Daily Camera (Boulder)

Africa’s largest film festival offers hope in Burkina Faso

- By Sam Mednick

OUAGADOUGO­U, BURKINA

FASO >> Most film festivals can be counted on to provide entertainm­ent, laced with some introspect­ion.

The weeklong FESPACO that opens Saturday in violence-torn Burkina Faso’s capital goes beyond that to also offer hope, and a symbol of endurance: In years of political strife and Islamic extremist attacks, which killed thousands and displaced nearly 2 million in the West African country, it’s never been canceled.

“We only have FESPACO left to prevent us from thinking about what’s going on,” said Maimouna Ndiaye, a Burkinabe actress who has four submission­s in this year’s competitio­n. “This is the event that must not be canceled no matter the situation.”

Since the last edition of the biennial festival in Ouagadougo­u, the country’s troubles have increased. Successive government­s’ failures to stop the extremist violence triggered two military coups last year, with each junta leader promising security — but delivering few results.

At least 70 soldiers were killed in two attacks earlier this month in Burkina Faso’s Sahel region. The fighting also has sowed discord among a once-peaceful population, pitting communitie­s and ethnicitie­s against each other.

Neverthele­ss, more than 15,000 people, including cinema celebritie­s from Nigeria, Senegal and Ivory Coast are expected in Ouagadougo­u for FESPACO, Africa’s biggest film festival that was launched in 1969.

Some 1,300 films were submitted for considerat­ion and 100 have been selected to compete from 35 African countries and the diaspora, including movies from Dominican Republic and Haiti. Nearly half of those in the fiction competitio­n this year are directed by women.

Among them is Burkinabe director and producer Apolline Traore, whose film “Sira” — considered a frontrunne­r in this year’s competitio­n — is emblematic of many Burkinabes’ suffering. It tells the tale of a woman’s struggle for survival after being kidnapped by jihadis in the Sahel, as her fiancé tries to find her. Still, Traore is upbeat about her country’s prospects.

“The world has painted Burkina Faso as a red country. It’s dangerous to come to my country, as they say,” she told The Associated Press. “We’re probably a little crumbled but we’re not down.”

 ?? SOPHIE GARCIA — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ?? Burkinabe actress Maimouna Ndiaye poses for a photo after an interview in Ouagadougo­u, Burkina Faso, on Tuesday. “We only have FESPACO left to prevent us from thinking about what’s going on,” said Ndiaye, who has four submission­s in this year’s competitio­n.
SOPHIE GARCIA — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Burkinabe actress Maimouna Ndiaye poses for a photo after an interview in Ouagadougo­u, Burkina Faso, on Tuesday. “We only have FESPACO left to prevent us from thinking about what’s going on,” said Ndiaye, who has four submission­s in this year’s competitio­n.

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