Synopsis

In these shorts from across the diaspora, our protagonists are forced to mature in the face of difficult and uncomfortable truths. Featuring works by Laetitia Angba, Julie Redon Lissouba, Tevin Kimathi, Millan Tarus, Jean Gaspa, Natalie Jasmine Harris, Samuel Laine, Guilherme Gomes, and Julia Conatti.

A teenager grapples with the increasing likelihood of her father’s deportation in Lana (Canada). Stero (Kenya) puts us in the shoes of a young Kenyan boy as he embodies the traits of a badass hero. Go in Peace (Al nan la paix) (France) transports us to the crowded, sweaty waiting room of a Haitian consulate as tensions boil over. In Grace (United States), we take a trip to the American south of the 1950s, where a teenager grapples with guilt and her sexuality ahead of getting baptized. Free Lunch (United States) showcases the tragicomic events that take place when a child doesn’t have enough money to pay for his school lunch. Finally, we explore the ruminations of two twentysomethings from São Paulo in Trying (Estamos tentando) (Brazil).

Synopsis

Bruce is in elementary school, and starting to trust his own instincts over the lessons instilled in him by teachers and authority figures. Using the guiding voice of his own personal superhero, he puts his bravery to the test and defies his school in the name of self-respect.

This film screens as part of the Black Perspectives Shorts: Growing Pains program.

Synopsis

The son of a French father and Rwandan mother, 10-year-old Gabriel spends idyllic days studying at school and playing with friends in a well-sheltered Burundian community. That is, until the ethnic genocide in neighboring Rwanda spills into his world, threatening families and taking lives. From the semi-autobiographical novel of singer and writer Gaël Faye comes this perceptive and affecting tale of a childhood interrupted and paradise lost.