African Film Festival Celebrates 32 Years With Film at Lincoln Center
The New York African Film Festival is presented with Film at Lincoln Center to develop new audiences for films and increase visibility and recognition of African artists — bridging the divide between postcolonial Africa and the American public.
Now in its 32nd year, NYAFF will screen more than 120 films from Africa and its diaspora under the theme Fluid Horizons: A Shifting Lens on a Hopeful World at esteemed venues around the city this month.
“As the youngest and fastest-growing continent, Africa is brimming with stories that demand to be told, not just as reflections of today’s challenges but as blueprints for a future shaped by resilience and possibility.” Mahen Bonetti, NYAFF Founder and AFF Executive Director
This weekend, the film festival will head to the Brooklyn Academy of Music (programmed as FilmAfrica during the festival DanceAfrica) and will screen 51 features and shorts films at Rose Cinemas until May 29. The festival will conclude with a free film on Saturday, May 31 at St. Nicholas Park in Harlem – visit nyaff32.eventive.org for a full schedule.
I attended opening night on May 7 and enjoyed Afolabi Olalekan‘s New York Premiere of Freedom Way (2024) at the Walter Reade Theater. Shot on location, this is Olalekan’s first feature film and depicts the real stories of Nigerians navigating police brutality, unfavorable laws, and outdated government policies that disrupt nine character’s lives as they strive to build businesses, pay for school, and enjoy a safe & secure reality.
In the Q&A following the screening, Olalekan shares what it was like to edit the film, how Blessing Uzzi (Writer and Director of the film) involved him in the project, and more details about portraying the Nigerian Police Force’s notorious harassment and extortion of citizens while filming around Lagos. The film stars Adebowale Adebayo, Jable Ogranya, Jesse Suntele, Mike Afolarin, Femi Jacobs and Bimbo Akintola and will have its South African Premiere at the Durban International Film Festival this July.
As a champion of living artists showing new work right now, I focused my festival experience on the handful of films that were completed in 2025 – fresh off the export.
One of these selections was the world premiere of Profiling (2025) by Zaza Mon Amour – a French short film that’s part of a special focus on the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Mon Amour directs and narrates this 15-minute film about three childhood friends who reunite in Marseille for a joyful gathering, but come face-to-face with racial profiling and the country’s deep scars of segregation as one of them dies at the hands of a police officer.
“Through these struggles, we are encouraged to rethink our worldview, to embrace our differences, and to build bridges… strength lies in our ability to unite, listen, and learn from each other.” Zaza Mon Amour, Profiling (2025)
As these filmmakers become ambassadors for African stories, their art honors cinema and its “integral role in the continent’s struggle for independence and as a powerful tool for its liberation.” (Bonetti) With many directors channeling their hopes, frustrations, and visions for the future through stories about class inequality and political instability, security emerges as a major theme at this year’s festival – security within oneself and within one’s environment.
On opening night, I also photographed Devin Powell, Director of Where Are You From? (2025), and Zoe Ramushu, Director of Damsel, Not In Distress (2025). These filmmakers are representing the future of African storytelling for AFF and they’re continuing the New York African Film Festival’s legacy of amplifying contemporary perspectives.
Damsel, Not In Distress (2025) is set in Johannesburg, one of the wealthiest provinces in South Africa, and is about the disappearance of a woman and her sister’s search to find her. Zoe depicts a partying environment in this film where women are hustling rich men and seducing them, and then facing the perils of assault and abduction.
Where Are You From? is about two boys – Sherif, a Senegalese student living in America, and George, a child of Sherif’s host family. As they watch movies together, Sherif guides George to respect their lineages as descendants of Africa and the diaspora. This short is an excellent performance from Abdoul Lamine (Sherif) as he delivers commentary about young people and how they engage with their own histories, geographic ties, and racial identities.
Visit filmlinc.org/calendar for Film at Lincoln Center’s full schedule and bam.org/film/2025/filmafrica for this weekend’s events.
The 32nd New York African Film Festival presents a bold and determined approach to representing Africa, and further demonstrates filmmaking as a powerful tool to share stories less commonly known.
This experience is made possible by support from the National Endowment for the Arts, New York State Council on the Arts, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Bradley Family Foundation, Color Congress, NYC & Company, The New York Community Trust, French Cultural Services, Manhattan Portage, Organization de la Francophonie, Essentia Water, Ministre du Tourisme République démocratique du Congo, ZOPMEDIA, South African Consulate General, National Film and Video Foundation, and Motion Picture Enterprises.
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