The opening and closing ceremonies were held at the 4th August Stadium with a packed line up of musicians from Burkina. It was Salif Keita though from Mali who reigned supreme.

There were about 180 films on the programme from all corners of the African continent, and over 20 feature films competing for the top prize, known as the Etalon de Yennenga or the Golden Stallion of Yennega. For the first time, there were gold, silver and bronze awards reflecting the growing importance of FESPACO for the continent’s filmmakers.

This year’s jury included the Hollywood actor Danny Glover and the Cameroonian author Calixte Beyala. The jury awarded the grand prize — the Etalon d’Or de Yennenga and a cash prize of 10 million CFA francs ($20,000) — to Drum a film by the South African Zola Maseko.

Drum is only the second English language film to have won the grand prize at the African film festival and is the first film from sub-Saharan Africa to have won the competition. It’s also Zola Maskeo’s first feature film.

Second prize went to the Moroccan film, La Chambre Noire, directed by Hassan Benjelloun. The film is based on real events inspired by the book The Black Room written by Jaouad Mdidech and portrays the tortures and extra judicial imprisonment in 1970s Morocco.

Tasuma Le Feu a comedy by Burkinabe director Kollo Sanou carried the third prize. It tells the story of an elderly ex-serviceman, Tasuma, who fought for France but was still waiting for his pension years later.

Zola Maseko
Zola Maseko was born in exile in 1967 and educated in Swaziland and Tanzania. In 1987, he joined Umkhonto We Sizwe the armed wing of the African National Congress.

In 1994, he graduated from the National Film and Television School, Beaconsfield, UK. His first project was the documentary Dear Sunshine (1992). In 1994, he graduated with Oupa, Pitso, Lenny and Me. In 1994, he returned to South Africa and wrote and directed his first fiction short film, The Foreigner.

Since then, he has directed The Life and Times of Sara Baartman (98), The Return of Sarah Bartman (02), Children of the Revolution (02), and A Drink in the Passage (02).

Drum is based on the true story of the young journalist Henry Nxumalo, working at the historic black magazine Drum. The film is set in sultry bars, nightclubs and the moody streets of 1950s Sophiatown, Johannesburg.

Maseko captures Sophiatown in its hey day — the heart of resistance and creative zest for black South Africans — with a slick look, witty script and the unique sound of 50s jazz from the city slinking its way through the film.

Images © Lydia Martin