Watch out, we start with the clap! Action! The Festival cinémas d’Afrique – Lausanne, Switzerland, resumes after two years of interruption due to Covid-19. Close-up on a great figure of Senegalese cinema, Moussa Sène Absa.
This 16th edition of the Festival cinémas d’Afrique – Lausanne will open its doors from August 17 to 21, 2022 to dedicated venues: the Cinémathèque suisse and the Casino de Montbenon. The organizers will “dedicate a retrospective to the Senegalese filmmaker, Moussa Sène Absa”. “This multi-talented artist, they say, reminds us of the richness and creative diversity of the African continent.” When I say “ogre”, I mean he swallows everything in his path: awards and distinctions – the insatiable director devours everything.
Born in 1958 in Dakar, Senegal, Moussa Sène, in civil status, is now well on the list of pioneers of African cinema, especially that of Senegal. He was raised by his mother, Absa; his father comes out of life three days after his birth. Like what, there can’t be two captains in the same boat. Very early on, his artistic ambitions led him to the stages of the Daniel Sorana Theatre in Dakar. He learns the mechanics of the 7th art: scenery, rigging, directing… Everything a man of cinema needs. Fussy to the point, he will soon make a name for himself.
Moussa Sène Absa debuted as a director of “The Legend of Ruba”, a musical. It was a first at the time. He writes the script for “Les Enfants de Dieu” which will be awarded at the Fort-de-France Francophone Film Festival. Curiously, the film will never be made. The consecration comes with his artistic masterpiece: his first short film: ‘The Price of Falsehood’ in 1988. The film will be Money Tanit at the Carthage Film Days. On the continent, he is now a sure bet, a man that African cinema can count on. Moussa Sène Absa won over the FESPACO jury with her film “Tableau Ferraille” in 1997: the public is full of praise for her. That’s not all. In 2003, he directed a feature film that will be awarded at the Berlin International Film Festival. Everything he touches drains people. His films are always successful, both in Senegal and internationally.
At this festival, among the countries in the spotlight, there will be Benin, Tunisia, Egypt, Madagascar, Nigeria and Somalia. In addition to Senegal. More than 60 films will be screened for the retrospective dedicated to Moussa Sène Absa. Three films by this accomplished man of cinema (painter, actor, screenwriter, producer, writer and musician) eager for improvement and cinematic progress will be screened at the Swiss Film Archive: ‘Ca twiste à Popenguine’ (1993), ‘Yoolé’ (The Sacrifice) and “Scrap Board” (1995).
Moussa Sène Absa’s film “Madame Brouette” will open the Lausanne Festival on August 17, 2022. The director will be there. The honour he receives goes beyond his own person: through him, the whole of African cinema is celebrated. As an African, we are happy to see him leaving for Switzerland with hope of returning, of course, to the influence of African cinema. The African film industry traces its furrow between Bollywood and Hollywood.
