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Borom Sarret

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Borom Sarret
Directed byOusmane Sembène
Written byOusmane Sembène
StarringLy Abdoulay
Narrated byOusmane Sembène
Distributed byAfrican Film Library
Release date
  • 1963 (1963)
Running time
18 minutes
CountrySenegal
LanguageFrench

Borom Sarret or The Wagoner (French: Le Charretier) is a 1963 film by Senegalese director Ousmane Sembène, the first film over which he had full control. It is often called[1] the first film[2] (or first narrative film) made in Africa by an African;[3][4][5] the first "professional" African film;[6] or the first such film to be shown widely outside of Africa.[7][8] However, this is disputed, with some other films, such as Song of Khartoum, Sarzan,[9] and Mouramani having arguably been produced earlier. Thus, some authors refer to it as "among the first" films made in Africa by an African filmmaker.[10][11] Borom Sarret is 18 minutes long and tells a story about a cart driver in Dakar. The film illustrates the poverty in Africa, showing that independence has not solved the problems of its people.[12] It was shown as part of the Cannes Classics section of the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.[13]

Plot

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The film follows a poor man in Dakar attempting to make a living as a cart driver (referred to in the subtitles as "The Wagoner"). While he hopes to be paid for his services, he knows that some of his passengers will not pay as they have little to no income. Sometimes, all he gets is a handshake. Among his customers is a man delivering his child's body to the cemetery. When the father is not allowed in to the cemetery because he does not have the correct papers, the wagoner places the body of the child at the father's feet and leaves him lamenting over his loss.

In another sequence, a well dressed man asks to be taken to the French quarter. The wagoner does not want to take him there because carts are not allowed there. The customer asserts that the his connections enable him to disregard the rule, but they are stopped by a policeman who demands the cart driver's papers. When the cart driver pulls out his paperwork, a medallion drops to the ground and the policeman steps on it, refusing to move his foot. While the cart driver is being harassed by the policeman, the customer leaves into a car without paying his fare or defending the cart driver.

In the next scene, the cart driver has only his horse, as his cart has been confiscated in lieu of the fine. When he arrives home, the cart driver informs his wife that he has no money. His wife hands their baby to him, assures him that she will make sure they will eat, and leaves the premises with the implication that she will engage in sex work.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Gabara, Rachel (2020). "Complex Realism: Paulin Soumanou Vieyra and the Emergence of West African Documentary Film". Black Camera. 11 (2): 32–59. doi:10.2979/blackcamera.11.2.03. ISSN 1947-4237. S2CID 219881718.
  2. ^ Loftus, Maria (2010). "The appeal of hybrid documentary forms in West Africa". French Forum. 35 (2/3): 37–55. ISSN 0098-9355. JSTOR 41306661.
  3. ^ Harding, Frances (2003). "Africa and the Moving Image: Television, Film and Video". Journal of African Cultural Studies. 16 (1): 69–84. doi:10.1080/1369681032000169276. ISSN 1369-6815. JSTOR 3181386. S2CID 145268230.
  4. ^ Adesokan, Akin (2008). "The Significance of Ousmane Sembène". World Literature Today. 82 (1): 37–39. ISSN 0196-3570. JSTOR 40159606.
  5. ^ Sendra, Estrella (2020-04-06). "Toolkit: Senegal on the screen". Decolonising Film and Screen Studies Nigeria Workshop - Toolkits. Estrella Sendra. Screen Worlds: 1–10 – via University of Southampton Institutional Database.
  6. ^ M'Mbugu-Schelling, Flora (1991). "In the steps of the pioneers". Index on Censorship. 20 (3): 16–17. doi:10.1080/03064229108535058. ISSN 0306-4220. S2CID 146907165.
  7. ^ Atkinson, Michael (1993). "Ousmane Sembène: 'We are no longer in the era of prophets'". Film Comment. 29 (4): 63–69. ISSN 0015-119X. JSTOR 43453971.
  8. ^ Taylor, Clyde (2021). "Africa, The Last Cinema". Black Camera. 12 (2): 220–235. doi:10.2979/blackcamera.12.2.13. ISSN 1947-4237. S2CID 236664722.
  9. ^ Dovey, Lindiwe (2015). "Through the Eye of a Film Festival: Toward a Curatorial and Spectator-Centered Approach to the Study of African Screen Media". Cinema Journal. 54 (2): 126–132. doi:10.1353/cj.2015.0005. ISSN 0009-7101. JSTOR 43653096.
  10. ^ Fernández, Estrella Sendra (2016). "Samba Gadjigo and Jason Silverman, directors. Sembène! 2015. 90 minutes. Wolof, Peul, French, and English. The Film Sales Company. £200.00". African Studies Review. 59 (2): 317–319. doi:10.1017/asr.2016.73. ISSN 0002-0206. S2CID 151975317.
  11. ^ Sendra Fernandez, Estrella (2019). "Ousmane Sembène's Cinema". Critical Muslim. 30 (1): 73–80.
  12. ^ Kristin Thompson and David Bordwell, Film History: An Introduction, 2nd edition (McGraw Hill, 2003) ISBN 9780070384293, p. 548.
  13. ^ "Cannes Classics 2013 line-up unveiled". Screen Daily. Retrieved 2013-04-30.
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