New York African Film Festival 2024
Film at Lincoln Center (FLC) and African Film Festival, Inc. (AFF) will celebrate the 31st edition of the New York African Film Festival (NYAFF) from May 8 to May 14. Since its inception in 1993, the festival has been at the forefront of showcasing African and diaspora filmmakers’ unique storytelling through the moving image. This year’s theme, “Convergence of Time,” explores the intersection of historical and contemporary roles played by individuals representing Africa and its diaspora in art. With more than 50 films from more than 25 countries, the festival invites audiences to delve into the convergence of archival and modern experimentalism, transcending both space and time.
The programs of AFF are made possible by the generous support of the National Endowment for the Arts, New York State Council on the Arts, New York Community Trust, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, Bradley Family Foundation, Domenico Paulon Foundation, NYC & Company, French Cultural Services, Manhattan Portage, Black Hawk Imports, Essentia Water, South African Consulate General, National Film and Video Foundation, and Motion Picture Enterprises.
Wednesday, May 8
Walter Reade Theater
Thursday, May 9
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
Friday, May 10
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
Saturday, May 11
EBM Film Center (AMPH)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
Sunday, May 12
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
Monday, May 13
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
Tuesday, May 14
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
EBM Film Center (FBT)
Films
Over the Bridge
Opening Night | North American Premiere | Q&A with Tolu Ajayi on May 8
Folarin is an accomplished investment banker with a beautiful wife and a life most people can only dream of. When a high-profile government project his company was hired to manage goes awry, he discovers himself in a remote fishing village and starts to put together the missing pieces—but will he ever find his way back home?
Dilli Dark
Closing Night I Q&A with Dibakar Das Roy
Michael Okeke, a Nigerian student living in New Delhi, wants to get his MBA and settle in India, but his part-time job gives him a dubious double life in a city notoriously difficult for outsiders.
After the Long Rains
New York Premiere I Q&A with Damien Hauser on May 12
Ten-year-old Aisha wants to become a fisher so she can sail to Europe and become an actress, but her mother thinks that fishing should be left to men. One day Aisha meets a fisherman who decides to teach her how to fish. Preceded by Awa Moctar Gueye’s Timis.
La Chapelle
DELA: The Making of El Anatsui
North American Premiere
This biographical documentary delves into the life of an extraordinary artist, El Anatsui, the world-renowned sculptor from Ghana, and triumphantly acknowledges the importance of Africa’s rich artistic and cultural heritage in the pantheon of global contemporary art.
Dynamite
New York Premiere
Kiki, a musician lost in an unhappy marriage to her controlling husband-manager Mark, finds herself in a whirlwind romance when she meets Kofi, a replacement bassist for her band, forcing her to make an impossible decision. Preceded by Peter Oti Asamoah’s Last Night.
Fight Like a Girl
North American Premiere I Q&A with Ama Qamata
Starring Ama Qamata and Hakeem Kae-Kazim, Fight Like a Girl depicts the true story of a young Congolese woman who finds liberation after joining an all-women’s boxing club in Goma, led by an ex-child-soldier coach.
Making Men with Discussion + Dance/Movement Illustrations
MK: Mandela’s Secret Army
New York Premiere I Q&A with Ngozi Onwurah
The story of uMkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing of the African National Congress, is told through the experiences of several generations in this documentary, an intergenerational reflection on the all-consuming call to take up arms for South Africa’s liberation. Preceded by Ngozi Onwurah’s Neighborhood Alert.
The Rhythm and The Blues
New York Premiere I Q&A with Darryl Pitts, Leon Robinson, and Siji Awoyinka
A tale of passion, struggle, and the enduring power of music in an ever-changing world, The Rhythm and The Blues is the true-life story of legendary bluesman Eddie Taylor and his fight against obscurity, industry corruption, and cultural appropriation. Preceded by Siji Awoyinka’s Funmi!
Teacher Don’t Teach Me Nonsense
U.S. Premiere I Q&A with Yajaira De La Espada
Teacher Don’t Teach Me Nonsense gives voice to the growing trend of Afro-descendants moving back to the continent of Africa to live. Set in Tanzania, and told through a teacher’s eyes, this documentary showcases the life and empowering legacy of the founding father of Tanzania, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, and the recent presidency of Dr. John Pombe Magufuli.
This Is Lagos
New York Premiere
Aspiring rapper Stevo joins Kojack’s gang for quick cash, but a heist gone awry leaves him with the loot. Now, he must navigate the dangers of his criminal past while pursuing his music dreams.
Time Spent with Cats Is Never Wasted
U.S. Premiere I Q&A with Clive Will
A small-town artist must fight his community as they demand a share of the fortune his creation promises to deliver.
Under the Hanging Tree
U.S. Premiere I Q&A with Perivi Katjavivi
When a German farmer is found hanging from a tree, a hard-boiled police officer is pulled into an investigation that uncovers Namibia’s colonial history and genocide of the Herero people.
Shorts Program 1: Eternal Souls, Transient Bodies
Q&A with Rehanna Ngom and Christian Nyampeta
This short film program includes Christian Nyampeta’s Sometimes It Was Beautiful, Maja Costa’s Mångata, Shawn Antoine II’s For Those That Lived There, Rehanna Ngom’s The Prophecy, Diego de Jesus’s The Last Bash, and Imran Hamdulay’s The Wait.
Shorts Program 2: Perpetual Connections
Q&A with Ashley L. Canfield, Naima Hebrail Kidjo, Chiemeka Offor, Devin Powell, Ahmed Samir, and Derrick Woodyard
This program of short films includes Derrick Woodyard’s Love Taps, Devin Powell’s The Last Joint, Antoine Paley’s Jeanne, Ahmed Samir’s Mirah, Ashley L. Canfield’s Papi, Kitoko Diva’s Addis, My Father, and Chiemeka Offor’s Black Dreams.
Shorts Program 3: Vessels of Fortitude
Free Talks
Master Class: Ngozi Onwurah
Free event!
Join AFF as veteran independent filmmaker Ngozi Onruwah discusses the craft of utilizing cinema as a tool for unmasking the dynamics of the socioeconomic status quo in an intimate conversation with Ashley Clark, Curatorial Director at the Criterion Collection, in the Amphitheater in the Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center.
A litany for past suns labeled rituals / A star lit any and all possible futures: Part I (Anaglyphs)
On view in the Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center from May 9–14
For her 3rd solo presentation at Film at Lincoln Center, Nigerian-American artist Zainab Aliyu probes the archival silence surrounding Black experiences amidst generations of migration and forced displacement, illuminating the power dynamics inherent in shaping collective memory.Tickets are now on sale! $17 for the General Public; $14 for Students, Seniors, and Persons with Disabilities; and $12 for FLC Members.
See more and save with the $99 All-Access Pass or the $79 Student All-Access Pass. Please note that All-Access Passes can only be purchased online.
Complimentary tickets for FLC Members and Patrons are eligible for standard-priced screenings and events in this series. Learn more about becoming an FLC Member.
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