About Us

Africa in Motion is a largely volunteer-run festival, founded in 2006 by Lizelle Bisschoff. At the time Lizelle had just commenced with a PhD in African cinema, and quickly came to realise how difficult it is to access African films. Not wanting to keep her research to the academic realm only, she founded the Africa in Motion film festival in order to create more opportunities for Scottish audiences to see African films and to provide a platform to African filmmakers to exhibit their work in Scotland. Lizelle directed the festival from 2006 to 2011, with Stefanie Van de Peer co-directing the festival in 2009 and 2010. In 2011 Isabel Moura Mendes became part of the festival management and directed the festival in 2012, with Natalia Palombo as festival co-director.

The main aims of the festival have been, since its inception, to introduce Scottish audiences to the brilliance of African cinema and to overcome the under-representation and marginalisation of African film in British film-going culture. We believe that the best way to learn about Africa is to listen to African voices and to view representations created by African themselves, as these often counter the stereotypical representations we see from Africa in mainstream media in the West. But our main reason for screening the films is because we believe they are great films which should be seen the world over. Over the past seven years we have screened close to 300 African films to audiences totalling around 20,000 people!

Our current management, staff and collaborators:

Justine Atkinson: Fundraising and Programming Assistant E-mail

Lizelle Bisschoff: Festival Founder and Chair E-mail

James Cocker: Website Development

Darling Forsyth: Website Design & Hosting

David Holmes: Film Database Coordinator and Rural Tour Coordinator E-mail

Kari Ann Shiff: Film Selections & Short Film Competition Coordinator E-mail

Stefanie Van de Peer: Programming Consultant 

AiM Board of Trustees

Gerhard Anders: Lecturer in African Studies, Centre of African Studies, University of Edinburgh

Lizelle Bisschoff: Africa in Motion fim festival founder, Research Fellow at University of Edinburgh, Chair of the Board

Graham Campbell: Network Development Coordinator, African & Caribbean Network, Glasgow

Paul Dale: Film critic and journalist

Jacqueline Maingard: Senior Lecturer, Department of Drama: Theatre, Film, Television, University of Bristol

Mara Menzies: Director/Writer/Performer, Toto Tales 

David Murphy: Professor, School of Languages, Cultures and Religions, University of Stirling

Peter West: Malawi's Honorary Consul in Scotland 

African Vision Exchange

African Vision Exchange (AVE) is a learning and network programme in which Europe-based Film Festivals explore the artistic, educational and creative potential of African and African diaspora film. The exchanging and learning in AVE focuses on the various European African film festivals practices that have emerged in the last twenty years. AVE researches the innovative programming and educational actions for adult audience groups to learn from new and surprising narratives of the African continent and African diaspora communities in the rest of the world, including those African diaspora communities living in our European cities.

AVE also explores the medium of African film as a tool for enhancing respect among various cultures living in European cities, social inclusion and cultural creative participation of citizens in society. At the same time this project aims at creating more support and involvement of relevant stakeholders on European level and potential local partners with African and African diaspora film.

The AVE project is organized by Africa in Motion, Africa in the Picture (Amsterdam, Netherlands), Afrika Film Festival (Leuven, Belgium) and African Film Festival of Cordoba (Spain) who will work together from September 2012 till July 2014 on various issues such as cross-border collaboration, education, film circulation, policy, archiving, guest programming, cultural entrepreneurship, promotional and audieunce outreach activities. During the project the AVE partnership will expand the learning network to a broader group of African film festivals and initiatives operating in Europe.

In the course of the project a broader list of festivals and initiatives participating in AVE will be added on this page as well as the coming AVE network activities.

AVE is made possible by the EU Grundtvig Life Long Learning Programme.

Past Festivals

Browse our archives for previous festival programmes:

Africa in Motion 2012

Africa in Motion 2011

Africa in Motion 2010

Africa in Motion 2009

Africa in Motion 2008

Africa in Motion 2007

Africa in Motion 2006

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