Director

Manthia Diawara

Cast list

Harry Belafonte
Mrs. Stokely Carmichael
Telivel Diallo
Manthia Diawara
Danny Glover
Kouyate Sory “Douga” Kandia
Manfila Kane
Djibril Tamsir Niane
Alpha Wess

Credits

List of producers/ film crew:
Executive producers:
Lydie Diakhate
Moussa Diakité
Producer:
Manthia Diawara
Cinematographers:
Arthur Jafa
Racine Harouna Keita
Film Editors:
Harry Kafka
Sikay Tang
Sound Department:
Jean-Paul Colleyn
Cyril Jegou

Synopsis

The African nation of Guinea won independence from France in 1958. The country drifted into a period of economic downfall and political corruption under the absolute rule of Sékou Touré. After fleeing the nation in the early 1960s with his family, Diawara decided to return to his homeland in 2003 with a camera crew in order to explor the current state of the land. Conakry Kas documents the man’s visit to capitol, Conakry, as he has conversations with politicians, artists, intellectuals, and random citizens on the street to discuss issue of the country. Main topics include a marginalized economy, insufficient funding for public works, problems surrounding AIDS, and unmonitored immigration. Diawara does not leave out the things in which people love about the culture here though including music, national identity, food, and other familial traditions. In addition, Conakry Kas premiered in the U.S. at the 2004 San Francisco Black Film Festival.

Reviews

Harvey, Dennis. “Conakry Kas.” Variety (magazine).

Academic articles:

Keaton, Trica D. “We Won’t Budge: An African Exile In The World.” African Studies Review 46.3 (2003): 175-176. Academic Search Premier. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.

Petty, Sheila. “African Film: New Forms Of Aesthetics And Politics.” African Arts 44.4 (2011): 94-95. Academic Search Premier. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.

Samuels, Adrienne P., et al. “From The Motherland.” Ebony 63.6 (2008): 112-118. Academic Search Premier. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.

Sangudi, Genevieve, and Ruthie Epstein. “An Interview With Manthia Diawara.” Journal Of International Affairs 57.2 (2004): 119-126. Academic Search Premier. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.

Tchouaffé, Olivier Jean. “We Won’t Budge: An African Exile In The World.” Velvet Light Trap: A Critical Journal Of Film & Television 55 (2005): 71-72. Academic Search Premier. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.