France, Senegal, Benin, 2024, 69 mins.
DIRECTOR: Mati Diop
WITH: Gildas Adannou, Habib Ahandessi, Joséa Guedje
In 2021, France returned 26 royal artefacts, which colonial forces stole from the Kingdom of Dahomey (modern Benin) in 1892. Acclaimed filmmaker Mati Diop (Atlantics (2019) was there to witness the return of the treasures, which spent over a century away from home. The result is a unique and powerful documentary that raises pressing questions about the need for reparations, and the price of time forever lost. The first screening of Dahomey (2024) will be followed by a panel discussion hosted by The New Black Film Collective with the support of MUBI.
"Diop channels a similar otherworldly energy, giving voice to the looted objects as they narrate their journey home." Rachel Pronger, Sight & Sound
The Cambridge Film Festival is presented by the Cambridge Film Trust, a registered charity with a mission to foster film culture and education for the benefit of the public, in Cambridge, the Eastern region, and throughout the UK.
