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Pan African Film Festival
Nigerian Films in the Pan African Film and Arts Festival
 The 15th Annual Pan African Film Festival (PAFF) opened in Los Angeles on February 8 with a party and screening of Rwanda Rising . Directed by C.B. Hackworth, the film examines the rebuilding and reconciliation of Rwanda after the genocide. I would have liked to have attended this star-studded event, but at $150.00 a pop for tickets, I opted for a friend's birthday party instead. Forest Whitaker ( The Last King of Scotland ) co-hosted the event. Hope he missed me.
For those who don't know, PAFF is to the black (and those of African descent) artistic community what the Sundance Film Festival is to white, independent, alternative filmmakers. Both sprouted from a desire to encourage and support independent, creative filmmakers and challenge the monopoly of the film industry by Hollywood . The operative word here is: creative – and risk-taking. Hollywood had become less focused on quality and more on churning out bland, predictable movies with huge box office returns. Sadly, Sundance, founded in 1981 by actor, Robert Redford (All the President's Men, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid ) has morphed into the thing it once despised. Originally intended for independent filmmakers, Sundance has been infiltrated and, inevitably, contaminated by the big studios' money machine.
The PAFF is still holding on to its original vision. Co-founded by Ayuko Babu and Ja'Net Dubois (“Wolona” in the American sitcom Good Times ) in 1992, PAFF is dedicated to promoting cultural and racial tolerance through creative and artistic expression . To that end the organization presented over 100 black films and black artists at venues throughout the Los Angeles area, with most of the films screening at the Magic Johnson theatre in the predominantly-black Crenshaw district. Although film was the dominant medium, the festival also featured Theatre, a Spoken Word Fest, Stand Up Comedy, Fashion Show and an Arts and Crafts fair.
PAFF is for film junkies who crave inspiring, thought-provoking stories about the human experience. This year, as in every year, PAFF presented films from the US , Canada , Europe, the Caribbean, Latin America and the South Pacific, and showcased the diverse works of fine artists, poets, musicians and storytellers.
I wanted to see as many films as I could squeeze into the 10 days of the festival, but I was eager to see films from one particular place: Nigeria . I leafed through the festival's brochure, ticking the most likely projects. Imagine my surprise when I got to the last page and there it was: a full-page PAFF Salute to Nollywood. Nollywood, the third largest film industry in the world! No surprise that Nigerian films were commanding such attention. I glowed with pride and quickly picked my favourites to see: The Narrow Path , Abeni and Irapada . There were more but I had schedule conflicts.
The Narrow Path, directed by Tunde Kelani is about a young woman who, being courted by several suitors, is caught in a dangerous game –and her own web of lies- that leads to a horrific experience and, we are told, turns her wedding night into a nightmare. The film bears the usual trademarks of Nollywood films: earnest, didactic, with quick scene changes, and theatrical - as opposed to film – acting. The story is intriguing with effective touches of humor provided mostly by the suitors, Lapade and Odejimi. Awero, played by the fresh-faced and lovely Sola is tantalizing as she glides through the village, hips softly swaying under her cotton iro . The competition between suitors Lapade and Odejimi heats up and Awero has to choose. She makes her choice, but Awero has a weakness for mirrors and glittering gifts, which Dauda is happy to provide. Awero soon discovers there's a price attached to Dauda's gifts. What's a confused girl to do? The tension mounts and then –the movie comes to a sudden halt. The sound and picture go out. Thirty minutes later the announcement is made that the technical difficulties cannot be fixed. “Please go to the counter for a ticket refund of your tickets”. Bummer! I would have to wait for the film to come out in general distribution to find out the fates of the captivating Awero, her ardent suitors, Lapade and Odejimi, and the slimy and despicable Dauda.
Irapada , directed by Kunle Afolayan is about the redemption of a man who abandons the traditions and customs of his family and ancestors for his modern life. Dewunmi's mother travels from the village to the city to persuade her son to come back to the village to perform a ritual to remove a premonition that would have dire consequences for him. He's having none of that witchdoctor mumbo jumbo, he tells his mother sternly. But a mother's dreams don't lie. Soon, troubles – and tragedies – rain down like locusts on the clueless (hapless) Dewunmi: his mother dies, his business collapses, his wife leaves him and he discovers a secret that stuns him to repentance – and redemption.
It is crammed with the familiar: a doting mother; food with flavours that jump through the screen, grab your senses and take you back to your mother's kitchen; and customs and languages of the motherland. The story is told mostly in Yoruba - with sprinklings of Igbo and Hausa – with subtitles. The characters are numerous – too many, in my opinion, and the story takes bizarre twists and turns before arriving at its final destination. Of course, the resolution is inevitable: Dewunmi learns a valuable lesson: to respect and honor his ancestors' traditions and wisdom. On his way to redemption, he discovers another secret. How does this secret advance the plot? This is a major weakness of the film.
Abeni starts with great promise: Shots and camera angles capture authentic life of a family in a village. Akanni's childhood is the opposite of Abeni's, whose life of privilege is contrasted by lush landscaping, pristine white house, well-stocked birthday party with equally privileged attendees. Abeni has invited Akanni to her party, no matter that his father is their gateman. Akanni has none of Abeni's naiveté about class consciousness. He dreads attending this upper class shindig and protests as vehemently as an obedient can. As soon as he arrives, he gets into a fight with a rich kid and Akanni and his father – both branded “ruffians” by the pompous boss – are banished from the premises. Fast forward to several years later: Akanni has been sent to live with his father's relatives in the Republic of Benin . Now grown and a successful businessman, he has joined the privileged class, lives comfortably and is engaged to the sulky, nagging, Awa. Predictably, Abeni and Akanni meet again and rekindle their childhood romance; a romance which has not been convincingly set up. Numerous characters weave in and out; nightclub and restaurant scenes abound, repetitive and drag on for too long; literally translated subtitles and a rather weak ending characterize this well-intentioned movie.
No doubt the Nigerian movie industry is a force to be reckoned with. The number of films presented by Nigerian filmmakers is a testament to their passion and commitment under extremely difficult circumstances. Technology in Nigerian films is still a few years behind. This is apparent in the overall cinematography. Sound and visual quality suffer for lack of access to the latest film equipment. Technical issues aside, these films suffer often from labored pacing, flat dialogue and scripts that belong to the genre of classical theatre rather than modern film. The acting is theatrical with lots of gestures and little vocal range. Character development is weak in all these three features, and without this element, we have no sympathy for the players. We don't care about them . We may care about their predicament, but because we know (most of the time) what the outcome will be, we anticipate it and breathe a sigh of relief when it all turns out as we expected. For a movie to be truly engaging and memorable, it needs to be skillfully executed and it should surprise us. We know the camera is there but we shouldn't notice it (or the crew's reflections in windows and mirrors). I'd love to write about the nuances of an actor's role, a clever plot twist, taut script or a particularly insightful scene filled with tension, but nothing stands out in these films.
Currently, and so far as I can see, quality is being sacrificed for the sake of quantity in Nigerian filmmaking. Granted, the filmmakers are producing films largely for the Nigerian and African market, but if they are truly interested in cracking open the door of Hollywood and want to be serious contenders in the world – Oscar anyone? –then they have to step up to the plate: actors have to be fully committed to their roles. Directors must know and insist that actors support their vision of the film. If an actor cannot – or will not – make love, as the script requires, replace him or her or cut out the scene. There's nothing more annoying than a clumsy, half-hearted display of “pretend” intimacy from a couple who are supposed to be in love. The rest of the crew – set and sound designers, DP, costume designer, make-up artist - also should concentrate on honing their craft. Finally, don't let all the hard work go to waste by settling for shoddy editing. Awards are handed out for film editing for a reason. Passion and sincerity are abundant in Nigerian films. Now, add one more crucial ingredient – skill – and watch out for the Hollywood stampede. Kemi Lapite received her B.A. in English from the University of Minnesota , Minneapolis and M.A. in Theatre Arts, from Emerson College , Boston , Massachusetts . She also attended the Professional Actors Conservatory of Rancho Santiago College, California . She was an actor-member of At the Foot of the Mountain Theatre, a women's theatre group in Minneapolis , Minnesota . She played the role of Tituba in The Crucible at Western Stage theatre in Salinas California and the title role in Electra at the Grove Theatre in Garden Grove.
She writes, produces and directs plays and films. Her best ideas come to her when she is running or hanging out in coffeehouses. Her most recent short film, Pregnant Pause , about an African woman who discovers her daughter is a lesbian, is available on DVD.
She is single - and available – and lives in Long Beach, California.
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