Senegalese film Xalé will screen at Unseen Nairobi in honour of the end of its International Women’s celebrations.
The film by Moussa Sène Absa was the Senegalese choice for 2023 Oscars.
It tells the moving story of Awa, a 15-year-old schoolgirl, happily living her teenage years alongside her twin brother Adama, who dreams of Europe.
When their grandmother dies, her aunt Fatou and her uncle Atoumane promise to marry to preserve the family union.
But Fatou does not love Atoumane and the latter, tired of waiting to consummate his marriage, commits an act from which there is no going back.
Speaking about why the film mattered to him, the director Moussa Absa, said, “I shot ‘Xalé’ in the place I was born. This beach is my beach. It’s a bit of my own childhood. I felt that I had to include in ‘Xalé’ a memory of my own childhood – a moment where you can jump on a boat and look at a film from far away.”
Xalé will be showing at Unseen Nairobi on March 12, 15-19, 22-26, and 29-31.
You can buy tickets here.