Sous L’eau Les Larmes Du Poisson Ne Se Voient Pas (Underwater, No One Sees the Fish Crying) streams 10/14-10/31 for free as part of Congo in Harlem 14.

SOUS L’EAU LES LARMES DU POISSON NE SE VOIENT PAS (UNDERWATER, NO ONE SEES THE FISH CRYING)

2022, 3 Episodes Delphine Wil and Jeanne Debarsy
Audio Documentary French (with English subtitles)

Sous L’eau Les Larmes Du Poisson Ne Se Voient Pas begins with a family quest. With her friend Jeanne, Delphine sets out to reconstitute the life of her grandfather, Félix, a Belgian missionary who left for the Congo in 1934. Their quest leads them from Belgium to the Congo, at the intersection of several generations.

EPISODE 1: 2022, 43 min

In the first episode, Delphine has convinced her mother Amélie to accompany her to the Congo, the country of her birth which she left at the age of seven, never to return. Delphine criticizes her mother for that break with her roots and her Congolese family. When the initial feeling of wonder and togetherness has gone, tension sets in between mother and daughter.

EPISODE 2: 2022, 47 min

In the second episode, Delphine and her mother meet two cousins, whose recollections shed new light on the roles and involvement of the Congolese family. Gradually, the character of Astrida Bwanakucha, Delphine's grandmother, emerges. Until now, she had been overlooked in the family history, even though she spent most of her life in Belgium. Delphine and Jeanne return to Belgium with the intention of diving deeper into the mysterious story of Astrida and her tumultuous life.

EPISODE 3: 2022, 52 min

In the third episode, Delphine and Jeanne meet Felix's Belgian family. They travel to Gaume and the Ardennes, where they find official archives of the Marcel-Bwanakucha family. They gain access to Astrida's medical file and visit the psychiatric hospital where she died after twenty years of internment. As they make their discoveries, a tumultuous and tragic life story emerges, rooted in a post-colonial society.