The New Boats

Awoko

November 2021 •English

Shot over one night in the loud, dimly lit printing press, this is the story of the men whose labour lies behind Sierra Leone's oldest daily newspaper.

Break Free - Two People. Two Years. One Dream

March 2019 •German

When Lena and Ulli start the engine of their old Land Rover, Lady Terés, they have a plan: to drive from Hamburg to South Africa in six months. What they don't know yet is that they won't ever get there. Two totally different characters, jammed together in two square meters of space for almost two years, they experience what it really means to travel: leaving your comfort zone for good.

Shado'man

November 2013 •English

In Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, a group of friends lives on the streets. They call themselves the Freetown Streetboys, even though there are some women among them as well. Suley, Lama, David, Alfred, Shero and Sarah have all faced enormous physical and psychological challenges, and have been abandoned by the world around them. Without commentary and in poetic, cinematic images, the camera records the dark environment that they inhabit. The group shares their heartrending stories of the precarious nature of life in this complex country. But there is also room for everyday personal struggles, such as starting relationships, how to bring up children (or not), and sex.

Mögöbalu, Les Maîtres des Tambours d'Afrique

January 1998 •French

Djembefola

January 1991 •French

African drummer leaves village, makes it big in the world. Great drumming!!

Magicians of the Earth: Kings of the Water

June 1991 •English

Cyprien Tokoudagba is from the city of Abomey in the Benin Republic of West Africa, where he paints the religious houses of the vodun. Haas and his film crew follow Cyprien as he first paints and then takes part in the ceremony to open a new temple. The paintings include three vodun figures and several emblems, including a pipe and a duck. Cyprien explains his work in the context of the religion and takes the crew to film two other local ceremonies, one where the dead are believed to come back to instruct the living through wild dancing and, another, where women warriors perform their war dances.

Cry Freetown

January 2000 •English

An account of the victims of the Sierra Leone Civil War and depicts the most brutal period with the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels capturing the capital city on January 1999.

The Language You Cry In

January 1998 •English

THE LANGUAGE YOU CRY IN tells an amazing scholarly detective story that searches for -and finds- meaningful links between African Americans and their ancestral past. It bridges hundreds of years and thousands of miles from the Gullah people of present-day Georgia back to 18th century Sierra Leone.

The Dark Side of Chocolate

March 2010 •English

A team of journalists investigate how human trafficking and child labor in the Ivory Coast fuels the worldwide chocolate industry. The crew interview both proponents and opponents of these alleged practices, and use hidden camera techniques to delve into the gritty world of cocoa plantations.

The Writer from a Country Without Bookstores

December 2019 •Spanish

The ruthless dictator Teodoro Obiang has ruled Equatorial Guinea with an iron hand since 1979. Juan Tomás Ávila Laurel is the most translated Equatoguinean writer, but he had to flee the country in 2011, after starting a hunger strike denouncing the crimes of the dictatorship. Since then, he has lived in Spain, feeling that, despite the risks, he must return and fight the monster with words.

Blood Diamonds

December 2006 •English

Blood Diamonds is a made-for-TV documentary series, originally broadcast on the History Channel, that looks into the trade of diamonds which fund rebellions and wars in many African nations. The program focuses primarily on two nations: Sierra Leone and Angola. Diamonds which are traded for this purpose are known as blood diamonds.

On Freedom of Movement (wi de muv)

September 2024 •English

The film considers what it means to be free to move, not as in leave or flee, but to move. It explores the ability of the environments we live in – especially cities – to create the space people need to move. Shot in Freetown, Sierra Leone, it explores the power of the creative sectors in the city and their immense potential.

Multiplied

May 2024 •English

Chris Worthington sets out to document what the future of evangelism looks like. He invites you to get stranded in a West African dust storm, get shot at on the way to a 400,000 person Gospel event, and ultimately discover that it’s no longer about a select few famous evangelists, but about an entire generation of people just like YOU.

Hell

October 2019 •Spanish

Chennu committed his first crime when he was 15 years old: being a street kid. And he entered hell: Pademba Road. The adult prison in Freetown. In hell, Mr. Sillah is in charge, and there is no hope. Chennu got out after four years. Now he wants to go back.

Phillips Bicycles - Publicity Films for West Africa

April 1954 •English

From the West Midlands to West Africa: tour the Phillips bicycle plant in Smethwick and see the products in action overseas.

Selbe: One Among Many

May 1983 •French

This revealing documentary offers a rare view of daily life in West Africa. Shot in Senegal, Selbe focuses on the social role and economic responsibility of women in African society. Because men often leave their communities to earn money in the city, women are left with sole responsibility for their families. Through the character of Selbe we observe how one woman's personal struggle reflects the broader issues faced by many women in developing countries.

Tesito

July 1989 •French

In 1989, this film was part of the PAMEZ project in Senegal which was part of the sea program of the CCFD, Catholic Committee against Hunger and for Development. It presents the economic and social role of women in the Casamance region for the development of fishing. These women who process and market fish, who are responsible for management, have a voice and express their opinion.

The Way Back

April 2024 •English

The Year of Return is an initiative of the government of Ghana that is intended to encourage African diasporans to come to Africa to settle and invest in the continent. This film documents one diasporan family as they return to Africa.

Shady Chocolate

December 2012 •English

Ever since it was revealed that the chocolate industry is involved with child slavery in the Ivory Coast, the industry has been busy – due to consumer demands – explaining what exactly it does to actively fight trafficking and child labour. But does the industry live up to its own promises?In this investigative film, director Miki Mistrati tries to find out, if the chocolate industry – which is one of the largest corporations in the world – speak the truth, when they say that they provide education, medical care etc for the children of the Ivory Coast. But the project runs into trouble already from the get-go, because the embassy of the Ivory Coast won’t let Miki enter the country until he has an invitation – from the chocolate industry.

Me dicen Yovo

Invalid date •English

While working as a photographer in Benin, West Africa, a two-week trip will turn into a two months personal journey. Me dicen Yovo (I'm a Yovo) is a visual diary of that experience. A Peruvian traveller is an odd presence in Benin whose ethnic a cultural identities are constantly creating unique situations, and provoking original thoughts on what it means to be from the "third world".