BFM International Film Festival

The BFM International Film Festival was established in 1998 by well known film maker Menelik Shabazz. It was setup to fill a void within the UK, on the film exhibition scene. At the time, there was a complete absence of Black World Cinema in independent cinemas and multiplexes. There were audiences within the African and Caribbean community for films that reflected their cultural experience and a lack of screening opportunities for Black British UK filmmakers who were marginalized. The festival was therefore established to make a difference.

The Film Festival kicks off this weekend, below are some of the films you might be interested in:

Horace Ove's first feature length film since 'Playing Away' will have it's european premier on Friday 7th Nov. and BFI Southbank, London.

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"The Ghost of Hing King Estate tells the dramatic story of mysterious deaths amongst plantation workers on a local estate. Carmelle, the plantation overseer's wife is accused of their untimely deaths and vilified locally. Life on Hing King Estate is forever changed as the facades are broken down, relationships tested and friendships destroyed. Screening will be followed by a discussion with the Director. To mark the opening night, a late night DJ session will be hosted by Amplified in the Benugo bar."

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The Slave Coast: Inside Old Calabar (22mins)(2008)(Dir:Charles Aniagolu)

A glimpse into the Atlantic slave trade from an African perspective. For almost three hundred years, Old Calabar dominated the slave trade in the Bight of Biafra, turning the area into one of the most intensely trafficked slave-trading regions in Africa. Over the course of the trade, approximately ten million men, women and children from Africa were captured, sold as slaves and transported to the new world. The film examines the communities that traded along old Calabar and tells the story of their important role in facilitating the Atlantic slave trade; the largest forced migration in human history highlighting the complicity of the chiefs and institutions of Old Calabar.

Nine Nights (15min / 2006 / Jamaica/UK)

Nine Nights follows the ceremony and funeral of Aunt Iris, highly respected matriarch of the community of New Green, Jamaica, who died in March 2006, aged 92. A cultural death ritual that dates back to the days of slavery, it is a ceremony of passage whereby the family and community of the deceased bid farewell and wish the spirit a safe passage into the afterlife. The film intimately portrays the contradictory emotions of joy and sadness contrast sharply between the Nine Night and the funeral.

For more info please visit the Festival Website: http://www.bfmmedia.com/festival/index.php