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The WOCAF Festival would like to thank everyone that attended our 4th annual festival. Despite the Tornado that hit downtown Atlanta the week before, our faithful followers still turned out to support us.The festival screened 20 films by and/or about women of color with filmmakers in attendance from Canada, Nigeria The UK and The USA.
The Soultry diva, Julie Dexter, gave an excellent performace at WOCAF's music showcase which took place at De Shrine in Atlanta's artsy neighborhood - Little Five Points.
We look forward to seeing you at our 5th annual celebration in 2009.
We promise you another wonderful lineup!
Watch out for our "Best of The Fest" screenings coming to you throughout the rest of the year
WOCAF's "Audience Choice Award" go to the following 3 films:
First place - Malcolms Echo:The legacy of Malcolm X by Dami Akinnusi
Second Place - As Old As My Tongue by Andy Jones
Third Place - I Want You by Nefertite Nguvu
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4th Annual Women of Color Arts & Film
(WOCAF) Festival
Atlanta Thursday
March 20th - Saturday March 22nd 2008
The Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture & History 101 Auburn Avenue, Atlanta, GA 30303
Screenings are free and
open to the public!
* Please note intermissions are 5 - 10mins long
Click here to download festival brochure
Thursday, March 20th 2008
6:00pm - 7:00pm - Meet & Greet Reception with Filmmakers
Donation's welcome Hosted by Iyalode Productions & The
Auburn Avenue Research Library Opening Night Feature "A Winter
Tale" @ 7:30pm
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Friday, March 21st 2008
Screenings 6:00pm -
10:00pm Centerpiece Feature "Malcolm's Echo" @
8:30pm
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Saturday, March 22nd
2008
Screenings 12:00noon -
8:00pm Closing Night Feature "The Amazing Grace" @
6:40pm
Thursday, March 20th Screening Times: 7:30pm
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Screening time: Thursday March 20th 7.30pm
Title: Greenland
(ATLANTA PREMIER)
Genre: music
video
Country & Year: Nigeria, 2007
Length:5 minutes Director: Gini
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One
of Nigeria’s most celebrated vocalists and internationally acclaimed
portrait photographer - Ty Bello- performs her hit
“Greenland” in this music video.
Winner of the Nigerian
Future Awards for Best Song of the Year 2007
Opening Night
Feature Screening time: Thursday March 20th 7:35pm
Title: A Winter Tale
Genre: Narrative
Country & Year: Canada , 2007
Length: 100 minutes
Director: Frances-Anne Solomon
Screenwriter: Frances-Anne Solomon & Michele Lonsdale Smith
Director of Photography: Kim
Derko Editing: Michele Francis
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…The bullet that shattered a community.
Shots ring out one winter night and a bullet meant for a local street dealer kills a ten-year-old boy. In the downtown Toronto community of Parkdale, grief and suspicion hang heavily in the air, while the
nightly patrons at Miss G’s Caribbean takeaway resume their ritual
of beer and banter. But one of them, Gene Wright, cannot go on. He
begs his friends for help. In a most unusual development, six Black
men make a pact to form a support group in hopes of salvaging their
broken spirits and redeeming their besieged community. A Winter
Tale is set against the backdrop of a multicultural community’s
unrealized hopes and dreams. Bitter and tragic, funny and hopeful,
the film tells a uniquely Canadian story that features Toronto as a
central character.
Winner
of the Tonya Lee Williians Award for Outstanding Canadian Feature at
the Reel World Film Fest 2007.
Q & A with
Director - Frances-Ann Solomon
Click here for trailer and/or more info...
Friday March 21st 2008 Screening times: 6:00pm -
10:00pm
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Screening time: Friday March
21st 6:00pm Title:Your
Choice (ATLANTA PREMIER)
Genre:
Comedy
Country & Year:Nigeria, 2007
Length: 3 minutes
Director: Tunde
Kelani Scriptwriter: Bose Oni
Scriptwriter:Bose Oni
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A
comical parody focusing on the importance of good
leadership.
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Screening time: Friday March 21st 6:05pm
Title: Yaa Asantewaa: The Spirit of the Ashanti Nation
(ATLANTA PREMIER)
Genre: Documentary
Country & Year: Ghana, 2007
Length: 55 minutes
Director: Love Joel Aryeetey
Producer: Love Joel Aryeetey
Dir.of Photography:William Sefa
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Yaa Asantewaa, the grandmother who led an army to resist colonization
is a story woven into the fabric of African myths and legends. As a Queen she had
foresight and conviction to fight the concept of colonization. In the second half of the nineteenth century,
after more than four centuries of contact, the European powers
finally laid claim to virtually all of Africa. In November 1884, the
imperial chancellor and architect of the German Empire, Otto von
Bismarck, convened a conference in Berlin to settle the political
partitioning of Africa. France, Germany, Britain, and Portugal were
the major players at the conference. Ashanti, the land
flowing with Gold and Silver was virtually free from the colonizers.
After the Berlin conference the British Government began pressuring
the Ashanti King to become part of the British protecterate. These
events culminate to the "Yaa Asantewaa’s War for Independence” which began on March 28, 1900. She mobilized
the Ashanti troops and for three months laid siege to the British
mission at the fort of Kumasi.
Intermission
Screening time: Friday March 21st 7:15pm
Title: I Want You
(ATLANTA PREMIER)
Genre: romance
Country & Year: USA
Length: 13 minutes
Director:Nefertite
Nguvu Producer: Timiza
Sanyika
Screenwriter:
Nefertite
Nguvu
Cinematography: Editing: Anthony Santiago Dir. of
Photography: Bradford M. Young
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“I Want You”: charts the emotional compass of young love when Lennox
Jones, an aspiring novelist, meets and falls hard for Baldwin
Wright, a charismatic musician on the rise. A whimsical romance
ensues, but falls short when high expectations meet discontent.
Eventually, time apart forces them to decide whether or not their
love was meant to last.
Award for Best Film - 10th Annual
African American Women in Cinema Film Festival
Click here for trailer and/or more info...
Screening time: Friday March 21st 7:30pm Title: Tomasa’s
Revenge
Genre: drama Country& Year:
Belize, 2007
Length: 15 minutes
Director:
Steve T. Berry Screenwriter:
Kim Vasquez
Editing:
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A grandmother visits a young relative and becomes entangled in a case
of domestic abuse.
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Screening time: Friday March 21st 7:46pm
Title: Kujo,My Love (ATLANTA
PREMIER)
Genre: romantic comedy
Country & Year:USA, 2007
Length:15 minutes
Director: Stacy Pyles
Producer:
Screenwriter:
Director of Photography:
Editing:
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Mallory tip-toes out of a one-night-stand and is mortified to learn she must
go back inside to face HIM.... and his evil cat named KUJO. A
sophisticated comedy about a regular Black Woman exploring the
possibilities of love, in a truly impossible situation.
Click here for trailer and/or more info...
Screening time: Friday March
21st 8:02pm
Title: Wooden Soul
(ATLANTA PREMIER)
Genre: drama
Country& Year:UK, 2006
Length: 11 minutes
Director: Rehana Rose Khan Producer:
Camera:
Editing:
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Amber
eleven is facing the imminent death of her father. She copes with
the situation in her own way, which is charming to some and shocking
to others.
Click here for trailer and/or more info...
Intermission
Centerpiece Feature Screening time: Friday March 21st 8:30pm
Title: Malcolm’s Echo: The legacy of Malcolm X (ATLANTA PREMIER)
Genre: documentary
Country& Year:UK, 2007
Length: 84 minutes
Director: Dami
Akinnusi
Co-Producer:
Editing:Anslem Herelle
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Now more that 40 years after the assassination of El Hajj Malik El Shabazz –
Malcolm X, we look beyond the icon and tune into his thoughts,
philosophies and actions. Why is Malcolm X as important today as he
was back then? This feature hears Malcolm X through the voices of
activists, scholars, and everyday people, resonating from the 1960’s
into the 21st century, we hear it declare: it is time to
define ourselves and create a vision of the future. Q & A with Director -
Dami
Akinnusi
Click here for trailer and/or more info...
Nollywood Nights: Celebrating Nigerian CinemaSaturday, March 22nd Screening
Times: 12noon- 8:00pm |
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Screening time: Saturday March 22nd 12 noon
Title: The
Narrow Path Genre:drama Country & Year:
Nigeria, 2007
Length:105 minutes Director: Tunde
Kelani Cinematography: Tunde Kelani
Editing:
Music:
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Awero
chooses between suitors but a haunting experience, expectations of
family and culture turn her wedding night into a nightmare. Storm
clouds gather as she is forced to walk a thin line between honor and
shame, carrying the resourcefulness of African womanhood and the
fate of communities in a fragile balance.
Intermission
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These series of shorts from The USA and Nigeria deal with issues of HIV/AIDS from various perspectives.
From the cheating boyfriend to a young girl infected from circumcision, these shorts challenge our notions of how people become infected by the virus.
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Screening time: Saturday March 22nd 2:00pm Title: Silent
Screams
Genre: drama Country & Year:
Nigeria 2007
Length: 10 minutes
Director:Abimbola Ogunsanya
Producers:
Screenwriter:Adeola Shuaib
Cinematography: Abimbola Ogunsanya Editing:
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Omobolanle,a promising young girl is infected with the HIV virus through female
circumcision - a must for every young girl of her age in her village. News of her new
status spread amongst the villagers and she is shunned by her
peers.. Falling into a deep depression, Omobolanle does the unthinkable. (Explicit
content – viewer’s discretion
advised)
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Screening time: Saturday March 22nd 2:10pm
Title:Low
Genre: drama
Country & Year: USA, 2007
Length:28 minutes Director: Brian Stemmlar Executive Producers:
Antonitta Barnes/Phillip Anthony Traylor
Screenwriter: Phillip
Anthony Traylor Photography: Tim Otholt
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Alex’s betrayal by
her lover causes her to seek revenge on all men. Miles is a
loving Father/husband trying to keep his family together. Their
worlds collide. “Low” shows how one selfish act can impact an entire
group.
Click here for trailer and/or more info...
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Screening time: Saturday March 22nd 2:40pm
Title: Catch
Them Young
(ATLANTA PREMIER) Genre: drama
Country & Year: Nigeria 2007 Length: 19 minutes
Director:Awoba Bob Manuel
Producers: Sandra Mbanefo Obiago, Yejide Spong
Screenwriter:
Director of Photography:
Editing:
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Ovie is a bright schoolgirl in puppy love with her classmate Sam. The two
lover’s passionate affair soon has irreversible consequences and
Ovie is left to face hard choices with her uncle and aunt turning
from angry despair to cautious hope.
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Screening time: Saturday March 22nd 3:00pm
Title: Seen But Not Heard
(ATLANTA PREMIER) Genre: documetary
Country & Year: USA 2007 Length: 9:35 minutes
Director:Cyrille Phipps
Producers: Cyrille Phipps
Consulting Producer: Ann Bennett
Production Coordinator: Cassandra Lizaire
Outreach Coordinator: Michelle Materre
Editing: Donna Golden
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This short documentary explores the historical antecedents, current trends and emerging activism concerning HIV/AIDS and women of African decent. Through raw and revealing personal accounts and comprehensive investigative journalism, "Seen, But Not Heard" seeks to challenge, inform, and inspire viewers to look past the daunting HIV/AIDS statistics - to see and hear the real stories of women of color whose lives are affected by HIV/AIDS.
Click here for trailer and/or more info...
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Student Shorts: National Film Institute (NFI), Jos, Nigeria
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Screening time: Saturday March 22nd 3:10pm
Title: Nightfall
(ATLANTA PREMIER)
Genre: drama
vidoe
Country & Year: Nigeria, 2007
Length: 7 minutes
Director: Micheal Onwunai/Akpesiri Ededey
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Driven by penury, pain and bereavement, a young man reviews his upbringing envisaging no future. Considering his pregnant wife and what would be her fate, he opts for a change,
which turns out to have dire consequences.
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Screening time: Saturday March 22nd
3:17pm
Title: Flings
Genre: drama
Country & Year:Nigeria ,2007
Length:6 minutes
Director: Mercy Didam
Camera: Paul Walman
Editing:Adeyemi Hafeez, Solomon Adewale
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A young man takes advantage of three ladies who are desperate for marriage. He is engaged to all three of them and then abandons them for a younger lady.
The ladies find out and lay a siege to trap him.
Intermission
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Screening time: Saturday March 22nd 3:30pm
Title: As
Old As My Tongue
Genre: music documentary
Country & Year:Zanzibar,2006
Length:66 minutes
Director: Andy Jones
Camera: Aubrey Fagon
Associate Producers (UK):Rita Ray/Griff Fender
Associate Producer(Zanzibar): Yusuf
Mahmoud
Editing: Lisa Cazzato
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An intimate portrait of living legend Bi Kidude, probably the oldest singer on the world
stage today. Her home island of Zanzibar has long been a meeting
point for African and Arabic influence. The island's music is its
most potent expression. Bi Kidude beguiles audiences wherever she
travels but domestically she continually courts controversy, her
behavior challenging perceptions of the role of women in a Muslim
society.
Winner, Best International Documentary Feature - Women's Int. Film Fest, Miami
2007
Audience Award Winner -Music on Film, Film on Music, Prague, 2006
Click here for trailer and/or more info...
Intermission
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Screening time: Saturday March 22nd 4:45pm Title: Osanle
(Prostitution) Genre:drama
Country & Year: Nigeria, 2007 Length: 15 minutes Director: Abimbola Ogunsanya Camera: Abimbola Ogunsanya
Screenplay :Aduragbemi Otusanya and Adeola Shuaib
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Bisi is a high school girl attends an all night party with her young
lover and has to prove her love to him by being more than intimate.
The unthinkable happens and fearing the wrath of her father, Bisi
absconds from home. The consequences she has to face are far greater
than what she anticipates.
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Screening time: Saturday March 22nd 5:00pm
Title:
Ìràpadà (Redemption)
Genre: drama
Country & Year: Nigeria, 2006
Length: 90 minutes
Director:
Kunle Afolayan
Cinematographer
Makeup:
Angela Phillips
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’Dewunmi a young
successful building contractor lives happily with his wife in the
northern part of Nigeria. His foster-mother from the village pays
him an unannounced visit to convince ‘civilized and educated’
’Dewunmi to perform a traditional redemption rite against foreseen
mysterious tragedy; premised on her re-occurring nightmares. All
efforts to convince him to do this prove abortive until the
unexplainable befalls him, tearing his world apart, as he searches
for answers.
Best Indigenous movie at the African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA)
2007
Click here for trailer and/or more info...
Intermission
INTERMISSION
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Closing Night Feature
Screening time: Saturday March 22nd 6:40pm
Title:The Amazing Grace
(ATLANTA PREMIER)
Genre: drama Country& Year:
Nigeria 2006
Length:92 minutes
Director: Jeta Amata
Producers: Jeta Amata/Alicia Arce
Co-Producer: Ansa
Bassey
Screenplay:Jeta Amata
1st Assitant Director: Emily Kate Saunders
Cinematography: Joseph Taylor
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In 1748 at the height of the slave-trading era, John Newton sails to
the coast of Nigeria and the port of Calabar. Now captain of his own
ship – “The Greyhound”- his previous experience in the slave trade
has turned him away from religion. Slaves are rounded up by force
and trickery whilst villages are raided and burned down and the
captives kept in dungeons, chained like animals. Newton leaves the Nigerian
coast with a ship load of slaves and a violent storm brings him to
the point of death and causes him to re-evaluate his life. He
finally renounces slave trading and decides to devote his life to
religion. During his time in Calabar, the melody of a popular local
song has stuck in John Newton’s mind. So when he pens the words to
the world’s most famous hymn, Amazing Grace, it is that African
melody which he uses to accompany them, a fitting tribute to the
land.
Click here for trailer and/or more info...
2005 Festival || 2006 Festival || 2007 Festival
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