Films, completed and in production

Great Great Great Grandparents' Music

Filmed over a period of two decades, Great Great Great Grandparents' Music presents an intimate portrait of the remarkable Koné family, three generations of jeli (West African musicians-singers-dancers and carriers of collective knowledge and culture). The film focuses on this ancient system of cultural transmission through sharing, respect and humor.

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Diro and his Talking Musical Bow

A portrait of West African musician Diro Dah, who gathers materials from nature to construct, tune and play a new kankarama(musical bow). Using music to imitate the rising and falling tones of the Lobi language in a hide-and-seek game, Diro delightfully engages village children as he directs them to a hidden object with his talking musical bow.

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Dance of the Bella

An entrancing film of dance performed to humming and handclapping on the southern reaches of the Sahara desert. The Bella people, having survived seven years of drought and famine, dance at dusk celebrating the major Islamic feast, Tabasky (Id al Adha).

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Adama, the Fulani Magician

Adama Hamidou, a renowned deaf West African street performer and practitioner of the ancient Yan Taorimagic tradition, spreads wonder and delight among the people of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

As a deaf man, Adama has found a unique, witty means of communication. Ritual and tradition unfold as Adama prepares himself for magic.

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Zam Zam

Filmed over a span of two decades, Zam Zam presents an intimate portrait of a healer/farmer/family-man/dancer.

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Zakaramba, a Family for All Seasons

Filmed over a span of two decades, in the Sahelian region of West Africa, Zakaramba, a Family for All Seasons presents an intimate portrait of three generations of an extended Moose [pronounced "mo say"] family of farmers and their community.

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