The VIFF Centre marks Black History Month with a vibrant line-up of live events, guest-curated series, music documentaries, and more.
In the latest chapter of African Cinema Now!, Dreaming of Elsewhere, Akojo Film Collective brings us six films that touch on the fluid concept of home.
Kika Memeh curates Celebrating Black Futures, which explores mythical and corporeal transmutations, in partnership with the Vancouver Art Gallery.
VIFF Live presents Feven Kidane and Tiny Pyramids in tribute to jazz space voyager Sun Ra, and Quincy Mayes brings Afro-Brazilian soul, funk and samba to our stage before a screening of City of God.
Jamaican-born Canadian soul, ska and jazz singer Jay Douglas will also join us for the BC premiere of Play It Loud.
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Feven Kidane & Tiny Pyramids Play the Music of Sun Ra
Celebrate the music of Sun Ra with legendary local trumpeter Feven Kidane and Tiny Pyramids, a group of interstellar travellers featuring Dan Gaucher on drums, Colin Cowan on bass, Mary Ancheta on keyboards, and Tom Wherrett on guitar. This performance will be paired with a screening of Space is the Place.
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Play It Loud! How Toronto Got Soul
Legendary Toronto soul, funk, and ska singer Jay Douglas leads us through an energizing history of Canadian Caribbean music. Join us Friday night and meet Jay in person, along with producer Andrew Munger!
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Luther: Never Too Much
There is a lot more to soul superstar Luther Vandross than his honeyed hits. This definitive doc sheds light on his work with artists including David Bowie, Diana Ross and Aretha Franklin, his struggles with his image and sexuality, and remarkable gifts.
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The Pirogue
When offered the chance to lead one of the many Senegalese pirogues bound for Europe via the Canary Islands, Baye Laye reluctantly accepts the job, knowing full-well the many perils that lie ahead.
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Mother of George
Following their joyous wedding, complications arise for a Nigerian couple living in Brooklyn when they're unable to conceive a child - a problem that devastates their family, defies cultural expectations, and leads the wife to make a shocking decision.
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Quincy Mayes Brazilian Soul Experience
The Quincy Mayes Brazilian Soul Experience is thrilled to present a special performance showcasing the diverse, Afro-centric roots of samba, soul, and funk alongside a screening of the essential Brazilian film City of God. Please note there will be no Standby available for this event.
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Chez Jolie Coiffure
Having immigrated to Belgium from Cameroon, Sabine manages Chez Jolie Coiffure. Her salon patrons, many of them undocumented immigrants, are not only be made to feel beautiful but can also escape the daily difficulties and harsh realities of their lives.
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Mami Wata + Drexciya
Fiery Obasi's tremendous, dreamy fable, shot in inky, lustrous black and white, is an elemental tale of magic, devotion, and generational unease set in a traditional Nigerian village.
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Atlantics
In Dakar, Ada loves Souleiman but has been promised to another man. One night, Souleiman and his co-workers leave the country by sea. Several days later, a fire ruins Ada's wedding and a mysterious fever starts to spread. It seems Souleiman has returned.
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Bam Bam: The Sister Nancy Story
Dancehall queen Sister Nancy effortlessly carries this bright and buoyant music doc. Her irresistible signature tune, "Bam Bam" enjoys the status of the most sampled reggae song of them all.
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The Inheritance
The inheritance is a house in Philadelphia bequeathed to Julian by his grandmother. He asks his girlfriend Gwen to move in, and next thing he knows there's an entire collective, The House of Ubutu, a commune that will be a safe space for Black folk.
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Dilli Dark
Michael Okeke left Nigeria six years ago to survive in the frequently disconnecting and overcrowded New Delhi, which he despises heartily. He dreams of true love and a better job but is pushed into only the 4 Cs: cell phone, cocaine, cash, and clients.
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Tori and Lokita
Sharing a sibling-like bond, immigrants Lokita (17) and Tori (12) work as performers in a trattoria, dealing drugs on the side, while navigating an indifferent bureaucracy. When Lokita is held captive in a marijuana grow op, events spiral out of control.
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