West African Delegation: SURVIVORS & WeOwnTV invited to IDFA 2018

"When we deliver the message people definitely BELIEVE because it is not coming from a big politician, or a foreigner. It's coming from their FRIEND, their FAMILY, their next door NEIGHBOR." - LANSANA MANSARAY (a.k.a. Barmmy Boy) WeOwnTV Production Manager

We’re thrilled to announce that SURVIVORS will be making its European Premiere at the International Documentary Festival of Amsterdam (IDFA)’s Frontlight Competition! The film is also nominated for the prestigious Amsterdam Human Rights Award. Our team is currently gearing up to travel to the festival, which takes place November 14 - 25. SURVIVORS directors Arthur Pratt and Banker White will be in attendance. As many of you know, our organization WeOwnTV also runs a Filmmaker Fellowship for West African filmmakers. Four of our fellows in addition to arthur and Banker have been invited to travel as an official West African delegation to the festival .

The WeOwnTV Filmmaker Fellowship is a film fund and professional development program supporting the production of independent documentaries directed by West African filmmakers. The program provides filmmakers with funding for their project, filmmaking (creative labs) labs, one-on-one mentoring, professional development workshops and networking opportunities. The Fellowship is made possible through generous support from the Bertha Foundation, Jonathan Logan Family Foundation and Global Giving Foundation. Below are descriptions of the projects our four fellows traveling to IDFA are currently producing.

Our attending fellows and their projects are:  

IDFA WEST AFRICAN DELEGATION - 2018 WEOWNTV FILMMAKER FELLOWS’ WORKS-IN-PROGRESS

Dir. Archie ‘Valentino’ Thomas | Liberia INSIDE WEST POINT

Synopsis: During the 2015 Ebola crisis, the press zoomed in on West Point - one of Monrovia’s largest slums - as a center of the devastation. But as the epidemic subsided, so did international media attention, leaving untold the story of West Point beyond Ebola.This film will examine the key role of West Point in Liberia’s economy as a fishing and domestic workforce hub and what the future holds for its residents if nothing is done to protect them from environmental degradation and neglect.

Dir. Lawrence Agbetsise | Ghana WE ARE THE PROBLEM

Synopsis: We Are The Problem is a plot driven, protagonist centered documentary about Sam, a 32-year-old man who wears suit and tie to sell roasted plantain in the streets of Accra. The film follows his dream to change the narrative about his own work and how he leaves home dressed up in a suit and tie leaving this family (children) clueless about how he spends his day and earns money for his family.

Dir. John Solo | Sierra Leone           LIFE AFTER THE ARMY

Synopsis: Life After the Army focuses on the daily activities of ex-servicemen who left the army through the Voluntary Retirement Program. The stories they tell echo the sentiment of thousands of their comrades who are scattered across Sierra Leone having gone through the same retirement program.

Dir Tyson Conteh | Sierra Leone                AN’BONDO BEYKEY

Synopsis: An’Bondo Beykey, which means “Stop Female Genital Mutilation,” takes a very personal look at this heated social issue in Sierra Leone through the story of a close friend of the filmmaker’s who died in the wake of this practice. Though efforts have been made to modernize the ritual and stop Female Genital Mutilation, many societies - including the popular all-female Bondo society -  still require this practice for initiation into the group and to adulthood.

SURVIVORS

Hope and resilience in the time of Ebola

a film by WeOwnTV