by FilmInk Staff
From a race to recover more than 1,000 films documenting African independence to an Angelina Jolie-produced drama about Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dr Denis Mukwege, Africa Film Fest Australia returns to Sydney from 3–6 September with nine feature-length films and documentaries, eight short films, filmmaker Q&As, an industry event with AFTRS and an Opening Night celebration and screening at the Sydney Opera House.
Africa Film Fest Australia is a community film festival led and curated by Directors Mumbi Hinga and Safia Amadou, and produced by Arts & Cultural Exchange (ACE). The 2026 program spans the Sydney Opera House and Event Cinemas Parramatta, bringing together stories of apartheid, independence, political power, music, romance, racism-related stress and Black creative movements, with Australian premieres from across Africa and its global diaspora.
Major drawcards include The Eyes of Ghana from two-time Academy Award-winning director Ben Proudfoot and executive produced by Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions; Muganga: The One Who Treats, produced by Cynthia Pinet and Angelina Jolie; El Sett, about Arab music icon Umm Kulthum; and Black Is Beautiful: The Kwame Brathwaite Story, tracing the Harlem photographer whose images helped shape the Black Is Beautiful movement of the 1960s.
Festival Co-Director Mumbi Hinga said, “We programmed this year around the idea that history is not something left behind. It lives in music, family businesses, photographs, bodies and the films people fight to preserve. Across four days, audiences will see those histories carried into the present through stories that are political, intimate, joyful and deeply cinematic.”
Festival Co-Director Safia Amadou added, “What excites me most about this year’s program is the incredible range of stories and perspectives it brings together. From the Sahara to the Congo, from stories of power and love to Black identity, cultural legacy and the experiences of Black women, each film invites us into a different world. Together, they reflect the diversity of African storytelling and the many ways African filmmakers are shaping how our stories are seen and understood.”
PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS:
Films screen at the Sydney Opera House on 3–4 September and Event Cinemas Parramatta on 5–6 September. The feature program includes:
The Laundry (Uhlanjululo) (Australian premiere) (Opening Night): The Opening Night film is set in Johannesburg in 1968, where 16-year-old aspiring jazz musician Khuthala must choose between his future and the family laundry after apartheid violence reaches his father.
The Eyes of Ghana (Australian premiere): Directed by two-time Academy Award winner Ben Proudfoot and executive produced by Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions, the documentary follows 93-year-old filmmaker Chris Hesse as he races to recover more than 1,000 films documenting the birth of African independence. It had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and won the Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature at the Hamptons International Film Festival. The screening is co-presented by the Ghana Association and Ghanaian Australian Women’s Association, with an introduction by Effie Nkruma.
The Desert Child: Gilles de Maistre’s family adventure follows 14-year-old Sun, whose debut novel about a boy lost in the Sahara and raised by ostriches leads her to uncover the extraordinary true story behind her grandfather’s tale.
Black Is Beautiful: The Kwame Brathwaite Story (Australian premiere) (Closing Night): Yemi Bamiro profiles the Harlem photographer whose images and pioneering fashion shows helped popularise the Black Is Beautiful movement of the 1960s. The documentary features Brathwaite’s family alongside Alicia Keys, Swizz Beatz, Gabrielle Union, Jesse Williams and Tyler Mitchell. It won the Grand Jury Prize for Documentary Feature at the American Black Film Festival and the Audience Award for Best British Discovery at the London Film Festival. Co-presented with Sahara Collective, a flagship initiative of Lead Beyond Education, the screening will be introduced by Dr Anyier Yuol.
Muganga: The One Who Treats (Australian premiere): Produced by Cynthia Pinet and Angelina Jolie, the drama follows Congolese doctor and 2018 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dr Denis Mukwege as he treats survivors of sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The screening is co-presented with the Refugee Council of Australia and will be followed by a Q&A with Adama Kamara, Co-Chief Executive Officer of the Refugee Council of Australia, and Jeanne Mutarutwa, Humanitarian Practitioner.
Katanga: The Dance of the Scorpions (Australian premiere): Dani Kouyaté’s black-and-white political drama won the Yennenga Golden Stallion and Audience Award at FESPACO 2025. After a failed conspiracy, a king appoints his cousin Katanga to lead the armed forces, before a prophecy warns that he will either take the throne or die in a future coup.
El Sett: The film traces Umm Kulthum’s journey from singing in rural Egypt disguised as a boy to becoming the Arab world’s most iconic voice, culminating in her historic 1967 Olympia concert in Paris.
East West Love (Australian premiere): A romantic comedy spanning Lagos and Mombasa, where a meticulous Nigerian event planner meets a charming hotel manager after the getaway she planned with her boyfriend falls apart.
Skylark (Australian premiere): Mignotae Kebede’s hybrid vérité and poetic documentary follows three Black women confronting the physical toll of racism-related stress and finding pathways toward healing, restoration and liberation.
2026 Short Films Programme: Seven Australian premieres bring together emerging voices from Africa and its diaspora: I’m Not You; Borders, Bonds, Belonging; Kayamatah; Jazz Infernal; The Don; Dialogue From the Between Worlds; The Legend of Ntiti and Ntitietsana; and Being You.
SPECIAL EVENTS:
Opening Night Reception | Thursday 3 September, Sydney Opera House: Filmmakers, artists, industry guests and audiences will gather for canapés and drinks, with Afrobeat, Amapiano, Afrofusion and global rhythms from DJ GnGR. Masego Pitso will then present the Opening Night screening of The Laundry (Uhlanjululo).
The Art of Storytelling Masterclass | Friday 4 September, 2 PM- 5 PM, The Playhouse, Sydney Opera House: Presented in partnership with AFTRS, with support from the African Caribbean Writers Festival Australia and African Youth Initiative, this masterclass explores how ideas become stories, stories become scripts and scripts become films. Moderated by Ratidzo Mambo, the session features Zamo Mkhwanazi, Malla Nunn, Huna Amweero and Jenevieve Chang, followed by a Q&A.
Filmmaker Q&As | Sunday 6 September, Event Cinemas Parramatta: Skylark will be co-presented with Amplify Black Women and followed by a Q&A with Annette Cole, Founder and Executive Director of Amplify Black Women, and Executive Producer Dr Yanique Redwood. Eight short films from Australia, Canada, Senegal, Lithuania, Botswana and South Africa bring together emerging voices from Africa and its diaspora: I’m Not You; Borders, Bonds, Belonging; Kayamatah; Jazz Infernal; The Don; Dialogue From the Between Worlds; The Legend of Ntiti and Ntitietsana; and Being You.
The full Africa Film Fest Australia program is available now, with tickets available at: https://africafilmfest.au/
Africa Film Fest Australia is produced by Arts & Cultural Exchange Inc (ACE) and supported by Screen NSW, Multicultural NSW, Weir Anderson Film, Sydney Opera House and AFTRS.
FESTIVAL DETAILS:
Sydney Opera House: Thursday 3 – Friday 4 September 2026
Event Cinemas Parramatta: Saturday 5 – Sunday 6 September 2026
Stay up to date with Africa Film Fest Australia:
Website: https://africafilmfest.au/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/africafilmfest/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/africafilmfest/
