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Black Girl

Directed by Ousmane Sembène
1966
Senegal
59 minutes
Unclassified 15+
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The true story of a young Senegalese girl who moves to France to work as a nanny, but is soon treated as a slave. Sembène’s first feature film took him, and African cinema, to international acclaim.
Based on a short story written by Sembène himself, Black Girl follows a painfully shy young Senegalese woman recruited as a nanny for a French family. The heartrending character is wonderfully performed by the outstanding non-professional Mbissine Thérèse Diop as Diouana. Whilst she is initially excited at the appointment, Diouana’s relocation to Antibes for work uncovers a hidden side to her employers, and she is slowly forced into the role of a domestic slave. Black Girl is startling and harrowing, a domestic horror story revealing the injustices of colonialism.

Films showing at this event:

Borom Sarret
Borom Sarret (SFF 2015) is Ousmane Sembène’s debut film, often hailed as one of the most significant short films ever made – and one that paved the way for African cinema.
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Tickets

Sat 8 Jun
12:45pm
Art Gallery of New South Wales
Assisted Listening
Wheelchair
Subtitled
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Program Strand
Ousmane Sembène Retrospective
Original Title
LA NOIRE DE...
Year
1966
Classification
Unclassified 15+
Country
Senegal
Language
In Wolof and French with English subtitles
Director
Ousmane Sembène
Producer
André Zwoboda
Cast
Mbissine Thérèse Diop, Anne-Marie Jelinek, Robert Fontaine
Screenwriter
Osumane Sembène
Cinematographer
Christian Lacoste
Editor
André Gaudier
Genre
Africa, Festival Award Winners, Cinephile, Human Rights, Retrospective
Company Credits
Print Source: Janus Films

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