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Afrikana Independent Film Festival
"Finding Fela" is a documentary about Nigerian revolutionary and musician Fela Kuti.
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"Finding Fela" is a documentary about Nigerian revolutionary and musician Fela Kuti.
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Afrikana Independent Film Festival
"Finding Fela" is a documentary about Nigerian revolutionary and musician Fela Kuti.
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The Afrikana Independent Film Festival (AIFF), which began this year, spotlights independent films by and about people of color from all over the world. Founder and creative director Enjoli Moon was inspired to start AIFF after attending several successful festivals in other cities and wondering why Richmond didn’t have one of its own. Moon also wanted to provide a means for independent filmmakers of color to introduce their work to a broader audience. “The more I started exploring that realm of art,” she says, “the more I saw that there are a million stories and films that will never be seen by people just because we don’t have the platform to get those stories out.”
Richmond’s diversity and its growing art scene makes it the ideal location for a new film festival. Moon says, “I think you want to make sure that the global voice of brown people is represented and this is my contribution to that.” In addition to independent feature-length and short films, Afrikana plans to showcase popular films that do not typically make their way to Virginia. Finding Fela, a documentary about Nigerian revolutionary and musician Fela Kuti, is one such movie.
Scheduled for screening at the Byrd Theatre on Sunday, Finding Fela provides an in-depth look at the life of the godfather of afrobeat, including exclusive concert footage and interviews with his children. Fela Kuti was influenced by the American Black Power movement as well as the music of Miles Davis, James Brown, and John Coltrane. Afrobeat is the combination of jazz, highlife, funk, chanted vocals, percussion, and traditional Ghanaian and Nigerian music. Finding Fela sheds additional light on the Broadway musical Fela!, also based on Kuti’s life, which was co-produced by Jay-Z and Will and Jada Smith. The film is directed by Academy Award-winner Alex Gibney.
AIFF also hosts the Noir Cinema Series, showing a short indie film at a different gallery every third Thursday. In addition to the film, Afrikana brings in the filmmaker to answer questions from the audience. This month’s Noir Cinema short is Contamination. Written, directed, and produced by Tisch School of the Arts graduate and central Virginia native R. Shanea Williams, Contamination tells the story of a young woman who develops obsessive compulsive disorder after a near-fatal illness. Moon says of the film, “It’s been getting great feedback, getting lots of awards, but this is the Virginia premiere and she’s really excited to bring it home.”
Contamination will be at Candela Books and Gallery on Nov. 20 at 7 p.m. Entrance to Noir Cinema Series events is free but donations are welcome. Finding Fela will have its Richmond debut at the Byrd on Nov. 23 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 in advance (via Eventbrite) or $12 at the door.
