Les Accords de Bella

The Rumba Kings(en)

In the fifties, when the future Democratic Republic of Congo was still a Belgian colony, an entire generation of musicians fused traditional African tunes with Afro-Cuban music to create the electrifying Congolese rumba, a style that conquered the entire continent thanks to an infectious rhythm, captivating guitar sounds and smooth vocals.

Voudoun Gods on the Slave Coast(xx)

Vodoun Gods On The Slave Coast explores the ceremonial splendor of sacred dance and ritual in Benin, the birthplace and cradle of Vodoun. Formerly known as Dahomey, Benin was also called the Slave Coast due to its importance in the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Today, the worship and supplication of Vodoun gods remains integral to everyday life in Benin.

The Cathedral(fr)

A day in the life of Lina, a young girl from Port-Louis, capital of Mauritius, seen through the eyes of the cathedral. A day that will not be the same as the rest when an unexpected meeting brings Lina face to face with reality and she is forced her to make a choice.

When We Were Kings(en)

It's 1974. Muhammad Ali is 32 and thought by many to be past his prime. George Foreman is ten years younger and the heavyweight champion of the world. Promoter Don King wants to make a name for himself and offers both fighters five million dollars apiece to fight one another, and when they accept, King has only to come up with the money. He finds a willing backer in Mobutu Sese Suko, the dictator of Zaire, and the "Rumble in the Jungle" is set, including a musical festival featuring some of America's top black performers, like James Brown and B.B. King.

Fela Kuti: Live at Glastonbury 1984(en)

Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti performs at the 1984 Glastonbury Festival. Originally produced for Arena.

The Naked Prey(en)

A group of men are on safari. One of the party refuses to give a gift to a tribe they encounter. The tribe is offended, seizes the party, and one-by-one, kills all but one of the safari members in various creative and horrifying ways. The last surviving member is given "The Lion's Chance" by the tribal leader to be hunted down by a party of tribal warriors.

Benares(fr)

Two young men went on a ride with their old friend in his truck across the whole Mauritius, the sole purpose of it being finding and getting two girls to entertain them that very night back home.

Practice Makes Perfect(en)

The film is primarily a portrait of Kam Kelly, who teaches West African drumming to students at various New York schools, including Intermediate School 292 in Brooklyn. One of his students, Jessica Jackson, is featured. The piece was commissioned for the “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry” festival at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2012.

The True Story of Pirates(fr)

Thanks to new excavations in Mauritius and Madagascar, as well as archival and museum research in France, Spain, England and Canada, a group of international scholars paint a new portrait of the world of piracy in the Indian Ocean.

Ghosted(en)

GHOSTED is a British romantic comedy drama film in which an aspiring actress falls for a man on their first date.

WITH U(en)

Zintlhe and Ricardo, a young couple grappling with the unspoken weight of infidelity, pride, and emotional labor. As tension brews between romantic idealism and harsh realities, their confrontation unfolds across a university bridge, revealing that love.. real love, is never simple, and never without scars.

Can You Hear God Crying?(en)

World première recording of Hannibal Lokumbe's 'spritatorio' Can You Hear God Crying, which combines jazz, gospel and chamber music with West African prayers and songs. The piece, commissioned by Philadelphia philanthropist Carole Haas Gravagno, is about the composer's great-great-grandfather, who was born in the Sahara, kidnapped and enslaved in Liberia, and sold at auction in Charleston, S.C. He escaped to Texas, where he bought land and had a family.

The Scientist of Sound(en)

Thursday 27th of October 2016 – Teatro Espace, Turin. Mulatu Astatke is a musician, composer, arranger and Ethiopia’s cultural ambassador. He’s known as the godfather of ethiojazz, a unique blend of jazz, traditional Ethiopian music, latin, caribbean reggae and afrofunk. Born in 1943 in Jimma, Mulatu studied music not only in Ethiopia but also in UK and USA. In 2005 he contributed to the soundtrack of Jim Jarmusch’s film “Broken Flowers”, reaching a new public worldwide.

Horizon Line(en)

A couple flying on a small plane to attend a tropical island wedding must fight for their lives after their pilot suffers a heart attack.

Made in Mauritius(en)

Bissoon is a retired Mauritian struggling with the Chinese merchant Ah-Yan who tries to sell him a new radio, as his, after 20 years, is broken. Bissoon resists the temptations of globalization but then falls victim to the marketing .

Africa Rising(de)

How African artists have spread African culture all over the world, especially music, since the harsh years of decolonization, trying to offer a nicer portrait of this amazing continent, historically known for tragic subjects, such as slavery, famine, war and political chaos.

Angélique Kidjo aux Concerts Volants(fr)

Les Jours Inespérés(fr)

Rumba congolaise, les héroïnes(fr)

French-language documentary on the History of Congolese rumba.

Rumba Rules, New Genealogies(ln)

Rumba Rules, New Genealogies offers an enjoyable, rough-edged glimpse into the music scene of Kinshasa, with impromptu shots drawing the viewer into jam sessions on plastic chairs, and the quest for perfection at the studio.