Focus: Two documentaries on water shortages and racial inequality

We still have to wait for the Holland Festival, which begins on June 3, but next week he will present two documentaries of the Senegalese-French Aïssa Maïga on the live broadcast platform Pepr. above water It is about the consequences of climate change on a village in Niger. at About Noir Maïga studies the lack of diversity in the world of film and television.

The Netherlands and Pepr Festival links the two films to singer and music stage maker Angélique Kidjo, this year Associate Artist In Holland Festival. Kidjo, born in 1960 in Benin, and who has lived alternately in France and the United States since 1980, is not just a (lying) artist, but one of the most influential transmitters of African culture. Time Magazine She was recently dubbed “Africa’s number one female singer”. The BBC has placed the four-time Grammy Award winner on its list of the 50 most powerful people on the continent.

As a singer, Kidjo effortlessly blends West African influences with elements from North American R&B, funk and jazz from Europe and Latin America. She sings in English, French and Yoruba, the language spoken in Nigeria, among others, and has collaborated with a variety of musicians, from the Kronos Quartet to Alicia Keys and from Philip Glass to Youssou N’Dour.

It may be an outdated term, but the cultural connection is what drives Kidjo. In her words: “I have spent my entire career building bridges between different cultures, different music styles and different generations, bringing out the depth and beauty of African songs.”

Back to the two documentaries. He plays in a village in Niger above water For a year, he follows fourteen-year-old Maiga Hulaya, who, like other village children, has to walk miles every day through a very dry area to get water from a well. The film shows the devastating impact of climate change on the village, which was once lush and green but is now barren and dry. The social consequences are enormous. For example, Hulaya’s school life suffers from her long daily walk. Many residents, including her parents, were also forced to leave the village to earn a living elsewhere.

above water It doesn’t look for big data and general data on climate change, but it does show what that means for any village in Niger. Ironically, 200 meters below the village is a large natural water reservoir, but how is the water raised from such a depth? Thanks to the financial support of an NGO, above water Before the village with a Happy endingBut the film also shows that ubiquitous pumping to extract deep (ground) water cannot be a sustainable solution to climate change. The more water that is pumped out, without the water returning, the drier large parts of Africa will eventually become.

at About Noir Maiga investigates in France, the United States and Brazil why there is little scope for diversity in the world of film and television. She has interviewed historians, sociologists, and filmmakers including Ryan Coogler (Black Panther) and Ava DuVernay (Peaceful), and actors including Chiwetel Ejiofor and Adèle Haenel. conclusion? And there remains a long way to go.

above water And About Noir † May 1 to 8 | Pepper