The 28th edition of the biggest film event on the African continent will be held from February 25 to March 4 in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso. With Alex Moussa Sawadogo, the general delegate of Fespaco, Franceinfo Culture returns to the particularities of this edition, the weight of security constraints and the evolutions of the Festival.
The selection of the 28th edition of the Ouagadougou Pan-African Film and Television Festival (Fespaco) includes 170 works in competition, divided into eleven categories, including feature fiction, short films, documentaries, TV series, school films and animated films. In the fiction category, fifteen feature films are in the running for the Etalon d’or du Yennenga. Alex Moussa Sawadogo, General Delegate of Fespaco, tells us about the Festival which will be held from March 25 to 4, 2023 in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, a country victim of terrorism like its Sahelian neighbors. He already qualified this edition of“anthological”. Interview.
Franceinfo Culture: How did the selection for this 28th edition of Fespaco go?
Alex Moussa Sawadogo: Since my arrival at the general delegation, Fespaco has had a selection committee whose members have experience in the programming and selection of films. They also come from different parts of the continent. They both have the advantage of being in contact with creators working in each region of the continent. This allows us to seek out films and not just content ourselves with what is submitted to Fespaco. The members of the selection committee also take part in major festivals such as Cannes or Berlin, so they bring back works that they have discovered there. At Fespaco, we no longer want to wait for the works to reach us. We went looking for them all over Africa and around the world.
The Sahel suffers from terrorism and Burkina Faso is not spared. How do you organize an event that brings together thousands of festival-goers when security becomes such a restrictive element?
The Burkinabè authorities and ourselves are obviously aware of the situation. If we decided to organize this edition, it is because we took it into account in our way of doing things and in our programming. One certainty: there will be no discount Fespaco. Safety is an element taken into account in the practical organization of trips and screenings. In addition, the authorities have confirmed to us that the security issue will be taken into account in all decisions during Fespaco. For them, security must be guaranteed when we welcome 10,000 people in Ouagadougou. Since its creation, the Fespaco has never been cancelled. This shows that the people of Burkina Faso are capable of overcoming all types of difficulties. With Fespaco, we will continue to write the history of African cinema.
What are the innovations of the 28th edition of Fespaco?
In 2021, we launched a set of initiatives in order to have a festival adapted to its time, which takes into account the public, the new generations and the learners, among others the future filmmakers. For this edition, we will give visibility to all these innovations. We have also set up a co-production market this year, the Yennenga Coproduction. This is an activity that was missing from the Yennenga workshops [lancés en 2021]. It will allow project leaders who have feature films, sometimes for a very long time in their drawers, to meet the producers we have invited. In Africa, film financing still remains a challenge for filmmakers.
Togo had been announced as a guest country, but it will ultimately be Mali. Is this choice, which seems political, justified on an artistic level?
Mali, like Burkina Faso, has succeeded in inscribing cinema in its history. Two Malian filmmakers won the Etalon d’or [Souleymane Cissé, qui l’a remporté deux fois et Cheick Oumar Sissoko]. Moreover, we share the same border and we are currently experiencing the same security situation. With the theme we have chosen this year [Cinémas d’Afrique et culture de la paix], it was important for these countries to meet in Ouagadougou to discuss the contribution of film actors to the return of security and social cohesion. The crisis is political but also artistic because many actors, producers and directors are suffering from it. In situations of political, identity and security crisis, how as creators, directors could we find solutions to be able to continue to create? How to create together works that will contribute to the return of peace? How to launch joint arrangements so that artists from both countries can benefit from them? We will try to find the answers to these questions together.
Will there be as many festival-goers as in 2021 at Fespaco?
In 2021, nearly 10,000 people were accredited for Fespaco. A few days before the new edition, we should exceed this figure. Contrary to what one might think, we are overwhelmed with accreditation requests. In addition to the usual festival-goers, we are happy to welcome professionals from the diaspora and from the Arab world where festivals interested in African cinema are held. This shows that the friends of Fespaco are ready to come and show their support and contribute, with Burkina Faso, to the return of peace. It is an anthological Fespaco because Burkina Faso demonstrates that it will bring together, under current conditions, thousands of players in the film industry who will be in the spotlight of the media from all over the world. A proof that the Burkinabè remain upright and creative.
Ouagadougou and Paris have had strained political relations for several weeks. But France is a major funder of African cinema through co-production. Fespaco and the National Film and Moving Image Center (CNC) are partners. Does the diplomatic situation have an impact on this relationship?
No way ! We cinema people love cinema and only talk about cinema. France counts enormously when it comes to co-production with Africa, especially for French-speaking countries. We have partnerships with the CNC, Unifrance, TV5 monde, Canal Plus… The classic French partners of Fespaco are always by our side.