17°33′22″ W, Pointe des Almadies, Dakar, Senegal, the westernmost point of Africa. It is here that KISSF begins the journey throughout this magical and yet unknown continent with the retrospective of three prominent Senegalese directors: ‘the father of African cinema’ Ousmane Sembène, one of the winners of the 1st World Black Arts Festival Ababar Samb-Makharam and the holder of the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival Joseph Gaï Ramaka.
Q&A after the screening
Borrom Sarret
Ousmane Sembène
Senegal / 1963, 20 min
Often considered to be the first authentic African film, ‘Borom Sarret’ tells the story of an impoverished cart driver working in Dakar. When he does not receive payment for his labor, the cart driver is left feeling disenchanted.
Et la neige n’était plus
Ababar Samb Makharam
Senegal / 1965, 22 min
After winning a scholarship to study in France, a young Senegalese man returns home and questions his experience and his future, with honesty, courage and humor.
Ainsi Soit-il
Joseph Gaï Ramaka
Senegal / 1997, 33 min
A foreign doctor discovers the “heart of darkness” in the Wolof village where he works, when a mentally ill child he befriends becomes the scapegoat for “bad spirits.”