Let's go to the movies Pt 6

No water in shower today

Saw three films today, the first one from the USA. It was a shoot ‘em up, crack dealers, wannabe hoochies. I’ve seen it a million times, every other word is the ‘N’ word. Boring! Afterwards an African American woman is going off to reporters about these images. One reporter says it’s good for people to see that, "it’s not true that all Americans are rich." The woman counters that the gangster images are also wrong and that all Americans don’t have guns and kill people.

Thinking about the gangster image, it’s always been around since film began. So what’s the difference in the Black urban gangster images and say, uhm, Scorcese (my personal favorite American director) or Coppola films? Could it be that these films aren't just about glorifying the violence of the gang (notice I didn’t say Tarantino) but are about family values, creating & defining family units, friendship and growth. Characters evolve. Maybe the problem with these urban bang bangs is script and structure…

We leave the woman in the theatre yelling at reporters but not before we invite her to the DuSable to Obama: Chicago’s Black Metropolis (aka D2O) screening for a different Black American image.

Next stop FESPACO offices to try to pick up those legendary ‘meal tickets.’ On our way out we run into French actor/comedian Emil Abossola-Mbo. I love this guy, we hung out in Paris a few years ago. He’s such a good actor, that I'd told our mutual friend that I didn’t want to meet him cause he was so menacing in the film ‘Ezra.’ He turned out to be one of the nicest people you could meet and very funny. Emil is one of the judges in the documentary category. No that’s not our category, we are Diaspora. Emil tells me that my ‘boyfriend’ director Newton Aduaka is here. (be still my heart) My crush is a running joke between us. Newton is the director of the 2007 Fespaco and Cannes Film Festival hit film, ‘Ezra.’ Talent and brilliance is certainly a sexy combination and Newton has plenty of both. Yum. Emil promises to come see D2O.

At the Fespaco offices, of course, no meal tickets again. Come back when the Guy is here. This was my third attempt, I give up. TIA. In the rotunda of the offices is an artist, Yewo who has work hanging and is creating some more smaller pieces. He is a Rasta and, as everyone does, he loves Michael Foster. The Jamaican thing is brilliant among Africans worldwide. He’s doing stuff with paper, and I tell him about Raymond (Thomas) and show him some of Raymond’s work (love the iPhone). I buy a small piece for Raymond and he sends him a shout out.

We are on our way to another theatre when one of the workers, Irenee, from the office, catches up with us and tells us the guy is there. Of course this is the GUY that does not like me and he’s telling everybody about me. Mais je suis American. They don’t like problems here and asking questions like ‘what flight am I on?’or ‘where am I staying?’ is a problem! I just laugh at him and force him to take a picture with me. He doesn’t want to, but he does. Who cares. I have MEAL TICKETS!

Next film is a complicated South African drama about illegal immigration, not from Mexico, but from Zimbabwe! And they have the same ignorant Arizona type reaction;-O Who knew. It’s a bit long for me and I fight sleep, loosing this fight several times. Hey, what’s John Savage doing in South Africa? And he’s playing a priest.

Third film was about a mixed race French girl who comes back to Burkina to find her mother. Seems her father was one of those ‘Doctors With No Trace’ but he went back and got the girl when she was eight and had her raised by his French wife.

Now that he’s dead, the girl, who loves her French family and doesn’t want to hurt them, decides she needs to find her birth mother. An interesting film with an abrupt ending. It’s called Notre Etrangere. At one point in the film I mention to my friend that I envy the girl in the film’s hotel room. My friend is shocked because she thought the room was a dump. (She hasn’t seen mine) When she does see my room she tells me I’m a real trooper but we must get me out of here asap, “OMG, how could you stay here? I couldn’t do it for even one night. This is horrible.”

The lizards like it.

Africa's Islam pt 5

Africa does Muslim different, with more style and swag. It’s pretty hot, or maybe cool. Whatever, it definitely works! Nothing scary about this. Let’s dance! All kinds of things happening in the world and people are having a good time. America has got to get over its paranoia. We are making ourselves nuts andmiserable. It’s like the crazy person seeing the boogie man all the time. Everyone else knows the boogie man does exist but they are out having a good time, shaking their heads at the crazy one as they move right along.

We think they ‘hate our freedom’ and they all want to come to the US. Guess what?

Some people are happy with their own lives. Most people love where they come from.

One young brother told me he spent 6 years in Canada, at school and he couldn’t wait to get back to Ouagadougou (Wa-ga-do-goo) aka Ouaga (Wa-ga).

Many others told me it was a definite NO on coming to the US. I guess not everybody wants to move in with you because you have a nicer house. Some people like their little homes better. After all, it's theirs.

One thing I do find curious, is that all the experts on Africa are anything but Black. You mean NO Black people understand Africa or Africans, not even the ones already here? What’s that about? Some things never change…

Africa's Love of Cinema pt 4

FESPACO opens with great fanfare. Fireworks, dancers and a stadium full of people. This is a big deal. It's Sundance and Cannes but for Black cinema. Amazing at how much they love film. In the center of the city is a huge sculpture of film reels and statues of different great African filmmakers like Ousmane Sembene and Gaston Kabore. Nice.

The most prestigious award at FESPACO is the "Étalon de Yennenga" (Stallion of Yennenga) named after a woman!

In one of the poorest countries in the world the people are celebrating film. It's interesting and inspiring that Africans love their cinema so much. The key word is their cinema and there's lots of it and much of it great. It's both interesting and inspiring. This really puts the

African-American cinema into perspective. We love Tyler Perry and that's fine, but that's like the Nollywood films, they make the most money but there is another level of filmmaking. By promoting TP and Nollywood you don't encourage people to grow. It sticks with the same formula over and over again. There is room for many other images and stories.

The Africans love to tell, hear and see stories about themselves in a way that is totally different from the African-American. The griot spirit is alive and well in their films. People line up for films like

it's super lottery. Everyone is very orderly and pleasant, no pushing, no arguments. Here's another thing these young Black men are not gang banging, killing each other but are challenging each other's film skills. There are cine-clubs that distribute film all over the country. Many of these clubs have film teams (gangs) of young people that are learning to and making films. When they shoot at each other or have drive-by shootings, it has a totally different meaning.

Here's something else different about the cinema experience here. After the films they discuss the film and it's theme. Audiences participate in discussions after the films, not just at the festival but at their neighborhood outdoor theatres. One young man told me if you want to prove to a girl that you are a proper young man and respectable, the first place you take her is to the cinema, the second date you can go to the restaurant, but the cinema is first, to prove you're worthy.

Flight to Ouaga Part 2

Sitting in Charles deGaulle Airport in Paris I realize just how much diversity there is in the world that we miss at home. We often call the US a melting pot and now I get it. We melt all the individuality and uniqueness of people into the same white bread American. People are basically told, verbally or otherwise, to be American. Anglosize your culture and we'll add some of your recipes or spices to our melting pot. I love colour and all these beautiful colours had me at hello. Even the adverts are beautiful and diverse.

In this airport I see REAL Buddist monks, Sri Lankans, Indians, all types of African and Asians proudly wearing their native dress. It's all so colourful, with a little French flare thrown in, but not enough to loose their own identity. At O'Hare Airport all I saw was a nun in a short veil, and yes, I of course spoke to her. "Hello Sister" in my most Catholic girl voice. She was pleasantly surprised and smiled, "Why hello Dear" She knew I'd gone to Catholic school by the way I addressed her, and she was proud!

Three of my friends met me at the airport and we had a great time, We drank,laughed, exchanged stories and looked at pics of our families, icluding all the new editions. The four of us were having so much fun we forgot about time and the flight. Oops!I get to the gate just as they were boarding... But wait IS this the right flight? I'm suppose to go to Africa. Where are the Africans? The flight is full but it's 95% white! Going to Ouagadougou? Are they all going to FESPACO? Hmm.. one of the reasons I'm so confused is that there are categories at FESPACO that can only be won if the director is Black. This should be interesting.

This is definitely the party plane. Two hours into the five hour flight people are standing up talking and pouring their own drinks! I love the sound of French, it sounds like swearing only cooler. We're not in Kansas anymore. I'm partying too, listening to Kanye, Nina Simone and Frank Sinatra...

Landing in Ouaga was not so smooth as the ride. We hit the ground so hard my butt still hurts. The stewardesses had a frightened look on their faces, but when it was clear that we were safe, the whole plane broke in to spontaneous cheers and applause. TIA

Relax, don't do it! Part 3

Get to the hotel? Wait, this is not the fabulous Hotel Independence online, this the, what? RELAX Hotel? Really? Like, "Relax, don't do it?" Oh boy. Okay whatever. I've hooked Michael & Calvin up, thru friends with a place to stay. They end up at a fabulous private home complete with their own apartment, maids, cooks, guards and driver....and I end up RELAX-ed.

Since the official opening of FESPACO is not until Saturday night we hang out around town. Michael & Calvin did stand in line for 4 hours to pick up my badge. (Hey, they have a driver!)

That's another thing, there is no transportation to and from FESPACO as promised. Good Luck.

The lineup for the festival is still being decided so some of the competitions (like ours-Diaspora) are kind of pasted in the book. At least we're there... What!? This can't be right. DuSable to Obama is in competition against one of my favourite filmmakers? RAOUL PECK! Wow. Are you kidding? I'm speechless.

I love Raoul Peck. Both his documentary and later his film on Lumumba are absolute MUST sees. His Sometimes in April makes Hotel Rwanda look like, well, Disney.

I need a drink, but not at the Relax. This hotel makes Hotel Rwanda look like a Disney resort. But I dont want to seem like the ugly American and complain about accommodations being sub par. Plus the guy in charge of travel & accommodations doesn't like me because of all the changes and questions I had.

When I was first notified about the film being accepted they only provided for 1 producer and I informed them that both of us were coming. That caused some scrambling, but it was okay, for a while. Later I had to tell them that the other producer would NOT be coming afterall. It was at this point that things got a little strained and it went downhill from there, with all the

ticket business etc. So this Guy was not feeling me and I end up at the lowest end hotel in the festival. If this were the States you'd rent this room by the hour. Oh yeah and those infamous 'meal tickets' I haven't seen them yet.

We go out partying at this great club. The music is hot! Oooh there goes that diversity thing

again. Music is a mixture of American, African and Arabic. The two DJ's working together, an African and Arab (North African), have the place rocking! I'm loving this and feel at home, especially when I'm slightly hung the next morning.

I meet a really cool European mother/daughter duo at RELAX 'there's lizards in my room'

Hotel and it's 4:20. The mother writes about film etc and lives in/works for Oxford in England. The daughter is a magazine/book editor in Amsterdam. (I'm hungry. Are you guys hungry?) They are a riot, they're best friends and travel together a lot. This is the mother's 7th FESPACO and they both LOVE Chicago! (Ooh I'd love a donut right now) They ask me if it's true or just insane rumour that professors and students will be allowed to carry guns on the university campus? And asks if it wouldn't be safer if no one on campus carried a gun at all. I have no answers.

They were very please to find out I was the filmmaker of one of the films that's on their 'to see' list. Cool, here, have a poster.

They start telling me about 'Doctors Without Trace'. A termed used for white workers (not just doctors) who come to work in Africa and have a relationship and children with an African woman and when the job is done they leave the women and children there, never to be heard from again. So they are referred to as 'Doctors Without Trace'. Hmm, there's a great story in there: When the 'first world' comes to help the 'third world' what is really left behind...

'Morning Due,' the next edition.