The Habari Africa Festival will take place from August 12-14 at the Studio Theatre in Toronto. The film program includes documentaries that explore music cultures in Sudan and Ethiopia, as well as a film about teenage boda boda drivers in Kampala, Uganda struggling to provide for their families. The festival celebrates African cultures through music, dance, film, literature, fashion and crafts. All screenings are free.

1. Habari Africa Festival
Co-produced by Batuki Music Society
August 12-14
Studio Theatre, 235 Queens Quay West
Film Program
Beats of the Antonov
Sunday, August 14 4:45–6:15pm
Of all the places one would expect to find a thriving music culture, one
would be forgiven for not thinking of the war-torn border between
North and South Sudan. But as this TIFF award-winning documentary
illustrates, the civil war has not managed to break apart the cultural
fabric of those it displaced. Even as the North Sudanese government
rains bombs from their Ukrainian-made Antonov planes, the people
of the Blue Nile and Nuba Mountains defiantly emerge, regroup
and make music. From Sudanese-native and grassroots activist
Hajooj Kuka, Beats of the Antonov gives voice to the marginalized
communities who bravely continue to celebrate their heritage and
defend their identity in the face of a terrifying force from the North.
Hajooj Kuka was born in Sudan and currently divides his time between
Nairobi, Kenya and Sudan’s Nuba Mountains. He is a war reporter and
documentary filmmaker.
Directed by
Hajooj Kuka
Year
2014
Rating
PG 13
Running time
68 minutes
Language
Arabic with
English subtitles
All screenings are free
Explore the rich and diverse cultures of the African continent. This year
focuses on traditional West African griot music, augmented by rumba and
other contemporary sounds, through a celebration of music, dance, film,
literature, fashion and crafts.

2. Boda Boda Thieves
Saturday, August 13 7:30–9pm
Even though he is only 15 years old when his father is injured in a road
accident, Abel takes up the responsibility of manning the family boda
boda – a speedy motorbike taxi – to provide for the household. Abel,
however, is always on the lookout for a shortcut, and when a local
hustler offers him the chance of being a snatch-and-grab get-away
driver, he lurches headlong into a world of easy money and quick
thrills.
In Kampala, Uganda, the city streets are always congested with traffic
and the fastest way to travel is by boda boda. The men who drive
these boda bodas have a reputation as tough hustlers, cowboys of
the dusty roads. After all, you have to be sharp to survive Kampala
traffic. Against this bustling backdrop, our story of a small family trying
to make it emerges.
Roaring Abyss
Saturday, August 13 5:30–7pm
An immersion into ancient and diverse sounds, Roaring Abyss is a
sound journey across the mountains, deserts and forests of Ethiopia,
unveiling its majestic cultural universe. This documentary takes you
through a unique collection of music recordings, which play a vital role
in transmitting and preserving African heritage.
There are more than eighty different ethnicities and cultures spread
all along the mountains, deserts and forests of Ethiopia. Some
musicians are still playing the music they learned from their fathers
and mothers—instruments such as the krar, washent, masinko
and kabero are nowadays roaring and bouncing against the hills
of this contrasting and diverse land. In order to unveil this musical
universe and keep a record of this endangered musical tradition,
SolySombra Recordings, together with Sheba Sound teams, spent
two years creating field recordings from every corner of Ethiopia, all
documented in this audiovisual poem.
Directed by
Donald Mugisha
and James Tayler
Year
2015
Rating
PG 13
Running time
85 minutes
Language
Luganda with
English subtitles
Directed by
Quino Piñero
Year
2015
Rating
PG 13
Running time
97 minutes
Language
Amharic, Tigrigna,
Oromifa, Harari,
Nuer with English
subtitles
To see the full festival lineup, visit harbourfrontcentre.com or pick up a
What’s On from the Harbourfront Centre info desk.
Harbourfront Centre is a Canadian charity operating the 10 prime acres of
Toronto’s central waterfront as a free and open public site. We celebrate the
multiplicities of cultures that comprise Canada and enliven the city through the
creative imaginations of artists from across the country and around the globe.