, Burkina Faso-Francia 2019) 14. Summer of Soul (Ahmir Khalib Thompson, USA 2021) 15. Marcher sur l'eau (Aïssa Maïga, Francia-Belgio 2021) 16. Bobi Wine: The People's President (Christopher Sharp, Moses Bwayo, Uganda-Regno Unito-USA 2022) 17. Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat (Johan Grimonprez, Belgio-Francia-Paesi Bassi 2024)

Acquire rudiments of African film history, explore the role of Afro-descendant minorities in American and European cinema and reflect on the representation and self-representation of African and Afro-descendant characters.

Knowledge of English and/or French language.

Frontal lessons with audiovisual materials; discussion in the classroom.

Oral exam starting from a topic chosen by the student.

The course will examine the gradual emergence of discriminated minorities within the major film industries (United States, France, United Kingdom, etc.) and the increasing prominence given to African and Afro-descendant characters, previously relegated to stereotypical second-rate roles and, during the 20th century, chiselled with increasing respect and complexity. The course will also analyse how these same minorities have been able to represent themselves on the big and small screen. Finally, the course will also delve into aspects of African film history, focusing on some of the continent's main filmmakers.

Based on specific case studies, students will be able to relate the evolution of audiovisual language to changes in society during the 20th century and beyond.