The 2025 BlackStar Film Festival Welcomes Over 20 African and Diaspora Titles

The 14th annual BlackStar Film Festival, happening in Philadelphia from July 31st to August 3rd, will showcase over 20 films from African and diaspora filmmakers. These works, spanning shorts, features, documentaries, and experimental pieces highlight diverse stories from places like Nigeria, Senegal, Ethiopia, South Africa, and more. Many of these films are set to make their U.S. or North American debut.

Nigeria leads with the most entries, offering a mix of stories. Rashida Seriki’s Leaving Ikorodu in 1999 captures a family’s emotional moment during a car ride to the airport. Walé Oyéjidé’s Run, Sister Joan turns a migration story into a gripping spiritual horror. Bex Thompson’s Another Other uses visuals, sound, and text to explore how Black workers navigate unwelcoming spaces. Aisha Bolaji’s Why the Sun & Moon Live in the Sky reimagines a West African folktale as a surreal coming-of-age tale set in rural Ireland. Meanwhile, Chisom Chieke’s Food for the Soul features Nigerian actor Richard Mofe-Damijo in a rare U.S. short film role.

West African stories shine brightly too. In Senegal, Yoro Mbaye’s Lees Waxul tells a quiet village story about bread, dignity, and economic struggle. Denise Fernandes’ Hanami, a co-production between Portugal, Cape Verde, and Switzerland, follows a young girl in a remote island village. In addition, Kezia Sakho’s Children of the Waves and Nuno Miranda’s The Last Harvest portray the everyday lives of West African immigrants in Marseille and Lisbon, connecting the region to Europe.

East Africa makes a strong impact. Andrew Bilindabagabo from Rwanda presents Adamstown, a short film in Kinyarwanda and Swahili about a U.S. manhunt. Herrana Addisu’s The River reflects on Ethiopian womanhood, drawing from her memories of Kebena. Likewise, Nimco Sheikhaden’s Exodus is a concise documentary on migration and memory from a Somali-Canadian perspective.

From Southern Africa, Karabo Lediga’s first feature, Sabbatical, follows a woman returning home after a personal crisis, hiding her true reasons. Sihle Hlophe’s Dear Sikhonkwane explores a SiSwati literary pioneer’s life through her daughter’s eyes. Both films tackle how families pass down and reshape legacies.

Central African history inspires two experimental works. Curtis Essel’s A Luta Continua // Ataraxy 44 examines a Congolese saxophonist’s escape from Mobutu’s Zaire. Similarly, Sammy Baloji’s L’Arbre de l’Authenticité critiques Mobutu’s use of culture to erase colonial influences and redefine national identity.

North Africa is represented by Younès Ben Slimane’s Images de Tunisie, a silent film weaving still and moving images to capture Tunisia’s landscapes and atmosphere. From the diaspora, there are films that contribute to Afrocentric conversations. Elena Guzman’s Oríkì Oshun honors the Yorùbá deity Oshun, tracing spiritual ties across the Afro-Caribbean diaspora. Eloïse King’s The Shadow Scholars investigates Kenya’s hidden economy, where young Kenyans ghostwrite papers for Western students. Jenn Nkiru’s The Great North reflects on Manchester’s architecture through her Nigerian-British lens. Finally, Kahlil Joseph’s BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions expands his media collage project, connecting global Black histories. 

Festivals like BlackStar provide Afrocentric narratives and filmmakers the opportunity to feature in the main programme without putting them in separate categories—an approach that allows every film to shine on its own terms. Such a treatment is well deserved when one considers how far African cinema has come and the new grounds it is negotiating. Screenings and events of the 2025 BlackStar Film Festival will take place at venues like the Perelman Theater, Suzanne Roberts Theatre, and Lightbox Film Center. 

Here is the film lineup: 

Short Narrative

Leaving Ikorodu in 1999 by Rashida Seriki (Nigeria, UK)

Run, Sister Joan by Walé Oyéjidé (Nigeria, USA)

Adamstown by Andrew Bilindabagabo (Rwanda, USA)

The Last Harvest by Nuno Boaventura Miranda (Cape Verde, Portugal)

Why the Sun & Moon Live in the Sky by Aisha Bolaji (Nigeria, Ireland)

Lees Waxul by Yoro Mbaye (Senegal)

Food for the Soul by Chisom Chieke (Nigeria)

Feature Narrative

Sabbatical by Karabo Lediga (South Africa)

Hanami by Denise Fernandes (Cape Verde, Portugal, Switzerland)

Short Documentary

Children of the Waves by Kezia Sakho (France – Senegalese/Comorian heritage)

Dear Sikhonkwane by Sihle Hlophe (South Africa, Eswatini)

Exodus by Nimco Sheikhaden (Canada – Somali heritage)

Feature Documentary

The Shadow Scholars by Eloïse King (Kenya, UK)

The Great North by Jenn Nkiru (Nigeria, UK)

BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions by Kahlil Joseph (USA)

Short Experimental/Art Film

Another Other by Bex “Oluwatoyin” Thompson (Nigeria, USA)

The River by Herrana Addisu (Ethiopia – Ethiopian/Irish/American)

Oríkì Oshun by Elena Guzman (USA – Afro-Caribbean)

A Luta Continua // Ataraxy 44 by Curtis Essel (UK – Congolese heritage)

L’Arbre de l’Authenticité by Sammy Baloji (Democratic Republic of Congo)

Images de Tunisie by Younès Ben Slimane (Tunisia)