20 Mar 2013

The inception of film in the eighteen century has been highly instrumental in spreading art, culture, language and influencing trade dynamics.

The French in Botswana have therefore resorted to commemorate International Francophone Day which takes place annually on 20th March by hosting a film festival which will run for the entire week to promote French language and culture.

On the evening of March 18, the French non-governmental organisation, Alliance Française kick started the film festival by showcasing a 2005 movie Live and Become (Va, Vis et deviens) which is the story of a Jewish boy Schlomo (Solomon) played by Mosche Agazai, Mosche Abebe and Sirak M Sabahat.

Live and Become was produced with English subtitles and characters speaking; French, Hebrew, Amharic and English. It begins in 1984 with boy Schlomo forced by persecution along religious lines to leave his motherland Ethiopia to ‘live and become’ in Israel. Schlomo was airlifted to Israel with thousands of starved and persecuted Ethiopian Jews (Falashas) from refugee camps in Sudan.

The movie depicts Schlomo going through immense hardships and being ridiculed and racially discriminated by the Jewish in Israel at a young age. Despite the odds, Schlomo exhibits a brave character, transcends stereotypes and ends up being a medical doctor after studying in Paris, France.

He was driven by purpose, to do something for his native Ethiopia. His mother had firmly given him instruction to “go, live and become” at the age of nine. She helped him escape death, disease, famine and civil war that was ravaging Ethiopia.,

In an interview after watching the movie, Alliance Française director Antoine Courroy said there will be series of films to be shown for the week to commemorate International Francophone Day in the French and non- French speaking countries. 

“We will showcase, The Triplets of Bellville (Les triplettes de belvilles) on March 19, followed by The White Masai (La Masai Blanche) on March 20 and then on March 21, The Closet (Le Placard) comedy which was produced in 2001,” he said.

Courroy said there will also be a karaoke party game on March 22 where they will play English songs versus French Songs. “We just want to play with language and appreciate its meaning in song,” he said.

Asked why they selected this particular choice of films, he said the movies are better placed to drive their mandate since some of them are set in Francophone countries such as Congo Brazzaville.

He said Alliance Française is an international non-governmental organisation formed solely to promote French language and culture across the world through the locals. “Although French is our priority, we also promote other languages in the communities within which we serve for the reason that we acknowledge the strong dialect interconnection of humanity,” he said. ENDS