The Jersey City Independent"

The 6th annual African Diaspora Film Series is coming back to the Jersey City Museum tomorrow and Saturday. The series, which aims to feature a wide selection of films from emerging and established filmmakers of color.

Highlights over the two days include five premiere film screenings, a DVD release, a two-for-one double feature, a special appearance by director Clayton Broomes Jr. and a discussion between the festival’s co-director Reinaldo Barroso-Spech and artist Ben Jones.

Tickets per screening are $10, $8 for students and seniors with I.D., and $7 for JCM members. Tickets will be available for purchase at the museum on the day of the event. A series pass is $30. This special pass gives access to all the screenings in the series.

Here’s the full schedule:

FRIDAY, JANUARY 29

1:30 pm: Glorious Exit

Jarreth Merz, a Swiss-Nigerian actor living in Los Angeles, is summoned to Nigeria to bury his father. Nigerian tradition mandates the eldest child to take charge of a father’s burial. Although he accepts the responsibility, he struggles with why he feels morally responsible toward Nigerian tradition and a family whom he hardly knows. Jarreth starts a journey of self-discovery. By Kevin Merz, Nigeria/Switzerland, 2008, 75mins, Documentary in English and German with English subtitles. Winner “Festival Real Life” Accra 2008. Official selection, African Diaspora Film Festival 2008.

3:30 pm: The Journey of the Lion

Brother Howie is a Jamaican Rastafarian who dreams of the land of his ancestors: Africa. On a journey in search of his roots and his identity he travels through three continents and — with great humor and sensitivity — discovers the world … and Africa. By Fritz Baumann, 1992, 90mins, docu-drama in English. Official selection, African Diaspora Film Festival 1994.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 30

1 pm: Double-feature – Candombe and Sons of Benkos

Candombe: More than two hundred years ago, there was an influx into Uruguay of slaves from Africa whom, after being freed, continued to make up the poorest and most marginalized strata in society. Fernado Nunez, a black man, a musician, and a maker of drums, sees himself as the heir to “Candombe”, an important social and cultural legacy from his slave forefathers. The official history and culture of Uruguay, on the other hand, which has never acknowledged this contribution to the degree, which it deserves, continues to marginalize expressions of black culture. Fernando Nunez and his friends from the Barrio Sur back street quarter of Montevideo have decided to fight to keep these important cultural roots alive in the consciousness of the Uruguayan people. By Rafael Deugenio, 1993, 16mins, Docudrama with Spanish with English subtitles. Official selection, African Diaspora Film Festival 1993.

Sons of Benkos: An entertaining documentary that explores the African culture of Colombia through music. The film presents the music of the Sons of Benkos, one of the most important Black leaders in the fight for freedom during the times of slavery in Colombia. The film also shows the evolution of Afro-Colombian music over time through the fusion of Cuban and contemporary African rhythms with traditional Afro-Colombian music. By Silva Lucas, 2003, 52mins, Spanish with English subtitles. Docu-Drama. Official selection, African Diaspora Film Festival 2006. Reinaldo Barroso-Spech and Ben Jones will lead a discussion and Q+A following the screening.

3 pm: Pro-Black Sheep

Rashad is a young man with extraordinary intellectual sophistication. He is discovered to be sending anonymous emails to black leaders, criticizing them for undermining the progress of black America. The leader who makes the discovery hires Rashad as an adviser, setting him on a journey to find the voice he needs to make a difference. By Clayton Broomes Jr., USA, 2009, 109mins, drama in English. Official selection, African Diaspora Film Festival 2009. Clayton Broomes Jr. will make a special appearance and lead a Q&A following the screening.