Balafon Film Festival | 35° edizione

BALAFON FILM FESTIVAL 2025

In Bari, four days of African cinema for the 35th edition, from November 19 to 22 at Cinema ABC

The Balafon Film Festival—art and culture of the black diaspora—returns to Cinema ABC in Bari from November 19 to 22, marking its 35th edition. Four days of screenings, meetings, and dialogues will tell the story of contemporary Africa through narratives of migration, freedom, memory, roots, and new horizons. Organized by the Corte Altini Community with the support of numerous local entities including the Abusuan Bari Intercultural Center, the Comboni Missionaries, the Archdiocese of Bari-Bitonto, the CGIL Bari, Aldo Moro University, and the Italian Caritas, the festival is sponsored by the Puglia Region and the Municipality of Bari, Departments for Culture and Youth Educational Policies.

On November 13, at 12:00 PM, at Palazzo Ateneo Aula 7 – first floor, there will be a special event titled Music, Cinema, Africa Migration: Between Past and Future. This event is intended to reflect on the themes running through the festival: Africa as a land of memory and future, cinema, and music as languages of meeting and freedom. It will include a meeting with Koblan Amissah, the artistic director of the festival, and contributions from professors Maristella Gatto and Mariacristina Petillo, curated by Prof. Pierpaolo Martino. It will be an open dialogue between academia, art, and African culture, to draw closer to the spirit of the festival that will animate Cinema ABC in Bari from November 19 to 22.

The festival kicks off on Wednesday, November 19 at 7:30 PM with Semret by Caterina Mona, a portrait of an Eritrean woman attempting to rebuild her life in Zurich, presented out of competition. The evening continues with Lees Waxul by Yoro Mbaye, winner of the SNCCI Award for Best African Short Film, and After the Long Rains by Damien Hauser, awarded Best Feature Narrative at the BlackStar Film Festival in Philadelphia. Both films are in competition and depict Senegal and Kenya through the clear and intense eyes of a new generation of African authors.
On Thursday, November 20 at 6:00 PM, there will be a space for the out-of-competition short film The Girl with the Occupied Eyes by André Carrilho and The Wall Street Boy by Charles Uwagba, a story of a young Kenyan math prodigy who develops a trading algorithm and must flee to save his freedom. In the evening, starting at 8:30 PM, in competition, the short Nube by Diego Alonso Sánchez de la Barquera Estrada and Christian Arredondo, a poetic tale about childhood and dreams suspended between memory and future, and Nawi by Kevin Schmutzler, Apuu Mourine, Vallentine Chelluget, and Tobias Schmutzler, a story of female freedom and resilience in Kenya.
On Friday, November 21 at 7:00 PM, Imaginaires en exil. Cinq cinéastes d’Afrique se racontent by Daniela Ricci will be screened out of competition, followed by a live connection from New York with the director, a cinema professor at Paris Nanterre and Paris 8 University. From 9:00 PM, there will be space for films in competition like My Brother, My Brother by the Dnewar brothers and Raíz – Through Rocks and Clouds by Franco García Becerra, which won a Special Mention at the Berlinale and the Grand Jury Prize at the Seattle International Film Festival, works that explore brotherhood and cultural roots.
On Saturday, November 22 at 7:00 PM, the festival closes with Xalé by Moussa Sène Absa out of competition, followed by the titles in competition: Dusk by Awa Moctar Gueye, an intense portrait of courage and introspection, and Searching for Amani by Debra Aroko and Nicole Gormley, the story of a Kenyan boy seeking the truth about his journalist father's death.

The festival showcases works from across the African continent and the diaspora, and the audience will choose the winning film, confirming the participatory and community spirit of the event. For thirty-five years, Balafon has been telling Africa's stories through diverse perspectives, turning cinema into a bridge between cultures and generations. This year, it draws inspiration from the vision of the late great Malian director Souleymane Cissé, who said cinema is a weapon that can unite and offer people a new spirit. A phrase that encapsulates the spirit of the festival where cinema becomes a tool for meeting and transformation. As usual, the Balafon Film Festival dedicates a section to schools with morning screenings for students, followed by debates with experts to bring new generations closer to African cinema, the diaspora, and distant cultures.

PROGRAM

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2025

7:30 PM Out-of-competition selection
SEMRET by Caterina Mona (Switzerland, 2022) – 85’
LEES WAXUL by Yoro Mbaye (Senegal, France, Belgium, Central African Republic, 2024) - 21’

9:30 PM In-competition selection - Schools Section
AFTER THE LONG RAINS by Damien Hauser (Kenya, Switzerland, 2023) 91’

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2025

6:00 PM Out-of-competition selection
THE GIRL WITH THE OCCUPIED EYES by André Carrilho (Portugal, 2024) 8’

6:30 PM Out-of-competition selection – Schools Section
THE WALL STREET BOY by Charles Uwagba (Canada, Kenya, 2023) 90’

8:30 PM In-competition selection
NUBE by Diego Alonso Sánchez de la Barquera Estrada, Christian Arredondo (Mexico, France, Hungary, 2023) 7’

9:00 PM In-competition selection
NAWI by Kevin Schmutzler, Apuu Mourine, Vallentine Chelluget, Tobias Schmutzler (Kenya, Germany, 2024) 103’

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2025

7:00 PM Out-of-competition selection
IMAGINAIRES EN EXIL. CINQ CINEASTES D’ AFRIQUE SE RACONTENT by Daniela Ricci (Italy, 2013) 52’ with live connection with the director Daniela Ricci, cinema professor at Paris Nanterre and Paris 8 University

9:00 PM In-competition selection
MY BROTHER, MY BROTHER by Abdelrahman Dnewar, Saad Dnewar (Egypt, Germany, France, 2025) 15’

9:30 PM In-competition selection
RAIZ – THROUGH ROCKS AND CLOUDS by Franco García Becerra (Peru, 2024) 83’

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2025

7:00 PM Out-of-competition selection
XALE’ by Moussa Sene Absa (Senegal, Ivory Coast, France, 2022) – 101

9:00 PM In-competition selection
DUSK by Awa Moctar Gueye (Senegal, 2023) 15’

9:30 PM In-competition selection
SEARCHING FOR AMANI by Debra Aroko, Nicole Gormley (USA, Kenya, 2024)

Information:
Admission valid for the entire day's programming €5.00 Subscription for the four days €15.00

All films are screened in the original version with Italian subtitles.

Abusuan Bari Intercultural Center
Phone: 080.2223328
Email: info@abusuan.it
Web: www.abusuan.com