Africa in Motion celebrates the diversity of African Cinema: classics, Nollywood, animation, horror and more

The Africa in Motion (AiM) film festival is delighted to announce the shortlist for their film competition, which consists of eight short films by young and emerging African filmmakers who have not completed feature-length films yet.


The films on the shortlist span fiction and documentary genres: a magic realist tale from Tunisia; a Moroccan story of childhood nostalgia; a single-setting short from Egypt; an edgy tale about two gangsters set in the high-octane Nigerian capital Lagos; a heart-warming love story from Mozambique; and three films from South Africa: a stylistically experimental documentary on anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko; an innovative stop motion animation short; and a fascinating documentary on two lovers and community activists in the Cape.



All selected short films will be screened during the Africa in Motion film festival (23 October - 2 November 2008), and the winner will be announced at a special awards ceremony after the screenings. There will also be an Audience Choice Award, voted for by the viewing public at the AiM film festival, to be announced at the end of the festival.


The winning film will be selected by a jury consisting of acclaimed Burkinabe filmmaker Gaston Kaboré; writer, presenter and filmmaker Zina Saro-Wiwa; Director of the Scottish Documentary Institute Noe Mendelle; and high-profile film critic, writer and producer Mark Cousins. The winning filmmaker will receive £1,000 prize money to assist them in their filmmaking career.




Jury member Mark Cousins says of the competition: "Short films are the spurts of life, the new shoots, of the film world. It is great that Africa in Motion is focusing on them. That's where the discovery and vitality is. The short film competition, and its considerable prize, is a brilliant way of putting the festival's money where its mouth is, and giving a fillip to the zingy and daring new African directors. I am delighted to be part of it."


"We were impressed with the overall quality and standard of the entries", says festival director Lizelle Bisschoff. "We received films all over the continent, from almost 20 African countries. This competition is part of the festival's commitment to support filmmaking talent on the continent and it is our hope that the competition will contribute to making it a bit easier for aspiring African filmmakers to fulfil their dreams."
The shortlist consists of the following eight films:
Red & Blue, Mahmood Soliman, Egypt, 2007
Sellam and Demetan, Mohamed Amin, Morocco, 2008
I Love You, Rogério Manjate, Mozambique, 2007
Area Boys, Omelihu Nwanguma, Nigeria/UK, 2007
Magic Crop, Anis Lassoued, Tunisia, 2006
Agenda, Diek Grobler, South Africa, 2007
Biko's Children, Vuyisa Breeze Yoko, South Africa, 2007
Pam & Ashraf, Robyn Rorke, South Africa, 2007


Africa in Motion 2008 - Programme Announced


We are delighted to announce the full programme details of Africa in Motion 2008 on our brand new website - www.africa-in-motion.org.uk. Tickets will go on sale this Friday, 19 September - to book online visit www.filmhousecinema.com or call the Filmhouse box office on 0131 228 2688.


Clouds over Conakry, closing film at AiM 2008

The festival is taking place from 23 October to 2 November at Edinburgh Filmhouse and other venues. AiM 2008 will be a celebration of Africa's diverse cinematic output, with a greater focus on under-represented regions and a more adventurous programme than ever before.
AiM 2008 will open with Egyptian director Youssef Chahine's feature The Earth (El Ard), as a tribute to the pioneering filmmaker who passed away on 27 July this year. We are extremely excited to announce that two of the continent's most celebrated and distinguished directors will be joining us in person at the festival: Malian director Souleymane Cissé (whose extraordinary coming-of-age feature Yeelen was awarded the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 1987), and Burkinabe director Gaston Kaboré (whose feature film Buud Yam won the grand prize at the FESPACO film festival in 1997) will both be in attendance to present retrospectives of their work.

AiM 2008 will include a programme of animation short films from all over the continent, consisting of various types of animation such as 2D, 3D, cut-out, claymation, stop frame animation, and computer animation. Animation film screenings will be accompanied by African storytelling events and a film animation workshop.

Nollywood, the prolific Nigerian video industry that has taken the continent by storm over the last few years, will receive a special focus with the screening of Bleeding Rose, winner of Best Nigerian Feature Film at the 2007 Lagos International Film Festival, followed by a discussion with director Chucks Mordi.

For the first time at AiM, there will be a series of late-night screenings of African horrors and experimental work. This audacious programme will include the Namibian-set cult classic Dust Devil by South African director Richard Stanley, and SMS Sugar Man, the first feature-length film to be shot entirely on mobile phone cameras, by experimental South African director Aryan Kaganof.

Contemporary films will feature prominently; festival highlights are Nigerian director Newton Aduaka's Ezra, a hard-hitting film that deals with the pressing issue of African child soldiers and won the grand prize at the FESPACO film festival in 2007; and Guinean director Cheick Fantamady Camara's Clouds over Conakry, the closing screening of the festival and a film which offers a romantic twist on the tradition-versus-modernity theme.

Feature films from East Africa will also be screened (an area hugely under-represented in African cinema), including the UK premiere of an exciting new film from Tanzania.

Documentaries screened at the festival will include a range of films exploring African identity through various themes such as sport, music and dance. The screening of Nigerian-born broadcaster and filmmaker Zina Saro-Wiwa's documentary This is My Africa will be accompanied by a discussion with Zina after the screening.

As part of AiM's commitment to supporting filmmaking activity on the continent, the festival is hosting a short film competition for young and emerging African directors. The eight shortlisted films will be screened during the festival, and the winner announced at a prize-giving ceremony; the winner is to be selected by a high-profile jury consisting of African filmmakers and Edinburgh-based film practitioners.

A UK-wide touring programme will take place from November to December - full details will be announced at the end of September.

We are looking forward to seeing you at AiM 2008!


To stay updated with the latest news and developments, please see http://www.africa-in-motion.org.uk/ and join the AiM Facebook group.


Contact us: info@africa-in-motion.org.uk


MESSAGES FROM OUR PARTNERS:

The Skinny Magazine
www.theskinny.co.uk
The Skinny is committed to emerging artists, budding new talent and diversity in the arts and we are proud to support Africa In Motion, aiming to raise awareness of African culture and assist in the promotion of the skilled filmmakers from across the continent.
The Skinny is Scotland's fastest growing culture and listings magazine, written by people immersed in their scene and knowledgeable about their topics. Our film section covers interviews and features to reviews and previews across a huge range of movie genre's so check them out at www.theskinny.co.uk. Please get involved by leaving your opinions and comments on reviews or on our forum pages as we would love to hear what you think.

Aesthetica Magazine Proud Media Sponsors for AiM 2008
Aesthetica is the UK's cultural arts publication. We provide readers with current information on British arts and culture. We explore the varied nature of the arts and recognise the combination of different art forms into one cultural whole. Aesthetica is the only British arts magazine to cover film, visual arts, literature, music, and theatre by publishing features, interviews, news and reviews. We are proud to be a media sponsor for Africa in Motion Film Festival.
Check out our great subscription rates and save 20% by visiting www.aestheticamagazine.com. Pick up a copy of Aesthetica today in WH Smith or Borders stores nationwide.
Editor: Cherie Federico: cherie@aestheticamagazine.com
Enquires: Shona Fairweather: shona@aestheticamagazine.com
Phone: (+44) 01904 527560

Southern Africa Direct launches on Sky
Southern Africa Direct, a new lifestyle and culture TV channel that lets viewers explore Southern Africa as a destination, recently launched on SKY channel 270. The channel is an engaging, entertaining and useful information source for anyone interested in traveling to Southern Africa, learning more about the rich culture of the 25 countries in the region or building commercial ties with the sub-continent. Southern Africa Direct also streams live on the web visit www.southernafricadirect.com.

Free Seminars and Screenings on International Cinema with Film London
Beyond the Frame: Cinemas of the Far East, the Middle East and Africa
Beyond the Frame is an exciting series of free two hour introductory seminars and screenings on cinemas of the Far East, the Middle East and Africa led by leading experts at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, organised by InSight Education and supported by Film London. Every Wednesday evening from 17th September - 3rd December participants will have the chance to explore a national cinema through a screening of a key film and, the following week, a seminar examining the film and exploring its relationship with its national cinema. The season starts on the 17th with Nagisa Oshima's seminal'Night and Fog in Japan.'
These special events will be held at the SOAS campus, Vernon Square, Kings Cross from 18.30-20.30, but to attend them you must book first so please visit - www.insighteducation.org.uk now for more information or email - info@insighteducation.org.uk stating which screenings and seminars you would like to attend in the subject line.
Cinemas included in the series will be: Japan (17th and 24th Sept); China (1st and 8th Oct); Thailand (15th and 22nd Oct); Egypt (29th Oct and 5th Nov); Iran (12th and 19th Nov) and Africa (26th Nov and 3rd Dec). No prior knowledge is needed.

Children of Songea Trust
www.childrenofsongea.org.uk
Children of Songea Trust are a Scottish-based charity that aim to improve the life chances of children affected by poverty and HIVAIDS in Tanzania. We provide financial and technical assistance to our community-based partner, and focus on building the capacity of local people to achieve sustainable change within their communities.




Black History Month
www.black-history-month.co.uk
The premier all year round independent comprehensive portal; celebrating and highlighting Caribbean and African activities, with profiles, articles and news plus an Amazon media store with a range of DVD's, videos, books and posters plus e bulletin with visitors special offers.
Launched in 2007, Black History 365 glossy newspaper in partnership with Smaart publishing have produced a publication to compliment www.black-history-month.co.uk. Issue 3 will be available in September be ahead of the crowd and take out a subscription or arrange for bulk order delivery. Black History 365 has won an award by Black Heritage Foundation for making an outstanding contribution to Black Heritage 2007.

ProductionHUB
www.productionhub.com
ProductionHUB, Inc. is the global online resource and industry directory for film, television, video, live event and digital media production. The service was developed in 1999 as a tool for anyone with an Internet connection to locate production products, equipment, services and professionals. With over 2.5 million user sessions and 15 million page views in 2007, this vertical B2B and industry portal has grown to become the worlds largest and most active production community search site.
As Internet usage evolves, ProductionHUB continues to adopt new technologies, embrace Internet standards and create new services to facilitate the user demand.