This year’s 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival has commenced, running from 14-25 May 2024. In the resort town of Cannes, Southern France, the biggest and most important celebration of cinema takes place and is a unique opportunity to build a network of international film industry professionals. The event will have 22 films competing for the Palme d’Or, which is perhaps the festival’s most coveted award, and more than 50 other films also premiering outside of the main competition. This year’s edition saw representation of African films, filmmakers & artists.
Film Entries
For film entries, Africa was represented in some categories though our entries for 2024 happen to be fewer than the past year which saw 15 entries from the continent. Regardless of the smaller number of entries, a host of talented creatives will be screening their films at the ongoing 77th Cannes Film Festival. Here are some of the African entries;
Somali filmmaker Mo Harawe’s debut feature film, ‘The Village Next to Paradise’, was selected to premiere in the Un Certain Regard category. Also premiering in the same category is the comedy-drama film ‘On Becoming a Guinea Fowl’ by Zambian filmmaker Rungano Nyoni.
A daring entry in the Director’s Fortnight lineup category are two musical dramas ‘Everybody Loves Touda’ by multi-award-winning Moroccan producer Nabil Ayouch and ‘East of Noon’ by Egyptian filmmaker Noora Elkoussy.
During the Cannes’ International Critics Week, Egypt’s Nada Riyadh and Ayman El Amir will have their ‘Rafaat Einy ll Sama’ (The Brink of Madness) film feature, alongside Morrocan filmmaker Saïd Hamich Benlarbi’s drama ‘La Mer Au Loin’ (Across the Sea) and ‘Animale’ by Algerian film producer Emma Benestan.
In the Short Film Corner’s Video Library at the ongoing festival is the feature of Ghanaian filmmaker Joewackle J. Kusi’s “Nyame Mma” Exploring grief and queerness, this bold cinematic piece will be exclusively accessible to Short Film Corner participants and industry professionals.
Jury Entries
The African artists on Cannes Film Festival’s jury panels mark a significant development in the festival’s inclusion of voices from the continent. Even though this year has seen a drop in the number of stories being screened from the continent, the silver lining comes with the names on jury panels:
Baloji, the Belgian-Congolese singer and filmmaker is a jury co-president in the Golden Camera selection a segment that rewards the best first film of debutants competing in the Official Selection, the Directors’ Fortnight, and the International Critics’ Week selections.
Rwandan actress Eliane Umuhire is a member of the Critics Week jury panel. This panel of international critics selects around 10 features and 10 shorts from first and second-time filmmakers to compete in this section.
French-Senegalese filmmaker Maïmouna Doucouré & Asmae El-Moudir, the Moroccan film director, screenwriter, and producer are on the jury of Un Certain Regard, one of the most prestigious segments of the festival and one that “includes unusual styles and non-traditional stories seeking international recognition,”.
Omar Sy, a French actor born to a Mauritanian mother and a Senegalese father sits on the jury of the Cannes Official Selection which highlights the diversity of cinema through its different sections, the two most important of which are In Competition and Un Certain Regard.
As the African continent continually breaks boundaries by pushing into spaces that were not accessible to us for some time it is important to celebrate our wins. North African countries continue to dominate the festival just as last year sweeping most of the entries from the African continent. May this outstanding run continue and include other parts of Africa in the next edition. It is beautiful to see African stories told and take center stage at such an important festival. Hopefully, as more talented artists notice our continent spotlighted with these entries, they will strive for more and bigger opportunities.
