The news that My Octopus Teacher had won an Oscar for the Best Documentary at the 93rd Academy Awards was met with elation in the Cape Peninsula’s Deep South where naturalist, film-maker and co-star Craig Foster lives and freedives. But underpinning the film was his relationship with two University of Cape Town (UCT) marine biologists, Foster’s science and marine tracking mentors.
Arts, Culture and Sport
Arts, Culture and Sport For footballers of African descent, playing in Euro 2020 will be a double-edged sword
Behind the multi-racial composition of the elite European teams competing in the tournament lies a complex and painful history.
Arts, Culture and Sport Navigating new identities – A review of Andrew Chatora’s Diaspora Dreams
Since Zimbabwe’s transition into a migratory nation, many Zimbabwean authors have dealt with the migrant question, Brian Chikwava’s Harare North and Sue Nyathi’s Gold Diggers being two stellar examples. Andrew Chatora’s debut novel Diaspora Dreams navigates new identities that Zimbabweans living in the diaspora are forced to assume and new challenges they must overcome to survive.
Arts, Culture and Sport Andrew Chatora’s debut novella Diaspora Dreams stares back at the White gaze
Zimbabwean writer Andrew Chatora stares back at the white gaze and immigrant alienation in his debut novella, Diaspora Dreams. The English-teacher narrator is increasingly alone between a host country that cannot validate him and a home country that is too damaged for rear-view dreams.
Arts, Culture and Sport Nigerian icon Fela is long overdue for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
Fela’s nomination and possible induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will come at a cost.
Arts, Culture and Sport KwaChirere previews Diaspora Dreams, a novel by Andrew Chatora
Memory Chirere, a writer and literature lecturer with the University of Zimbabwe previews Diaspora Dreams, Andrew Chatora’s debut novel. It’s not the usual tale about a young Zimbabwean coming to the UK because of the crisis back home. Chatora rather “takes a very courageous and startling detour with this new book”.
Arts, Culture and Sport How Nollywood filmmakers are coping with the pandemic
When restrictions were introduced in Nigeria, Nollywood filmmakers bore the brunt. Filming stopped and Africa’s biggest movie industry ground to a painfully slow halt. We spoke to some creatives in the industry to discuss how the pandemic has affected their work.
Arts, Culture and Sport Afrojazz innovator meditates mortality and pandemic creativity
Vital Signs, the critically acclaimed pandemic album by Zimbabwean jazz innovator Vee Mukarati, masterfully negotiates the lockdown dilemma of being relevant to your time while staying true to your art. Mukarati swings, meditates and sings on mortality, precarity and alienation on an album that is, at once, deeply personal, richly Zimbabwean and unmistakably global. The Switzerland-based artist discusses navigating the challenges of lockdown creativity in this exclusive interview with This Is Africa.
Arts, Culture and Sport Is’xaxa: How to do it for the culture — while trying to stay alive
How a collaborative music project spanning three countries over two continents was made in the depths of a global pandemic.