Kaddu Beykat
Encyclopedia
Kaddu Beykat is a 1975
Senegal
ese film directed by Safi Faye
. It was the first feature film made by a Sub-Saharan African woman to be commercially distributed and brought international recognition for its director. Centred around a romance, it chronicles the daily lives of people in a rural Senegalese village.
in the village has affected its crop of groundnuts
and as a result, Ngor cannot afford the bride price
for Columba. He goes to Senegal's capital city, Dakar
, to try to earn more money and is exploited there. He returns to the villagers and shares his experiences of the city with the other men. The story, which shows the daily lives of the villagers, is told in the form of a letter to a friend from a villager, voiced by Faye.
Ministry of Cooperation and it was made with a crew of three people. It is a mixture of documentary
and fiction. For some parts of the film, Faye gathered villagers together, gave them a topic of conversation and proceeded to film them. She took advice from the villagers on what to film. As with her other work, Faye was careful to show African culture from the inside, rather than as an objective observer. The film is a critique of colonial
farming practices and government policies which have encouraged single-crop farming of cash crop
s for export, in some cases leading villages further into poverty. The film is dedicated to Faye's grandfather who features in the film, and who died 11 days after filming ended.
where it won the FIPRESCI
Prize and the OCIC Award. It also won the Georges Sadoul Prize and an award at the Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou
. It was released in France on October 20, 1976. It was initially banned in Senegal.
1975 in film
The year 1975 in film involved some significant events, with Steven Spielberg's thriller Jaws topping the box office.-Events:*March 26 - The film version of The Who's Tommy premieres in London....
Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
ese film directed by Safi Faye
Safi Faye
Safi Faye is a Senegalese film director and ethnologist. She was the first Sub-Saharan African woman to direct a commercially distributed feature film. She has directed several documentary and fiction films focussing on rural life in Senegal.-Early life and education:Safi Faye was born in 1943 in...
. It was the first feature film made by a Sub-Saharan African woman to be commercially distributed and brought international recognition for its director. Centred around a romance, it chronicles the daily lives of people in a rural Senegalese village.
Plot
Ngor is a young man living in a Senegalese village who wishes to marry Columba. Ongoing droughtDrought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
in the village has affected its crop of groundnuts
Peanut
The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume or "bean" family , so it is not a nut. The peanut was probably first cultivated in the valleys of Peru. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing tall...
and as a result, Ngor cannot afford the bride price
Bride price
Bride price, also known as bride wealth, is an amount of money or property or wealth paid by the groom or his family to the parents of a woman upon the marriage of their daughter to the groom...
for Columba. He goes to Senegal's capital city, Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
, to try to earn more money and is exploited there. He returns to the villagers and shares his experiences of the city with the other men. The story, which shows the daily lives of the villagers, is told in the form of a letter to a friend from a villager, voiced by Faye.
Background
Kaddu Beykat is set in Faye's family village, Fad'jal in southern Senegal. Financing for the film came from the FrenchFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Ministry of Cooperation and it was made with a crew of three people. It is a mixture of documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
and fiction. For some parts of the film, Faye gathered villagers together, gave them a topic of conversation and proceeded to film them. She took advice from the villagers on what to film. As with her other work, Faye was careful to show African culture from the inside, rather than as an objective observer. The film is a critique of colonial
Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
farming practices and government policies which have encouraged single-crop farming of cash crop
Cash crop
In agriculture, a cash crop is a crop which is grown for profit.The term is used to differentiate from subsistence crops, which are those fed to the producer's own livestock or grown as food for the producer's family...
s for export, in some cases leading villages further into poverty. The film is dedicated to Faye's grandfather who features in the film, and who died 11 days after filming ended.
Distribution and reception
Kaddu Beykat played at the 1976 Berlin International Film FestivalBerlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
where it won the FIPRESCI
FIPRESCI
The International Federation of Film Critics is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the world for "the promotion and development of film culture and for the safeguarding of professional interests." It was founded in June 1930 in...
Prize and the OCIC Award. It also won the Georges Sadoul Prize and an award at the Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou
Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou
The Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou is the largest African film festival, held biennially in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. The festival is the biggest regular cultural event on the African continent and it mostly focuses on the African film and African filmmakers...
. It was released in France on October 20, 1976. It was initially banned in Senegal.