When 7th art
becomes child's play
Being a child and childhood in African countries are very different from the everyday realities of children of the same age in Europe. In Burkina Faso in particular, childhood is often characterised by great responsibility, be it through helping out in the household or taking on family duties at an early age. At the same time, there is only a limited range of African children’s films that reflect the realities, dreams and wishes of these children.
The KIDS’ FILM FESTIVAL KIFIFE aims to open up this space in order to make stories about children from African countries visible. It offers a platform that not only provides authentic insights into different childhoods, but also opens up fantasy worlds in which children and young people can find themselves, dream and learn something.
Concept
The KIDS’ FILM FESTIVAL is a discovery festival that has been introducing African children and young people to the art of cinema since 2019. For four days, films are shown in which children and young people play the leading roles. These films reflect the everyday reality of African youth as well as their fantasies and desires. The aim of the festival is to give the young participants and viewers a voice and to focus on the realities of their lives.
In addition to the film screenings, the festival also offers a series of artistic workshops led by experienced African filmmakers and education experts. In these practice-orientated courses, young people learn to tell their own stories, make short films and express their perspectives creatively. The focus is on an active, creative approach in which the participants not only learn technical skills in areas such as directing, acting and animation, but also strengthen their teamwork and communication skills.
KIFIFE is therefore more than just a film festival. It is a space for personal and social development in which participants can develop their creativity, and it opens up new opportunities to engage with social issues. At the same time, the festival contributes to cultural networking and intercultural exchange between filmmakers from different African countries. It is a place where children and young people, who have little opportunity for artistic development in everyday life, can discover the world of film and find their own creative voices.
Where
The OPERNDORF AFRIKA in Burkina Faso is the ideal location for the festival, with its infrastructure, training rooms, an open-air cinema and studios for workshops and discussions. Since 2009, OPERNDORF has been a platform for intercultural exchange and post-colonial discourse and promotes a differentiated image of Africa.
The festival contributes to cultural networking by promoting exchange between filmmakers from different African countries and offering children and young people an important platform for developing their own creative abilities.
For more information
Why
Cinema is a powerful medium in West Africa, both as a means of addressing social issues and as an independent means of artistic expression. Africa’s largest film festival, FESPACO, is based in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Nevertheless, there are only a few African children’s films due to a lack of production and distribution channels. For this reason, the KIDS’ FILM FESTIVAL KIFIFE places a special focus on promoting children’s films that reflect the perspectives and everyday realities of African children and young people.
In recent years, OPERNDORF AFRIKA has regularly engaged with film practice, produced animated and short films and collaborated with directors and screenwriters from Burkina Faso. Organising its own film festival is not only the result of these projects, but also a response to the educational policy goal of giving young people access to film art and actively involving them in the creative process. Through artistic workshops, participants are empowered to tell their own stories and develop their creative skills, which strengthens their social and personal development and thus boosts their self-confidence.
