Stop Filming Us But Listen! Decomposing the Colonial Gaze

Monday, 4.12.2023

15.00-18.00h

Filmscreening and talk (in French with English translation. Translation: Julien Segarra): 

Stop Filming Us, But Listen by  Bernadette Vivuya and Kagoma Ya Twahirwa | DRC, NL | 2022 | 72 Min. | OmeU

Stop Filming Us But Listen explores the history of colonial representations in the Congo and follows the journey of Congolese filmmaker and journalist Bernadette Vivuya and her fellow local artists as they strive to challenge Western narratives around the city.

In Goma (DRC), Vivuya seeks funding for her decolonial film. At the same time, a Dutch director wants to make a film about the conflicting perspectives of Goma but is quickly confronted with the local community's refusal to be filmed. This sparks a conversation around power and trust, colonialism and representation.

Moderation: Mariama Diallo

Tuesday, 5.12.2023

14.00h-15.00h: Get together and brunch with Ganza Buroko and Bernadette Vivuya

16.00-18.00h: Lecture and discussion in the context of the lecture series: Race, racism and concepts of identity in contemporary art, Postcolonial Studies I. (The talks are held in English and French, with translation by Julien Segarra).

This lecture focuses on the cultural and educational work in Yole! Africa and aims at an exchange about difficulties, commons and potentials of decolonial education. 

Yole! Africa (Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo) is a cultural and educational center that fosters social innovation through art. The decolonial curriculum and activities prioritize critical creativity and empower young people to address the pressing social and ecological issues the communities in the region of Goma face. The center aims to develop the critical mind of its students, in particular by encouraging them to think about the consequences of colonialism, what remains of it in our societies, break with the colonial representation, and how to project ourselves in a future free of any colonial footprint.

Moderation: Lia Kastiyo-Spinósa

Biographies:

Ganza Buroko

Originally from the Kivu region, in DRC, Ganza Buroko has a diploma in engineering and has had several trainings in arts and culture. He did his residence at the Tervuren museum, in Belgium, working on a memoire of his town (Goma) and on the issue of representation through colonial films. He helps set up and coordinate artistic, cultural and cinematographic projects in his country. He is currently the coordinator of Yole! Africa (www.yoleafrica.org) and the Congo International Film Festival, CIFF in Goma DRC. In addition, Ganza is based in Burkina Faso and works as the regional director of Social Innovations Laboratories - focused on the education, culture, employability and civic engagement of youth in West Africa (7 countries). Through his engagement, he fights the oppressive status quo with creativity, disposition and high ethical norms. He promotes peace and the ideals of social justice.

Bernadette Vivuya

Originally from Goma, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Bernadette Vivuya is a journalist and film-maker. She works on human rights, the environment and the exploitation of raw materials. She is particularly interested in subjects concerning the resilience of the population in his region, which has been affected by many conflicts.Through her work, she highlights the energy of ordinary citizens to build a new Congo, while denouncing the obstacles to development. She is keen to show this reality as it is perceived by Congolese, according to their symbols, traditions and cultural reference. She has received several awards and recognition for her work as a journalist (Michael Elliott Award 2021) and director (Best Documentary Award, Kinshasa Film Festival).

Mariama Diallo 

Born 14.9.1989 in Kamsar, Guinea. Mariama Diallo is an activist and pan-african artist, fotographer and performer. She studied Contextual Painting at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. In her artistic practice she focusses on the analysis of racist body politics which she confronts with empowering counter conceptions. She is also researching about historical narratives and diaspora studies. She is part of the Schwabingrad Ballett/Arrivati collective in Hamburg.

Lia Kastiyo-Spinósa 

Caribbean artist, editor, cultural producer, but not only. Lia is a member of the editorial team of Migrazine. Online Magazine by Migrant Women for Everyone, and Coordinator of the Cultural Area of maiz. Self-organisation by and for migrant women in Linz. She studies in the Contextual Painting class and is a student assistant for Postcolonial Studies (2023-2024).

Julien Segarra

Julien Segarra is an artist and printer from Paris, he lives and works in Vienna. He is part of the collective printing studio Obsolet, focusing on analogue stencil printing techniques and performances at the intersection of art and politics.

The events are a cooperation between Art and Intervention/Concept (IBK), Postcolonial Studies (IKW) and the Feminist Collective at the Student Union, University of Vienna.