Welcome to the Africa in Motion website
Africa in Motion (AiM) is an annual African film festival based at Filmhouse Cinema in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Africa in Motion 2010 is taking place from 21 October to 5 November.
Still from 3SAI A Rite of Passage by Paul Emmanuel, winner of the AiM09 short film competition
AiM is the biggest African film festival in the UK and screen dozens of films from all over the continent, including shorts, documentaries and features. A number of African filmmakers are in attendance each year to talk to audiences about their work and the screenings are accompanied by a variety of complementary events such as discussions, masterclasses, seminars and music events.
The festival’s main goal is to overcome the under-representation of African film in the UK and to introduce Scottish audiences to the riches of African cinema.
Past Festivals
AiM10 – Celebrations
In the twentieth century, and especially since the end of the war, […] we have seen the awakening of national consciousness in peoples who have for centuries lived in dependence upon some other power. Fifteen years ago this movement spread through Asia. Many countries there, of different races and civilisations, pressed their claim to an independent national life.
Today the same thing is happening in Africa, and the most striking of all the impressions I have formed since I left London a month ago is of the strength of this African national consciousness. In different places it takes different forms, but it is happening everywhere.
The wind of change is blowing through this continent, and whether we like it or not, this growth of national consciousness is a political fact. We must all accept it as a fact, and our national policies must take account of it.
This is an excerpt from the WIND OF CHANGE speech by Harold MacMillan, held in Accra on 10 January 1960 and on 3 February 1960 in Cape Town. It signalled the beginning of a change in the British Conservative government’s policies which soon led to the decolonisation of the occupied territories in Africa. This year, 17 African countries are celebrating 50 years of independence from Britain, France and Belgium: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Republic of the Congo, Senegal, Somalia and Togo.
To commemorate 50 years of independence of these countries, AiM10’s central theme is Celebrations. While 50 years of independence and decolonisation are the perfect occasion for celebrations, the consequences of colonisation, imperialism and extortion are still felt to this day, with Europe continuing to have a strong influence on its ex-colonies. AiM therefore wishes not only to celebrate 50 years of independence of these 17 African countries, but also to emphasise the complexity of global politics and power structures, and to evaluate the state of Africa 50 years after independence. We want to celebrate and explore national consciousness and the formation of African nation states as a complex historical fact. As always, we will devote time to constructive discussions and debate in order to create a space for audience members to reflect on the films and what they tell us about nationalism and independence in Africa, as well as on Britain’s colonial history and current relationship with its ex-colonies.
Another reason for celebration is AiM’s fifth birthday, with the festival having grown into a significant and internationally recognised independent film festival in the short space of five years. We will celebrate AiM’s existence as a film festival valuing and giving scope to African filmmakers and their creativity, through which the festival has been able to grow and flourish, along with the vital support of our loyal audiences.
We will also celebrate African creativity and the rich diversity of African cultural traditions through showcasing films covering themes such as African music and dance, pre-colonial and contemporary rituals and ceremonies, garments and jewellery used for festivities, culinary traditions, and mask making and wearing. Although our emphasis will firmly be on celebrating Africa, the films screened will resist the exoticisation which Africa so often fall victim to. We have just opened a call for entries for documentaries to do with celebrations, as well as a call for submissions for our third and highly successful short film competition; use the links on the menu bar to find out more about these. Workshops for kids and adults on music, song, dance and storytelling, will accompany screenings. There will again be music performances, African dishes served in the café, African jewellery and crafts for sale, arts exhibitions and filmmakers in attendance. It will, once again, be an exciting and challenging AiM!