Bandiagara

Fren 1311:

Sub-Saharan
Francophone Cinema

Sarah B. Buchanan, Ph.D.
211 Camden Hall
320-589-6292
buchansb@morris.umn.edu

 

Office Hours:
Tuesdays: 6:00-7:00pm;
Thursdays, 1:00-2:00pm;
 and by appointment

 

Prof. Buchanan's Home Page

 Poster of FESPACO

Description of the course

Assignments

Honor Code

Grades

 

Course Calendar:

Contexts and Beginnings of African Cinema

Return to the Source:
African Oral Traditions and Film

Gender Roles and Identity

Violence and War

Environmentalism and African Cinema

Final Exam

 

 

 

 

 

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Description of the course:
Cinema has long been recognized as a powerful ideological weapon, serving to establish mental images perceived to be “true,” or simply “recorded reality”—even in the context of fictional films. This perception has been particularly detrimental to the diverse cultures and civilizations on the African continent because, for the first sixty years of cinematic history, the only images to portray Africa narrated it as a dark continent populated with savages devoid of language, history, culture, and civilization (Tarzan, anyone?). Ousmane Sembène, the father of African cinema, recognized this power of the image and urged African directors to fight back, to create their own images, to narrate their own identities. How have African film directors responded to this call? What topics have they treated in their films? What techniques do they use in creating their texts and how do those techniques contribute to the meaning of the film?

In this course, we will seek answers to these questions by examining African cinema through the lens of five different, but interlaced, subjects: decolonization, oral traditions, gender, war, and environmentalism. In our study of these topics, we will examine both the stories of the films and their technical construction in order to understand what political and aesthetic goals motivate African filmmakers today.

Goals of the course:

UMM Student Learning Outcomes:
Fren 1311 supports several goals of the University of Minnesota, Morris’s mission, especially concerning the importance of global citizenship, intercultural competence, and intellectual growth. It should be stressed that the skills aimed at in this class are transferable, that is, learning to analyze a film is also learning to read a political text, an ad, or a speech. These skills will therefore be useful in your professional life after UMM. In particular, Fren 1311 will help you achieve the following UMM Student Learning Outcomes:

  1. Knowledge of Human Cultures and the Physical and Natural World, through language and culture study;
  2. Intellectual and Practical Skills, including inquiry and analysis, critical thinking, and written and oral communication;
  3. An Understanding of the Roles of Individuals in Society, through active involvement with diverse communities and challenges. We will especially hone our civic knowledge and engagement—local and global, and our intercultural knowledge and competence;
  4. Capacity for Integrative Learning, including skills for sustained learning and personal development.

Required texts:            

 

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Assignments:

French Major’s Portfolio (for French majors and minors): Le syllabus de ce cours, ainsi que tous les examens et rédactions sont à mettre dans votre dossier de spécialisation. Voici la description du dossier de spécialisation tirée du catalogue : « The portfolio is a collection of work charting your intellectual progress from Fren 2001 throughout your French Major. Beginning in Fren 2001, keep all syllabi, papers and exams—including work completed abroad—in one 3-ring binder. Your senior year, you will write a brief paper summarizing your intellectual history in the French Major and present your portfolio to the French faculty. You should begin your portfolio in Fren 2001 and maintain it throughout your tenure in the French discipline.

Analytical papers: 

You will write three papers 1000-1300 words long (≈ 3-4 pages) analyzing various films discussed in class. For each paper, your analysis will focus on the theme of the section, and you will elucidate how the film deals with that theme both in content and in the form of the film (how the film is shot, edited, lighted, costumed, designed, etc.). These papers will be graded on the depth and originality of your analysis (How much textual evidence do you give, and how well do you integrate that evidence into your argument?) and on the organization of your argument (Does your paper have a clear thesis?  Does it flow logically?) Printed and stapled papers are due at the beginning of class. Their grades will be reduced 5% for every 24 hours they are turned in late. The first reduction will happen if the paper is not ready at the beginning of class on the day it is due.

The Writing Center, located in Briggs 252, is a place for students to discuss their writing with a trained peer writing consultant, free of charge. Writing Center consultants work with student writers at all stages of the writing process, including brainstorming, drafting, organizing, and revising; they can offer feedback on how to make an argument stronger, choose and analyze evidence, focus paragraphs, write introductions and conclusions, and more. Consultants do not proofread papers, but they can help writers learn to edit their own work. To see this semester's schedule and make an appointment, visit http://umm.mywconline.com/.

Presentation:

In consultation with me, you will prepare a 15 minute PowerPoint presentation on one of the directors and one of the African countries we will be studying. You will be graded on the quality of the content and the level of detail, organization and professionalism in your presentation.

Extra film assignment:

Sometime over the course of the semester, you will go to the Hasselmo Language Teaching Center (Hum 6) and watch an African film that is not on our syllabus. After watching it, you’ll write up a short summary of its plot (200 words) and a discussion of how that film fits into the themes of our course (300 words).

Quizzes & Miscellaneous:

From time to time there will be quizzes and small assignments to hand in.

Preparation and  participation:

It is expected that you will be present for each class meeting and that you will have read all of the texts indicated on the syllabus beforehand. This course is structured as a seminar and the quality of the discussions we have will depend on YOU: on your presence, your preparation and your intellectual engagement with the material. We are a community and your contribution to it is key. Therefore:

  • It is important to spend time with the readings. Do not read them quickly just before class: take the time to read carefully, to take notes, to summarize ideas, and to reflect on the ideas in the text.
  • You will be graded on the quality of your participation in class discussions.
  • Each absence after your 2nd one will lower your final grade by 5%.
  • Absences do not excuse submitting your work on time. If you are sick, email your assignment to me (and bring a printed, stapled copy as soon as possible) or send it with a friend.

Exams:

There will be two tests this semester. The first one will be on film terms and on how to “read” a film. The second will be the final exam, which will be composed of four sections. The first section will ask you to identify African countries on a map of the continent. The second section will focus on identifying various filmmakers, films, characters, and/or other important elements we have discussed in class. You will need to clearly state who or what the element is, and why it is important to the course. In the third section of the exam you will identify various clips of films we have seen over the course of the semester. Finally, there will be an essay that will allow you to reflect upon the films, readings, and discussions from the semester.

 

 

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Honor Code: 
All work done in this class must be your own. The following are considered cheating: plagiarizing; using on-line translators; turning in papers someone else wrote; and any other activities that result in a paper that you have not written yourself. Engaging in these or other dishonest behaviors will result in a 0 on the assignment in question and in your being reported to the Vice-Chancellor of Student Affairs.

NOTE: The Academic Alert task force will ask me to send them reports on any struggling students in weeks 3, 7 and 14.

Grade Calculation:
Grade Distribution:

Papers:

30%

Presentation

15%

Extra Film Assignment

10%

Quizzes & Misc.

10%

Prep & Participation

15%

Exams

20%
94-100% = A 77-79% = C+
90-93% = A- 74-76% = C
87-89% = B+ 70-73% = C-
84-86% = B 67-69% = D+
80-83% = B- 64-66% = D
  0-63% = F

University of Minnesota Classroom Policies

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Course Calendar:

 

I. Contexts and Beginnings of African Cinema:

 

Thurs, Aug. 24
  • Introduction to the class
  • How to “read” a film: Lecture on cinematic language and terminology.

MONDAY
August 28th
FILM SCREENING
  • Casely-Hayford, Gus. Lost Kingdoms of Africa, Vol. 4. (BBC, 2012 55 minutes)
  • Teno, Jean-Marie. Africa, I Will Fleece You. (Cameroon, 1992, 88 minutes)

NOTE: Total film running time for today will be 2 hours, 23 mins.
Please plan accordingly.

Tues, Aug. 29
  • Discussion of the films

0 pages to read

Thurs, Aug. 31
  • Singerman, Alan. “Film Terms” and “‘Reading’ a Film” French Cinema: The Student’s Book, pp. xiii-xvii; 19-36. (Moodle)

 

24 pages to read

MONDAY
September 4:

Labor Day!

Tues, Sept. 5:

  • Ashbury, Roy et al. “Historical Background.” Teaching African Cinema. British Film Institute: 1998. pp. 8-27. (Moodle)    
  • Thackway, Melissa. “Cultural Identity, Representation and Voice,” Africa Shoots Back. 30-48.

37 pages to read

Wednesday,
September 6th:

FILM SCREENING
  • Sembène, Ousmane. Borom Sarret. (Senegal, 1963, 20 min)
  • Sembène, Ousmane. Black Girl. (Senegal, 1966, 60 min)

Thurs, Sept. 7:

  • Discussion of the films

0 pages to read

MONDAY
September 11:

FILM SCREENING
  • Sembène, Ousmane. Xala. (Senegal, 1974, 123 min)

Tues, Sept. 12:

  • Pfaff, Françoise. “Xala (1974): Realism and Symbolism.” The Cinema of Ousmane Sembène, a Pioneer of African Cinema. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1984. 149-163. (Moodle)

14 pages to read

Thurs, Sept. 14:

  • Thackway, Melissa. “Introduction” and “Critical Paradigms.” Africa Shoots Back. 1-15, 16-29.

28 pages to read

 

 

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II. Return to the Source: African Oral Traditions and Film:

 

MONDAY
September 18:

FILM SCREENING
  • Sora Wade, Mansour. Fari the Donkey (Senegal, 1989, 17 min)
  • Kouyaté, Dani. Keïta, The Heritage of the Griot (Burkina Faso, 1995, 94 min)

Tues, Sept. 19: 

  • Discussion of the films
  • Thackway, Melissa. “Screen Griots: Orature and Film,” Africa Shoots Back. 49-92.

43 pages to read

Thurs, Sept. 21:

  • Test on film terminology
  • Thackway, Melissa. “Interview III: Dani Kouyaté,” Africa Shoots Back. 193-195.

2 pages to read

MONDAY
September 25:

FILM SCREENING
  • Paes, Cesar. Angano, Angano. (Madagascar, 1989, 64 min.)
  • Rajaonarivelo, Raymond. When the Stars Meet the Sea. (Madagascar, 1996, 85 min.)

NOTE: Total film running time for today will be 2 hours, 30 mins.
Please plan accordingly.

Tues, Sept. 26:

  • Discussion of the films

0 pages to read

Thurs, Sept. 28:

  • Buchanan, Sarah. “When Image Meets Magic: Learning to See in Raymond Rajaonarivelo’s Quand les étoiles rencontrent la mer.” Research in African Literatures. 45.3 (2015): 190-213. (Moodle)
23 pages to read

MONDAY
October 2:

FILM SCREENING
  • Cissé, Souleymane. Yeelen. (Mali, 1987, 105 min)

Tues, Oct. 3:

  • Discussion of the film

0 pages to read

Thurs, Oct. 5:

  • McNaughton, Patrick. “Blacksmiths: Mande of Western Africa.” in Peek, Philip M. and Yankah, Kwesi. African Folklore: An Encyclopedia. London and New York: Routledge, 2004. 30-32. (Moodle)
  • MacRae, Suzanne. “Yeelen: A Political Fable of the Komo Blacksmith / Sorcerers.” Research in African Literatures. Fall 26(3), 1995. 57-66. (Moodle)
  • Gentile; Philip. “In the Midst of Secrets: Souleymane Cissé’s Yeelen.” Iris. 1995 Spring; 18. 125-35. (Moodle)

22 pages à lire

 

 


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III. Gender Roles and Identity:

MONDAY
October 9:

FILM SCREENING
  • Folly, Anne-Laure. Women With Open Eyes (Togo, 1994, 52 min)
  • Abouet, Marguerite. Aya of Yopougon. (Côte d’Ivoire, 2013, 84 min)
  • M’mbugu-Schelling, Flora. These Hands. (Tanzania, 1992, 45 min)

NOTE: Total film running time for today will be 2 hours, 16 mins.
Please plan accordingly.

Tues, Oct. 10:

  • Presentation on Anne-Laure Folly and Togo by R. L.
  • Thackway, Melissa. “Interview II: Anne Laure Folly,” Africa Shoots Back. 191-193.
  • Discussion of the films

3 pages to read

Thurs, Oct. 12:
  • Paper #1 due: Write on orality in African cinema
  • Thackway, Melissa. “African Women and Film: On Screen and Behind the Camera,” Africa Shoots Back. 147-164.
  • Thackway, Melissa. “‘Womanist’ Films” Africa Shoots Back, 164-178.

31 pages to read

MONDAY
October 16:

Fall Break!

Tues, Oct. 17 :

Fall Break!

Wednesday
October 18:
FILM SCREENING
  • Drabo, Adama. Taafe Fanga (Mali, 1997, 95 min)

Thurs, Oct. 19:

  • Presentation on Adama Drabo and Mali by F. J.
  • Thackway, Melissa. “Interview I: Adama Drabo,” Africa Shoots Back, 183-191.
  • Van Beek, Walter E.A. “Becoming Human in Dogon, Mali.” IN Aijmer, Göran (ed.); Coming into Existence: Birth and Metaphors of Birth. Gothenburg, Swed.; Inst. for Advanced Studies in Soc. Anthropol., Univ. of Gothenburg; 1992. 47-70. (Moodle)
  • Discussion of the film

45 pages to read

MONDAY
October 23:
FILM SCREENING
  • Bekolo, Jean-Pierre. Quartier Mozart (Cameroon, 1992, 80 min)
  • Traoré, Apolline. Kounandi (Burkina Faso, 2004, 50 min)

NOTE: Total film running time for today will be 2 hours, 10 mins.
Please plan accordingly.

Tues, Oct. 24:

  • Presentation on Jean-Pierre Bekolo and Cameroon by C. P.
  • Presentation on Apolline Traoré and Burkina Faso by T. W.
  • Discussion of the films

0 pages to read

Thurs, Oct. 26:

  • Buchanan, Sarah. “Untraditional Tradition: Gender and Orality in Quartier Mozart.” Cinema and Social Discourse in Cameroon. Alexie Tcheuyap, Ed. Bayreuth, Germany: Bayreuth African Studies. December, 2004. 223-248. (Moodle)

25 pages to read

MONDAY
October 30:
FILM SCREENING
  • Camara, Mohammed, Dakan (Guinea, 1997, 87 min.)
  • Brooks, Philip and Laurent Bocahut, Woubi Chéri (La Côte d’Ivoire, 1998, 62 min.)

NOTE: Total film running time for today will be 2 hours, 30 mins.
Please plan accordingly.

Tues, Oct. 31:

  • Presentation on Mohammed Camara and Guinea by N.K.V.
  • Discussion of the films

0 pages to read

Thurs, Nov. 2
  • Presentation on Laurent Bocahut and the Côte d’Ivoire by M. B.
  • Migraine-George, Thérèse. “Beyond the ‘internalist’ vs. ‘externalist’ debate: the local-global identities of African homosexuals in two films, Woubi Chéri and Dakan.” Journal of African Cultural Studies. 16(1), June 2003, 45-56. (Moodle)

11 pages to read

 

 

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IV. Violence and War:

MONDAY
November 6:

FILM SCREENING
  • Sissako, Abderrahmane. Timbuktu (Mauritania, 2014, 97 min)

Tues, Nov. 7:

  • Presentation on Abderrahmane Sissako and Mauritania by L. K.
  • Discussion of the film

0 pages to read

Thurs, Nov. 9

  • Lewandowska Cummings, Basia, “Abderrahmane Sissako for Beginners.” Film Forever. British Film Institute. 27 May 2015.
  • Leigh, Danny. “Timbuktu’s Director: Why I Dared to Show Hostage-Taking Jihadis in a New Light.” The Guardian. 28 May 2015.

≈ 8 pages to read

MONDAY
November 13:

  FILM SCREENING
  • Haroun, Mahamet-Saleh. A Screaming Man. (Chad, 2010, 102 min)

Tues, Nov. 14:

  • Visit by UMM alum, Dr. Anna Harrington, assistant professor of French at the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse.
  • Discussion of the film

0 pages to read

Thurs, Nov. 16:

  • Paper #2 due: Write about gender in African cinema
  • Presentation on Mahamet-Saleh Haroun and Chad by R. C.
  • Gillett, Suzy. “Shadow of the Father.” Sight and Sound. 21(6) 34-37. (Moodle)
  • Optional Reading: Malausa, Vincent. “Un Cinéaste tchadien: Entretien avec Mahamat-Saleh Haroun.” Cahiers du cinéma. Oct. 2010; 660: 43-46. (Moodle)

4 pages to read

 

 

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V. Environmentalism and African Cinema:

MONDAY
November 20:

FILM SCREENING
  • Ba Kobhio, Bassek. Sango Malo (Cameroon, 1991, 94 min.)

Tues, Nov. 21:

  • Haynes, Jonathan. “Sango Malo; Ta Dona. Returning to the African Village.” Jump Cut: A Review of Contemporary Media. 40, 1996. 62-66. (Moodle)
  • Cogoy, Mario and Karl W. Steininger. “The Economics of Global Environmental Change: International Cooperation for Sustainability.” The Economics of Global Environmental Change: International Cooperation for Sustainability. Mario Cogoy and Karl W. Steininger, Eds. Bodmin, Cornwall: MPG Books, Ltd, 2007. 3-33. (Moodle)
  • Discussion of the film

34 pages à lire

Thurs, Nov. 23:

Thanksgiving!

MONDAY
November 27:

FILM SCREENING
  • Sora Wade, Mansour. Ndeysaan: The Price of Forgiveness (Senegal, 2002, 90 min)

Tues, Nov. 28:

  • Course Evaluations
  • Discussion of the film
  • Optional Reading: Buchanan, Sarah. “C’est dans leur nature: Égoïsme et équilibre dans Ndeysaan de Mansour Sora Wade.” in “Épistémologies et ontologies environnementales : L’Écocritique autour de l’arbre à palabres.” A special edition of Nouvelles Études Francophones. Sarah B. Buchanan, Ed. (Moodle)

0 pages to read

Thurs, Nov. 30:

  • Buell, Lawrence. “Introduction.” The Environmental Imagination: Thoreau, Nature Writing, and the Formation of American Culture. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press, 1995. 1-27.
  • Slaymaker, William. “Ecoing the Other(s): The Call of Global Green and Black African Responses.” PMLA, 116 (1), 2001. 129-144. (Moodle)

 

41 pages à lire

MONDAY
December 4:

FILM SCREENING
  • Ba Kobhio, Bassek and Didier Ouénangaré. The Silence of the Forest (Cameroon / Central African Republic / Gabon, 2003, 93 min)
  • Kahiu, Wanuri. Pumzi (Kenya/South Africa, 2010, 21 min.)

Tues, Dec. 5:

  • Presentation on Bassek ba Kobhio, The Central African Republic, and the Mbuti by G. B.
  • Discussion of the films

0 pages to read

Thurs, Dec. 7:

  • Paper #3 due: Write about the natural world in African film.
  • Calvin, Ritch. “The Environmental Dominant in Wanuri Kahiu’s Pumzi.” IN: Fritzsche, Sonja (ed. and introd.); The Liverpool Companion to world science fiction film. Liverpool, England: Liverpool UP, 2014. 21-35. (Moodle)
  • Conclusions

14 pages to read

 

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FINAL EXAM: 
Thursday, Dec. 14th at 8:30-10:30am