How can we tell stories in war that demand solutions and center survivors?
For decades, official narratives in Sudan obscured the stories of everyday people. Yet histories were carried forward through songs, in stories told in mother tongue, in art and music. Today, amid the widening war and humanitarian crisis, these forms of expression remain critical records of the Sudanese experience. They serve to inform and to heal. Artists, musicians, filmmakers and journalists are custodians of cultural heritage, making and sharing work for now and for posterity.
Join us for the inaugural FestivalSha’ab, a gathering dedicated to creative production towards peace and justice. The festival brings together Sudanese and international musicians, filmmakers, journalists, humanitarians and human rights defenders for a weekend of knowledge sharing, music and film workshops, discussions, screenings and performances.
SATURDAY, JUNE 22
9:30 - 10:00
Welcome to FestivalalSha’aab
10:15 - 11:30
Music is Cultural Resistance and a Sonic Historian
An ethnomusicology session exploring music in moments of transit. How does traditional music serve Sudanese people in these times? How do we produce and consume music as a form of cultural resistance? Facilitators: Alsarah & Addison Joseph
12:00 - 13:00
Lunch
13:00 - 14:30
Electronic Music Production Workshop
Learn how to use Ableton Live in this hands on workshop facilitated by Nyege Nyege. Basic music background is highly recommended, bring laptops if available. Maximum 25 participants.
Imagining Justice
What is justice? As a jumping off point, the Sudan Human Rights Hub shares their oral history work to reimagine what justice can look like in Sudan.
14:45 - 15:30
Sudan’s Archives
Inspired by Alsarah and Addison’s keynote, and acknowledging the loss of archives across Sudan, join us to consider what other ways we can protect and transmit history, culture and human rights documentation. How do we democratize and rebuild archives for the future?
15:30 - 16:30
Setting up for Live Music Technical Workshop
A hands-on session. Basic music background is recommended.
Solutions for Justice and Archives
Building off previous sessions, join us to brainstorm actionable ideas. A small working group will be selected to present an overview and recommendations on Saturday.
19:00 - 21:00
Concert
SUNDAY, JUNE 23
9:30 - 9:45
Welcome
Sign up for individual meetings.
10:00 - 11:00
Making a Film is Building a Small Museum
Session with filmmaker and popular educator Lincoln Péricles, with more than fifteen years of experience making independent cinema in his neighborhood in São Paulo. His films circulated among film clubs, street vendors, alleyways, and eventually at national and international festivals. As described in Cahiers du Cinéma, his work “invents its own form, rough and necessarily imperfect, between intervention and visual archive of the neighborhood.”
11:00 - 12:00
Filmmaker Production Workshop
Bring your ideas, projects and work samples. In the first part of the session, Sudanese filmmakers will share their journey from idea to production. In the second half, we’ll break into small groups with presenters.
12:00 - 13:00
Lunch
13: 00 - 14:00
Suddenly TV: Anatomy of a Short Film
Using Suddenly TV, a short documentary from the 2019 Khartoum sit-in, as a case study, learn about the world of documentary commissions, festivals, and impact campaigns. This session will also shed light on documentary producing and where to find international financing opportunities.
Make a Film Now
Learn how to produce a film with little or no budget in this hands-on mobile filmmaking workshop.
14:15 - 15:30
The People’s Cinema: Film Clubs Towards Liberation
Roundtable discussion on mobile and community cinema in Nigeria, Brazil, Turkey, Sudan and Uganda.
15:30 - 16:30
Coffee and Individual Meetings
16:30 - 17:30
Pause, Reflect
A guided mental health break.
18:00 - 21:00
Closing Night
Festival recap, Open Mic & DJ.