An Attempt to Shape African Narrative using Colonial Film Material – Katy Lèna Ndiaye

Bio

Katy Lena Ndiaye is a film director and producer whose films offer a window into contemporary Africa, tracing its journey through history and memory. Her lens has a particular focus, a gentle spotlight on women’s perspectives regarding transmission and heritage. Awards quietly adorn her work, earned at festivals across the globe. Known for her documentaries about women muralists, “Traces” (2003) and “Awaiting for Men” (2007), Katy Lena’s work reflects on transmission, and the nuanced journey of womanhood. Among her recent creations is “Time is on Our Side” (2019), a portrait of Burkinabe rapper Smockey, whose words became a catalyst in the resistance to Blaise Compaoré’s regime in Burkina Faso. Her most recent work, “Money, Freedom, a History of CFA Franc” (2022), sheds light on the currency of French-speaking Africa, which carries echoes of the colonial past into the present. In 2013, Katy Lena founded IndigoMood Films in Dakar, a place where her own narratives unfold, and where she accompanies talented directors in bringing their stories, their singular visuals grammars to the screen.