Here Are the '10 Best African Films of All Time,' According to Top International Critics
The list includes classic selections from Senegal, Chad, Mauritania, Ethiopia and Mali.
The 15th annual Tarifa-Tangiers African Film Festival (FCAT) wrapped this past weekend in Tarifa, Spain. The festival is dedicated to promoting and "subtitling the most relevant cinema productions" from the continent.
This year, the organization has added to its repertoire by commissioning a group of 10 well-respected critics and authorities on film to vote on, what they believe, are the best African films in the history of cinema. The organization calls the list "the first classification based on expert opinions of a cinematography which has gradually gained a foothold in Spain in recent years."
The film critics who created the list come from a number of backgrounds and countries and include journalists, directors, professors and more. You can see the full list of contributors below.
Their choices include selections from across the continent, with a notable number coming from Senegal and Mauritania. The titles include works from celebrated filmmakers Ousmane Sembéne, The Father of African Cinema; Med Hondo, Djibril Diop Mambéty and more.
These 10 films provide a crash-course on African cinema and are certainly worth diving into, if you haven't already.
Check out their choices below, beginning with Touki Bouki, the classic Senegalese film that's inspired everyone from bright-eyed filmmakers to Jay-Z and Beyoncé.
1. Touki Bouki by Djibril Diop Mambéty (Senegal, 1973)
Image via FCAT's Flickr
Image via FCAT's Flickr
Image via FCAT's Flickr