Congo in Harlem 4 is the fourth annual series of Congo-related films and events at the Maysles Cinema in Harlem. Congo in Harlem showcases innovative work that celebrates Congolese culture, raises awareness about the Democratic Republic of Congo's challenges, provokes dialogue, and encourages community engagement.

This year's series highlights a wide selection of films by Congolese and international directors, ranging from political exposés to personal journeys, historical inquiries, artistic provocations, and groundbreaking animation. Many screenings will be followed by a discussion with the filmmaker.

In addition to the films, Congo in Harlem 4 will present a special off-site panel discussion at the New York Society for Ethical Culture, "KONY 2012: Lessons for Congo," exploring the implications of Invisible Children's KONY 2012 video campaign for DR Congo, as well as live musical performances by Congolese rapper Alesh, DJ Clive Bean, Philadelphia-based Congolese singer Rafiya, and New York's own Isaac Katalay. The Maysles Cinema lobby and community space will showcase artwork by Goma's Justin Kasereka, digital photographs by TIME Magazine photographer Michael Christopher Brown, and the photographic exhibition "I'm Still Here" by Emily Cavan Lynch.

Congo in Harlem 4 is a volunteer-run, non-profit series produced by Maysles Cinema, True-Walker Productions, and Friends of the Congo. It is made possible by the generous support of DISH Africa TV (http://www.dishafricatv.com/); Cultures of Resistance Network (http://www.culturesofresistancenetwork.org/); VDAY (http://www.vday.org/home); Panzi Foundation USA (http://www.panzifoundation.org/)

Screenings are open to the public at a suggested donation of $10. Box office opens 1 hour prior to show time and advance tickets are available through Brown Paper tickets (see links in event descriptions below). A special group discount is available for the purchase of 5 or more tickets to any screening. Series passes are $50.\

Proceeds from Congo in Harlem will be contributed to a fund supporting emerging Congolese filmmakers

Series Partners and Friends: Cinereach (www.cinereach.org); Congo Leadership Initiative (http://congoleaders.org/); Cultures of Resistance (http://www.culturesofresistance.org/), DISH Africa TV (http://www.dishafricatv.com/); 

French Institute Alliance Française - FIAF

(http://www.fiaf.org); Elokomasi; HEAL Africa (http://www.healafrica.org/), Man-Up (http://www.manupcampaign.org/); Mutaani FM (http://mutaani.com/); The New York African Film Festival (http://www.africanfilmny.org/); New York Film/Video Council (http://www.nyfvc.org/NYFVC/About_us.html);  NomadicWax (http://nomadicwax.org/); Now AfriCAN (http://www.nowafrican.org/); Panzi Foundation USA (http://www.panzifoundation.org/); Tabilulu Productions (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tabilulu-Productions/473829970053); V-DAY (http://www.vday.org/home); V-DAY-Harlem (http://www.vdayharlem.com/); Women's International League for Peace and Freedom - NY Metro Branch (http://www.wilpfnymetro.org/); Yole!Africa (http://www.yoleafrica.org/); WITNESS (http://www.witness.org/).

Media Sponsors:Applause Africa (http://www.applauseafrica.com/); Face2Face Africa (http://face2faceafrica.com/); WBAI Radio (http://www.wbai.org/).

Seating is limited and available on a first come first served basis.

We recommend arriving 30 minutes before event's start time to secure a seat in the main screening room.

Contact: congoinharlem@gmail.com or call (212) 582-6050

Series Pass Available Here: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/ref/17367/event/277707

Congo in Harlem 4 is dedicated to the memory of Lyn Lusi (co-founder of HEAL Africa) and Veronique Tudieshe (Activist and Congo in Harlem volunteer)

Series Schedule

Friday, October 12th, 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Co-Presented by the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), NY Metro Branch http://www.wilpfnymetro.org/

SPECIAL OFF-SITE PANEL

***EVENT WILL TAKE PLACE AT THE NEW YORK SOCIETY FOR ETHICAL CULTURE***

2 West 64th Street, New York, NY

Admission is free and open to the public

Seating is limited and available on a first come first served basis

KONY 2012: LESSONS FOR CONGO Panel Discussion

In March, Invisible Children's KONY 2012 video took the internet by storm, becoming the most viral video to date and launching LRA leader Joseph Kony into the international spotlight. Although the video rallied millions of supporters, it also drew widespread attacks and provoked a fierce public debate about activism and awareness. How do campaigns like Kony 2012 help or hinder the change they seek to make? Can more "likes" on Facebook affect change on the ground? Is awareness an effective form of activism? This panel will explore the successes and missteps of the Kony 2012 campaign, and its lessons for the global movement for peace in DR Congo.

Moderator: Elliot Ross, Africa is A Country

Panelists:

Milton Allimadi, Publisher and Editor-in Chief, Black Star News

Kate Cronin-Furman, Human Rights Attorney & Blogger, Wronging Rights

Richard Mark Ochaka, Uganda Program Mentor, Invisible Children

Michael Poffenberger, Co-founder & Executive Director, RESOLVE

Laura Seay, Assistant Professor at Morehouse College & Blogger, Texas in Africa

Amanda Taub, Adjunct Professor at Fordham University & Blogger, Wronging Rights 

Bukeni Waruzi, Africa & Middle East Program Manager, WITNESS

Panel followed by reception

Sunday, October 14th, 3:00 pm

The Chebeya Affair: A State Crime?

Dir. Thierry Michel, 2012. 94 min.

In English, French, and Lingala with English subtitles

On June 2, 2010, Congolese human rights activist Floribert Chebeya was called to meet with Congo's national chief of police. Later that day, he was found dead in the backseat of his car. Before Chebeya's death, the police had been threatening him for his strong denouncement of the current regime in Kinshasa -- and now several high-level police officials are suspects in his murder. The Chebeya Affair follows their trial, uncovering a trail of lies, denials, forgeries, disappearing evidence. Will the judicial authority be capable of exercising impartial justice?

Monday, October 15th, 7:30 pm

Cuba: An African Odyssey

Dir. Jihan El-Tahri, 2007. 118 min.

In English and French with English subtitles

From Che Guevara's military campaign to avenge Lumumba in the Congo up to the fall of apartheid in South Africa, 300,000 Cubans fought alongside African revolutionaries. Cuba, an African Odyssey is the previously untold story of Cuba's support for African revolutions, one of the Cold War's most vigorous contests over resources and ideology.

Screening followed by discussion with Jihan El-Tahri, moderated by Hellura Lyle (NY African Film Festival, DocWatchers) + reception with music by DJ Clive Bean.

Performer bio: 

DJ Clive Bean - Clive Mofokeng, AKA DJ Clive Bean, is a house and party DJ hailing from Johannesburg, South Africa. His discerning musical taste and DJ skills have made him an international name. He has graced stages in South Africa, Mozambique, Botswana, Swaziland, Germany, Kenya, and now the US.

 

Tuesday, October 16th, 7:30 pm

Co-Presented by Panzi Foundation USA 

Justice For Sale

Dir. Ilse & Femke Van Velsen, 2011. 83 min.

In French, Lingala and Swahili with English subtitles

Justice for Sale, the third installment of a trilogy investigating sexual violence in Congo, follows Claudine Tsongo, a young human rights lawyer fighting to acquit a Congolese soldier accused of rape. Claudine and the filmmakers gather testimony from an array of experts and witnesses, and present a compelling case for the soldier's innocence. But the miscarriage of justice they uncover in the process reveals a corrupted Congolese legal system, where nobody is innocent.

Wednesday, October 17th, 7:30 pm

Back to Mandima

Dir. Robert-Jan Lacombe, 2011. 40 min.

In French and Swahili with English subtitles

"Back to Mandima, to find my village and my three best friends in the heart of the Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. An attempt to bring closure to an ideal, idealized childhood and free myself from its spells. In the meantime there was a war, a vanish of time, 15 years. Nothing changed? Everything has. What is friendship, beyond skin colour, when one can take the plane and the other can't? When one uses 'tu' and the other 'vous'?"

-Robert-Jan Lacombe

 

Footprints of My Other

Dir. Claude Haffner, 2011. 52 min.

In English and French with English subtitles

Claude Haffner, daughter of a French father and Congolese mother, sets off for Congo in search of her African identity. Her starting point is the archive of photos left by her late father, a specialist in African cinema. She also speaks with her mother, who tells of life in Congo and adjusting to France. In 2004, Claude and her mother visited Congo for the first time since the family left in 1981. This experience has inspired Claude to return again, now alone, to deepen her relationship with her mother's family. Her journey brings her face to face with the diamond trade, and with her sense of otherness, both in Congo and back home in France.

 

Thursday, October 18th, 7:30 pm

Episode III: Enjoy Poverty

Dir. Renzo Martens, 2009. 94 min.

In English, French, and Swahili with English subtitles

In Episode III: Enjoy Poverty, Dutch artist Renzo Martens asserts that the greatest natural resource in Congo -- a country that has received billions of dollars in foreign aid -- is poverty. Employing a provocative mix of satire, investigative journalism, and personal diary, Martens embarks on a visionary quest to awaken the Congolese people to the value of their poverty. Sometimes humorous, often troubling, always sharp Enjoy Poverty presents an incisive parable on western guilt, exploitation, and the international aid complex.

 Screening followed by discussion with filmmaker Renzo Martens 

Friday, October 19th, 7:30 pm

White Elephant

Dir. Kristof Bilsen, 2011. 35 min.

In French and Lingala with English subtitlesSomebody passed by one day: "Mama, does the Post really work? If I leave this letter with you, will it ever arrive?” I told him: "of course it will.”  He started laughing. "I know for sure it will never reach its destination.” White Elephant depicts Congo’s central post office and its employees. The postal system, a grandiose relic of Congo’s colonial past, has trapped its employees in a Kafkaesque time warp. From the minutia of leaky ceilings and cracked walls to the employees’ grand dreams for escape, Bilsen captures a vivid snapshot of life in present day Congo.

 

Atalaku

(Special Work-in-Progress Screening)

Dir. Dieudonne Hamadi, 2012. 62 min.

In French and Lingala with English subtitles 

Atalaku offers an insider view into Congo's 2011 presidential elections. Gaylor, a struggling pastor, has sold his services to the highest paying candidate. As Gaylor attempts to mobilize voters in Kinshasa's gritty streets, filmmaker Dieudonne Hamadi's lens is in the fray, never missing a beat. The atmosphere is charged, and Gaylor comes face to face with the Congolese people's discontent. When elections finally do arrive, the nation's vast poverty besieges the polls, plunging a suspect electoral process into chaos.

Screening followed by discussion with filmmakers Kristof Bilsen and Dieudonne Hamadi + Reception with live music by Isaac Katalay and Rafiya.

Isaac Katalay

Born in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and now living in New York City, Isaac Katalay's music represents the blending of two worlds. For the past two decades, Isaac has worked as an ensemble musician, choreographer, dancer, and speaker. His style is a distinctive blend of contemporary and traditional Congolese dance moves and aesthetics, which he calls "contemptra". Isaac is also founder of the "Life Long Project" and co-founder of the "Karibu" movement, both of which promote Congolese music and culture in the US.

Rafiya 

Born in Los Angeles to Congolese parents, Rafiya writes and sings about the human experience.  She has worked with Oscar Kidjo, recored in Youssou N'Dour's studio, and toured France and North Africa with French rap star Mokobe. In 2010 she released her debut album "Amazing" to great acclaim, and this year, she premiered her new single "Where I'm From," an ode to Africa and being African.

 Trailer: White Elephant: http://vimeo.com/17891483 


Saturday, October 20th

11AM - 3PM

(NO TICKETS)

Filmmaker Exchange

with Petna Katondolo, Yole!Africa, and the Maysles Filmmakers Collaborative for Adults and Teen Producers Academy

***THIS IS A CLOSED EVENT -- OPEN TO MAYSLES EDUCATION PROGRAMS ONLY***

Filmmaker and founder of Yole!Africa, Petna Ndaliko Katondolo, will lead a master-class for members of the Maysles Filmmakers Collaborative for Adults.  He will show an excerpt from from his forthcoming documentary about Congolese boxer Kibomango, and discuss funding, development, and filmmaker/subject relationships. There will also be a Skype exchange between youth filmmakers from Yole!Africa in Goma, and the Teen Producers Academy at the Maysles Institute. The discussion will focus on four short films made by the filmmakers at Yole -- Iron Eagle http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1CR8l5aZoI, Leadership at University of Goma http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBqdNNF7IYA, Makayabo in Goma http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eyELBYy-Ko, and Peoples' Beach http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yjwu2iAmFeU -- and the film Triggering Wounds http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1_Wn_JCyGw made by the Maysles Teen Producers Academy.

Saturday, October 20th, 7:30 pm

Co-Presented by the New York Film and Video Council 

http://www.nyfvc.org/NYFVC/About_us.html

Animation by Jean Michel Kibushi

Dir. Jean Michel Kibushi, 70 min.

In French with English subtitles

Using a magical blend of drawings, cutouts, models, and claymation, Jean Michel Kibushi summons a collective vision of Congo, past and present. For his subject matter, Kibushi draws on traditional Congolese folktales, social struggle, and political history. Each film is a mini-world unto itself, sprung forth from Kibushi's brilliant imagination to celebrate Congo's rich local culture and offer socio-political critique. Due to Kibushi's focus on his work in Congo, these films have rarely been screened in the US, and we are honored to present them at Congo in Harlem.

Screening followed by reception featuring musical performances by Alesh and Isaac Katalay. 

Alesh

Hailing from Kisangani, and currently based in Kinshasa, Alesh is a committed rapper and rising star in Congo's hip hop scene. Alesh's debut album, Mort Dans L'ame (2010), is a hard-hitting fusion of hip-hop, rock, folk, and Ndomblo (Congolese pop), which has earned him numerous awards and recognitions. In 2011, he teamed up with Nomadic Wax to release the music video "Reveil: The Awakening". This bold song spoke truth to corruption during the 2011 presidential elections, and was subsequently banned throughout Congo. He is currently in the US to perform on the OneBeat Tour and complete his second album, African (R)evolution, with Nomadic Wax.

Isaac Katalay

Born in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and now living in New York City, Isaac Katalay's music represents the blending of two worlds. For the past two decades, Isaac has worked as an ensemble musician, choreographer, dancer, and speaker. His style is a distinctive blend of contemporary and traditional Congolese dance moves and aesthetics, which he calls "contemptra". Isaac is also founder of the "Life Long Project" and co-founder of the "Karibu" movement, both of which promote Congolese music and culture in the US.

Alesh's video: http://vimeo.com/32594362

 

Sunday, October 21st, 10:00 am

*Special Children's Program*

Film Voyagers: Congo

Dir. Jean Michel Kibushi, 60 min.

In French with English subtitles read by professional actors

A selection of Jean Michel Kibushi's animations intended for children aged 3-7. This screening is being offered as part of Maysles Cinema's Film Voyagers series, a weekly film program for young children. All subtitles will be read aloud by professional actors. It'll be a fun morning in a cozy theater with complimentary organic popcorn.

Sunday, October 21st, 3:00 pm

Ota Benga

Dir. Alfeu França, 2002, 16 min. 

Ota Benga was a pygmy who was brought from the Belgian Congo to the US to be exhibited in the 1904 World's Fair. França presents Ota Benga's tragic story to a haunting stream of archival images and animation, offering a cautionary tale of colonial-era racism and exploitation.

Boma Turvuren: The Voyage

Dir. Francis Dujardin, 1999, 84 min.

In French with English subtitles

In 1897, 267 Congolese were brought to Brussels for the World's Fair. Subjected to the crushing gaze of the whites and the cold climate, many fell to disease and some lost their lives. One hundred years later, Congolese scholars return to the scene, revisiting a legacy of stereotypes and mistreatment, prompting the question "How is today different?"

Tickets: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/ref/17367/event/277646