By Roger Field, University of the Western Cape
Creole is the language used daily by the majority of Guinea Bissau's population, but it has no official status. The film Lantanda, one of twenty-one short and long documentaries being shown at the Africa World Documentary Film Festival in Cape Town, explores this fascinating story.
Lantanda (Guinea Bissau/Spain) opens with the mesmerising
sound of the kora, an instrument associated with tradition, caste and
cultural nationalism. Through a steady exploration of music and culture,
we place it and other instruments in the broader context of a national
liberation struggle against Portugal and Portuguese led by Amilcar Cabral.
The Creole language, music and culture played a vital part in this
struggle. In the post-colonial era, musicians and writers explain why
they have chosen this language to express their feelings and transmit
the social reality of the country. The film is also interesting in the
way in which it integrates photography into the narrative of national
liberation.
The festival has been running for eight years. This is the third time
it has been held in Cape Town. Its aim is to promote the knowledge,
life and culture of African people on the continent as well as those
across the world through the art of documentary filmmaking.
Based at the University of Missouri
in the US, the festival screens films in cities across the US, the UK
and the Caribbean. It has African partners at the Institute of African
Studies, University of Ghana, the University of Yaoundé, Cameroon, and the iRepresent International Documentary Film Festival, Lagos.
Fonte: allAfrica.com
