The 2nd edition of the Toronto Black Film Festival (TBFF) begins tonight, February 11th and runs until Sunday, February16th. Coinciding with Black History Month, TBFF aims to celebrate diversity within the black communities through powerful films, a community program, and some interesting special events.
The year 2014 is a symbolic year the festival, which will be commemorating several ground-breaking anniversaries such as; 210 years of Haitian Independence, 20 years of the Rwandan Genocide; 20 years since Mandela was elected president of South Africa, and 5 years since Barack Obama became the first black American president.
On this special year, TBFF offers 33 films depicting black realities from around the globe. Some of the films and events, I’d like to hightlight include:
THE FORGOTTEN KINGDOM – OPENING FILM
Isabel Bader Theatre – Tuesday, Feb 11 – 7 PM – $20.
Andrew Mudge – Lesotho, South Africa
A young man reluctantly embarks on a journey to his ancestral land of Lesotho to bury his estranged father and finds himself drawn to the mystical beauty and hardships of the people and land he had forgotten.
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| Still from Cristo Rey Source: TBFF |
CRISTO REY
Carlton Cinema – Friday, Feb 14 – 5 PM – $10.
Leticia Tonos Paniagua – Dominican Republic , France, Haiti
Cristo Rey is a unique Caribbean retelling of Romeo and Juliet to the big screen. It is set in the Dominican Republic that is home to over a million Haitians, the country’s biggest minority facing widespread discrimination. The film showcases the story of these mostly undocumented migrants and follows the love between a kind teenager, ostracized for his mixed Haitian-Dominican descent, and the beautiful sister of a local drug boss he’s hired to protect.
TBFF COMMUNUTY PROGRAM – BEHIND THE WORDS!
Carlton Cinema – Saturday, Feb 15 – 1PM – FREE
Presented by Up from the Roots
Through a panel of young artists, learn to understand the real impact of the ‘Spoken Word’ on the youth and why it’s becoming a way for them to escape, survive and communicate.
TRIBUTE TO NELSON MANDELA
Carlton Cinema – Sunday, February 16, 2014 – 7 PM – $10.
A special program of 4 retrospective short films about the legendary world leader Nelson Mandela:
Banished by Sharon Cort; King of Hearts by Mandy Jacobson; Mandela, A Royal Revolutionary by Nhlanhla Mthethwa; and Beverley Palesa Ditsie’s Release Mandela.
THE RETRIEVAL – CLOSING FILM
Carlton Cinema – Sunday, February 16, 2014 – 9 PM – $15.
Chris Eska – USA
On the outskirts of the Civil War, the story follows a fatherless thirteen year-old boy sent north by his bounty hunter gang on a dangerous mission to retrieve a wanted man. Along the journey towards their reckoning, the initially distant pair develops unexpected emotional bonds. As his feelings grow, the boy is consumed by conflicting emotions and a gut-wrenching ultimate decision.
In addition to the films, there are some special events, as well as, free community events at this year’s TBFF. All details about the films, events, locations, and box office information can be found at the Festival’s website torontoblackfilm.com.
