Senegalese artists have gleaned, in 2024, awards all over the world in several disciplines including cinema which earned Senegal the Golden Bear at the 74th Berlinale (Berlin International Film Festival in Germany) on 26 February with the feature film ”Dahomey” by Franco-Senegalese director Mati Diop.
Mati Diop’s film, between fiction and documentary, retraces the journey of royal treasures from Abomey, taken during the colonization of Benin and returned by the French state to their country of origin.
Dahomey, a former African kingdom, located in present-day Benin, received, as part of the restitution of African heritage initiated by French President Emmanuel Macron, the 26 pieces of sacred arts looted from royal palaces during the invasion of French colonial troops in 1892.
In November 2021, twenty-six royal treasures from Dahomey leave Paris to be repatriated to their land of origin, Benin.
Mati Diop’s film won the Golden Bear at the 74th Berlinale (Berlin International Film Festival in Germany).
After this coronation, it was screened in May in Senegal and Benin.
The 7 Senegalese art was also rewarded on December 21 at the 35th edition of the Carthage Cinematographic Days where the film ”Demba” by Mamadou Dia won the bronze medal in the fiction feature film category.
The film explores grief, resilience, mental health and cultural taboos around expressing emotion.
Documentary filmmaker Ousmane William Mbaye received a special mention from the jury for his film ”Ndar saga Waalo”, a production released in February and which paints a ”rich and complex” portrait of Ndar, the original name of the city of Saint-Louis (north), the first capital of Senegal cradled between a rich colonial past and a present full of questions about the future and the best way to preserve a heritage that aims to be universal.
On the music side, the Senegalese singer and composer Youssou Ndour was elevated to the rank of honorary doctor on July 8 by Berklee Valencia University in Spain.
Reacting to this distinction, he declared: “Receiving a title of Doctor Honoris Causa in this prestigious institution is a recognition that touches me deeply. It’s a strong symbol that reminds me that music, beyond borders, is a universal language capable of changing the world.”
