Nationalité : immigré
Presented by Léa Baron, Cinémathèque Afrique project manager, and Léa Morin, independent curator and researcher.
Shot between 1972 and 1975, Sokhona’s first film is the story of a struggle, that of immigrant workers in France. Blending fiction and documentary, Sokhona traces the difficult journey of a Mauritanian (himself) who arrives in Paris and faces racism and exploitation, right up to the political awakening and collective revolts of the Rue Riquet hostel. For the first time, the struggles of immigrants are filmed from the inside. Sokhona seizes the camera to denounce their situation, render the complexity of their experiences, and in the process deconstruct the paternalism of certain far-left militants. A manifesto film.
The Restorer – La Cinémathèque Afrique – Institut français, Talitha et Sidney Sokhona
The Cinémathèque Afrique brings together an extensive collection of African films from the 1950s to the present day (over 1,700 films, fiction, animation and documentaries) from 45 countries. Created in 1961 under the impetus of Jean Rouch and Jean-René Debrix, the Cinémathèque Afrique’s aim was to support early African film productions. Now part of the Institut français (since 2011), the Cinémathèque Afrique continues to acquire contemporary films and restore older works.
TALITHA (Rennes) is an association committed to the research and circulation of marginalized sound and cinematographic works and narratives. By bringing together filmmakers, artists, researchers and practitioners, Talitha creates spaces for reflection, sharing and reactivation of images, sounds and narratives rendered invisible by dominant narratives.
Photo credits : Nationalité Immigré © Cinémathèque Afrique – Institut français
Sidney Sokhona is a Mauritanian filmmaker born in 1952. He arrived in Paris at the age of 14. Having come to France to study, he found himself obliged to work, and took evening classes. At the Université de Vincennes, he became interested in cinema, and began working as a volunteer assistant with Jean Rouch on Petit à Petit, then with Med Hondo on Bicots nègres, vos voisins. His first feature film, Nationalité : Immigré, was shot between 1972 and 1975 at the Rue Riquet hostel for immigrant workers in Paris, where he himself was living. He went on to make Safrana ou le droit à la parole (1977) before returning to Mauritania. He then gave up cinema to get involved in politics. He was awarded the Prix Spécial du Jury at the 5th FESPACO (Pan-African Film and Television Festival, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso) in 1976 and the Prix Georges-Sadoul in Paris in 1975.
Sidney Sokhona
Cinémathèque Afrique – Institut français | Talitha | Sidney Sokhona
Léa Baron : lea.baron@institutfrancais.com / Léa Morin : morin.lea@gmail.com
Identification of elements, documentary research, contract with copyright holder, partnerships, choice of laboratory. Restoration work has not yet begun.
Autumn 2024
