African Studies Program

This fall, a two-day workshop was held focused on the work and legacy of Paulin Soumanou Vieyra. The workshop was organized by Vincent Bouchard (Associate Professor, French and Italian; African Studies affiliate faculty) and Terri Frances (Director, Black Film Center/Archive) with support from numerous entities at IU. Speakers included Rachel Gabara, Mageye Kasse, Sada Niang, Amadou Ouédrago, Elena Razlogova, and Catherine Ruelle. Workshop participants were Stéphane Vierya, Akin Adesokan, Vincent Bouchard, Mieille Djenno, Erika Dowell, Claire Fouchereaux, Terri Francis, Samba Gadijigo, Michael T. Martin, Marissa Moorman, and Dana Vanderburgh.

Vierya was a pioneer of African film, credited with directing the first film by a francophone African, Afrique sur Seine (1955). Vierya was a collaborator of Ousmane Sembène’s, a producer of Senegalese films, and a historian and advocate for African film. Invited speakers and the public participated in discussions of Vierya’s career, the scope and condition of his papers and audiovisual media, as well as film screenings, and a pop-up exhibit of materials from the Ousmane Sembène archive at the IU Lilly Library. Film screenings included Afrique sur Seine, Une nation est nèe, Lamb, Môl, and L’envers du Décor, En residence surveille.