Banel and Adama

16 – 21 March, 2024
A young couple living in remote Senegal, whose star-crossed love is in conflict with family tradition, face a new challenge as drought hits their village.
Banel and Adama are fiercely in love. The young couple live in a remote village in northern Senegal and for them, nothing else in the world exists. However, their perfect everlasting love seems on a collision course with their family’s traditions. Adama is pressured to take the position of village chief, but Banel and Adama have different plans — that is until something in the air shifts. A drought strikes and the cattle begin to die, changing everything.
Award-winning filmmaker Ramata-Toulaye Sy’s breathtaking and lyrical debut feature follows the fated lovers in their quest to carve a life for themselves beyond the expectations of others. The film premiered in Competition at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, making Sy only the second Black woman in the history of the festival to do so.
‘Evokes our cinema’s philosophical high priest, Terrence Malick.’ – Indiewire
‘With its balletic choreography of performance and statuesque visual approach, Sy’s film is a work of remarkable composition.’ – Little White Lies
In Pular and Peul with English subtitles
GFT 12 Rose Street, G3 6RB
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