« Made in RDC ». Nouvelles productions filmiques et distributions locales

Authors

Silvia Riva, Université de Milan (ltalie)

Abstract

Compared to other African countries and despite the potential size of its audience, until the beginning of the new millennium, Congo DRC seemed to be lagging behind in its local film production. Guido Convents' work on Congolese cinema from the earliest times to the present shows a portrait of cinematography around the Congo, which takes into account cinema "for Congolese, by Congolese or with Congolese actors" for lack of an indigenous productive centrality, if not limited to feature films directed by Mwezé Ngangura and recognized authors of the diaspora (Balufu Bakupa Kanyinda, among others). With the success of the feature film Viva Riva! (2010), directed by Djo Tunda Wa Mung (MTV Movie Awards for Best African Movie in 2011), but also, in the field of documentary, thanks to the seven editions of Cin'étoile (organized in Lubumbashi), as well as the production of DVD series - such as Je ne suis pas à vendre (I'm not for sale), created by Kaweej Cinema Group -, or the launch of the call for projects Goma Capital of Cinema in 2018, we can today speak of a multilingual cinema produced in Congo by Congolese men and women, directed by Congolese young people and shown to a wide audience (and not only in the capital). In this study, I will illustrate this recent change of course, in order to identify the motivations, networks and future issues of the Congolese cinema landscape.

Recommended Citation

Riva, Silvia (2020) "« Made in RDC ». Nouvelles productions filmiques et distributions locales," Présence Francophone: Revue internationale de langue et de littérature: Vol. 95: No. 1, Article 9.
Available at: https://crossworks.holycross.edu/pf/vol95/iss1/9