Visual Arts | December 10, 2024

Harvard Film Archive West African Women in Films

The Harvard Film Archive features works by director Rosine Mbakam

From The January-February 2025 Issue

A hairdresser meticulously braiding a client's hair in a vibrant salon, using a candle to seal the ends. — **From the film** **Chez Jolie Coiffure** | COURTESY OF ICARUS FILMS

The Harvard Film Archive screens the complete works of this year’s McMillan-Stewart Fellow, filmmaker Rosine Mbakam (January 27-February 9). Born in Cameroon and based in Belgium, Mbakam will be on hand February 8 and 9 to discuss her documentaries, shorts, and her latest feature, Mambar Pierrette (2023), which follows a Cameroonian seamstress and single mother struggling to keep her life afloat. Mbakam’s works reflect timeless recurring themes inherent to women’s lives, intergenerational shifts, and the immigration experience. The Two Faces of a Bamiléké Woman (2016) documents her own return trip to Cameroon after a seven-year absence, while Delphine’s Prayers (2021) offers an intimate portrait of a Cameroonian sex worker and her efforts to face, and transcend, daily challenges. You Will Be My Ally, Prism, and Chez Jolie Coiffure will also be screened. (For further details, visit the Harvard Film Archive.)

Published in the January-February 2025 print issue under the headline “Focus on West African Women,” in the Harvard Squared section.

You might also like

A photograph of the inside of the From Iran exhibit at the Harvard Peabody Museum

Tk tk Iran

Artist Azadeh Akhlaghi reconstructs moments of Iranian political upheaval in a series of meticulously staged images.

Five individuals are posed in a monochrome outdoor setting near a cinderblock building, some standing, some seated.

Photographer and writer Morgan Smith chronicles life beyond the violence in Ciudad Juárez and other Mexican towns.

Older man in a green sweater holds a postcard in a warmly decorated office.

How a Harvard Hockey Legend Became a Needlepoint Artist

Joe Bertagna’s retirement project recreates figures from Boston sports history.

Most popular

A woman with long hair stands confidently with crossed arms next to a pickup truck.

In her memoir All That's Unseen, Emilee Hackney explores religion, friendship, and home.

Ornate wrought iron gate detail against a clear blue sky.

FAS leaders say restructuring will be complete by mid-October.

Assorted national flags arranged on a stack of books against a green background.

A new federal rule sparks uncertainty for graduate students.

Explore More From Current Issue

Graduates in caps and gowns celebrate joyfully, raising their hands in excitement.

Commencement

Conan O’Brien headlines a star-studded cast

A blue refrigerator covered with animal pictures, notes, and drawings, surrounded by greenery.

Health & Medicine

An animal’s journey from grief to love shows how much humans need each other, too.

Colorful abstract design resembling an octopus with intricate swirls and patterns.

Research

Growing liver implants, mapping the sense of smell, and journalism at risk