Congo in Harlem 2

Congo in Four Acts

Dirs. Kiripi Katembo Siku, Dieudo Hamadi, Patrick Ken Kalala, Davita Wa Lusala, 2010, 69 min.

Four short films made by Congolese filmmakers who set out to create an alternative to the snapshots of horror and desperation that have come to characterize their country.

 Ladies in Waiting

 Directed by Dieudo Hamadi & Divita Wa Lusala

An embattled hospital manager negotiates collateral with a group of new mothers being held at the hospital until they can pay their medical bills.

 Symphony Kinshasa

 Directed by Kiripi Katembo Siku

Siku takes a poetic, unflinching eye to the streets of Kinshasa, Congo's capitol. Stagnant puddles, heaps of trash, and bare electrical wires expose the city's imploding infrastructure and absence of public services.

 Zero Tolerance

 Directed by Dieudo Hamadi

A Congolese policewoman, who is head of the Sexual Violence Unit, questions two boys accused of attacking and raping a woman on her way home from the market. Her efforts to mediate between the young perpetrators and their victim reveal both the depth of the problem and the community's resolve to address it.

 After the Mine

 Directed by Kiripi Katembo Siku

Siku examines Kibushi, a polluted mining town where even the youngest children are enlisted to extract the nation's wealth. The devastating conditions have trapped those who are living there, and this film tells their stories.

AFTER THE SCREENING:

Discussion with Joseph Mbangu (Congolese attorney and activist), Sylvie Muanga Mbanga (Congolese human rights lawyer and women's rights advocate).

Co-presented by Icarus Films