iREP 2017 Archiving
Africa|Our Memories are Open
What is our artistic response to the stagnation of development in our
nation? We cannot continue to abdicate the space for the public intellectual to
silly online bloggers and compromised newspaper columnists…The world is going
through a whirlwind of complex issues on many fronts that challenge our
understanding of the world, of ourselves and how we sustain our pursuit of
peace and prosperity.
We are the RESPONSE!
FEMI ODUGBEMI, iREP Executive Director
The iREP 2017 International Documentary Film Festival
organised by Foundation for the Promotion of Documentary Film in Africa has
come and gone. Yet, beautiful moments were experienced in the exciting 4-day
celebration of African documentation in films. This annual film festival in the
last 7 years have screened over 250 films from across the world getting
partnership and support from some of their dependable and genuine partners such
as Goethe Institut, AWDFF of the University of Missouri in St. Louis, Missouri
and New York University’s African Studies department, AG.DOK, DOK-fest, Ford
Foundation and other Nigerian media partners, demonstrated and established more,
the Nigerian spirit of not giving up despite the economy ‘noise’ that has made
ideas around the global space shelved off or postponed. The power of resilience
took over and launched the 7th edition of the festival showcasing
the power of making films with the aid of archives and documented materials
that people need to see from colonial era to post colonialism and the modern
era of our time, all inside the monumental old colonial prison now reformed and
called Freedom Park.
From March 15 to 18
2017, Freedom Park Lagos, venue of the festival was agog with filmmakers and
media stakeholders and consultants, while film enthusiasts and invited guests
had a lot to commune, share and network among themselves. From the opening
speeches of the organizers and directors of the festival led by highly cerebral
filmmaker, Femi Odugbemi and veteran journalist of note Jahman Anikulapo, everything
is possible with diligence, confidence and resilience. The power of Africa in
self-conversation which has been the drive for iREP and the committee continues
to evolve all around the four day film fiesta. Sponsorship may have been hard
to get by the organizers, yet it didn’t take the shine known with iREP away. At
iREP 2017, Africa was duly archived.
We were still reminded about the emerging realities on the
African continent by Femi Odugbemi. Presently, there are shift in the
information order and archiving our lives, history and literature. The
conversation remains how do we archive our dialogues, conversations, memories,
events, cinema to shape our future without going to borrow elsewhere? There
should be a new sense of involvement and quality participation on everyone’s
part. Our archives have ways of contributing to our human and economic
development.
Screening
The selected films had a good background account of the
theme iREP wanted. Free Fela and Mali Blues made the opener at the
cocktail party to usher in iREP. Though Free
Fela didn’t berth into the hearts of the audience, simply due to lack of
commitment to true Fela cause. A film on Fela is supposed to be a breathtaking one;
Free Fela only had a free fall off
quality shelf. Celebrated guest of the festival, highly revered archivist,
researcher, journalist and filmmaker, French-Egyptian born Jihan El-Tahri gave
Africa what we need to know from our past to present. Her three films selected;
Cuba- An African Oddyssey, Egypt and the
Modern Day Pharaohs and Behind the
Rainbow all shot on long features put enthusiasts and participants on the
edge. House of Nwapa, The Invaluable
Waste, Robert Mugabe…What Happened, Mama Colonel, Brother Time all had
appreciable and commendable applause from the audience and guests.
The Academy and
Workshop
Beyond the glamour of filming, one basic tool is reinventing
creatively. Passion evolves rapidly to success when education and hardwork compliments
talents. And it is undeniable that there are emerging voices in Africa working
and shining through the aid of technology to tell and spread their stories. iREP
and academy partnership programs have come at the right time for emerging and
ambitious filmmakers. In a world of rapidly snap-chat moment, consistency plays
a big role in human development. Career in motion development is not an
exception as well and iREP has been at the fore-front of pushing young
filmmakers to move forward. In partnership with established film companies,
documentary network support, iREP has given life and technical support that are
important for emerging and established filmmakers to survive in the game.
Producers’ Roundtable
The annual iREP/ITPAN producers’ roundtable again lived up
to its billings. The topic for the roundtable was Access to Archives – Imperatives of co –operations and collaborations.
The topic was actually moderated by Yinka Oduniyi, president of ITPAN while
speakers such as Jihan El Tahri, Barbel Mauch, Markus Schmidt and Mudi Yahaya. A
very important topic worthy of discussion. Where are our archives of African
events, stories and issues? Policy makers have found it difficult to break it. Documentations
about Africa are in possession of western media. Africans have found it
difficult to retrieve what belongs to them. But from the round table, it was
agreed that African producers, archivists and recordists must appreciate the
influence of technology for archiving and storing their materials for the
records. Modern times, the power of icloud and other form of documentations
through tech-acquisition need to be explored. Africa must learn to use they
have copied from the west in terms of documentation appropriately.
Art Stampede with
CORA
One of the relevant missions in iREP is bringing memories as
a form of challenge to contemporary life. Committee for Relevant Art [CORA] one
of iREP’s collaborators brought to our minds an epic masterpiece that happened
40 years ago in Lagos. FESTAC ’77 was
indeed a masterpiece! Regarded as one of the best cultural events of its time. For
one month in January and February 1977, 150,000 participants from 56 African
countries and the black Diaspora converged in Nigeria and performed in a Black
Festival of Arts and Culture. A Nigerian self-taught photographer and
archivist, Tam Fiofori had a splendid time telling FESTAC ’77 story from his lenses as an unaccredited freelance
photographer. His collection of FESTAC
’77 report was entitled FESTAC@40: My
FESTAC Archives – Tam Fiofori. Tam took the participant through a cozy ride
regaling them about the one of Africa’s most colourful festivals of all time. ”My
main mission as a documentary photographer and filmmaker, particularly with
regards to my country Nigeria, is to ensure that I always document for history
and posterity once in a life and time events and moments. FESTAC ’77 was one such rare and magnificent occasion. Historian
and veteran journalist, Ed Keazor and Muni King both relished the audience and
participants at iREP with events around us entitled Headline History: Nigeria 1861 – 1991. This is an incredible
collection of events on prints that is well curated by both headliners. The
exhibition highlighted the pivotal role of print media as an invaluable record
of Nigerian history. It features headlines, articles and images, telling the story
of 120 years of Nigerian history.
Muni King is a journalist and writer with a career spanning
40 years from her tenure as one of the foundation journalists of the Punch
newspaper. Ed Keazor is an historian and archivist who have for over 30 years
amassed an archive of images and press data on Nigerian history.
Article/Ireho Aito
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