Cinekambiya International Film Festival (CIFF) is an annual film festival held in

The Gambia The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...

. The festival was founded by

Prince Bubacarr Aminata Sankanu Prince Bubacarr Aminata Sankanu is a Gambian film director and producer. A former journalist, he moved to Germany in 1998 and began creating films in 2012. He has since founded the Cinekambiya International Film Festival (CIFF), his own producti ...

in 2015 and has since had three editions. It is supported by German cultural organisation FilmInitiativ Köln.

History

Cinekambiya International Film Festival was founded in 2015 as a festival for films made in indigenous languages not always considered in more mainstream festivals in the West. As many African filmmakers cannot afford to visit festivals on other continents, CIFF was designed to provide an alternative for them to expose their works to domestic and international audiences. The festival is organised by Sanxaari, the production company of

. The first edition of the festival took place from 26 December 2015 to 3 January 2016. The grand patron of this inaugural edition was

Isatou Touray Isatou Touray (born 17 March 1955) is a Gambian politician, activist, and social reformer. A noted campaigner against female genital mutilation (FGM), she became the first female Gambian presidential candidate in 2016, before dropping out to en ...

, and the theme was "African Cinema and Gender Valuation". It took place in the Global Hands Development Hub, Manduar,

West Coast Region The West Coast ( mi, Te Tai Poutini, lit=The Coast of Poutini, the Taniwha) is a region of New Zealand on the west coast of the South Island that is administered by the West Coast Regional Council, and is known co-officially as Te Tai Poutini. ...

. Following this edition, FilmInitiativ Köln, a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

cultural organisation focused on African cinema, pledged its support to future editions of the festival. The second edition of the festival had the theme "The Youth Factor", and was also the inaugural festival for the Pan African Screen Awards (PASA). It took place from 20 May 2016 to 26 May 2016. The third edition of the festival had the theme "Film and the Rights to Truth in Transitional Justice" and took place on 25 December 2017 to 30 December 2017. The third edition was opened by a screening of Sankanu's production, ''Bleeding Blade''. Over 20 Gambian-made films were screened during the festival, as well as productions from

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

, Germany, and

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

Editions

Pan African Screen Awards

The Pan African Screen Awards (PASA) were founded in 2008 by Sankanu, and the ceremony took place for the first time during the 2008 Out of Africa Film Festival in Germany. France-based Nigerian director

Newton Aduaka Newton I. Aduaka (born 1966) is an England-based, Nigerian-born filmmaker, winner of Best Director at the Pan African Film Festival. Filmography Short films * ''Voices Behind the Wall'' (1990) * ''Carnival of Silence'' (1994) * ''On the Edge'' ( ...

won the main prize for his 2007 film ''Ezra'' on the

Sierra Leone Civil War The Sierra Leone Civil War (1991–2002), or the Sierra Leonean Civil War, was a civil war in Sierra Leone that began on 23 March 1991 when the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), with support from the special forces of Liberia, Liberian dictato ...

. In 2016, the awards were attached to CIFF as a result of Sankanu's involvement in both. In 2016, PASA had 17 categories. They were as follows: * Best Male Actor * Best Female Actor * Best Comedian, Stage and Screen * Best Director * Best Cinematographer * Best Scriptwriter/Playwright * Best Feature Film * Best Documentary * Best Creative Group * Best Production/Post Production Services * Best Institutional Patron of the Arts * Best Patron of the Arts * Best Medium for Arts, Culture and Entertainment * Best Reporter/Writer on Arts, Culture and Entertainment * Best Television Content * Best Celebrity Humanitarian Action * Life Achievement Award

References

{{Reflist Film festivals in Africa Film festivals established in 2015 International film awards Cinema of the Gambia 2015 establishments in the Gambia