Cinema of Madagascar

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Malagasy film director Raymond Rajaonarivelo (born at Antananarivo, 1949). Raymond Rajaonarivelo.jpg
Malagasy film director Raymond Rajaonarivelo (born at Antananarivo, 1949).
Malagasy film director Luck Razanajaona LuckRazanajaonaDirectorPortrait.jpg
Malagasy film director Luck Razanajaona
Former cinemas Rex and Ritz in Antananarivo, 2013 (?). Cinemas in Antananarivo Madagascar.JPG
Former cinemas Rex and Ritz in Antananarivo, 2013 (?).

The cinema of Madagascar refers to the film industry in Madagascar.

The most notable director is Raymond Rajaonarivelo, director of movies such as Quand Les Etoiles Rencontrent La Mer (When the Stars Meet the Sea, fr) and Tabataba (The Spreading of Rumors). [1] [2]

The oldest cinematographic production entirely produced in Madagascar by a Malagasy is a 22-minute black-and-white movie entitled Rasalama Martiora (Rasalama, the Martyr). Directed in 1937 by the deacon Philippe Raberojo, it marked the centenary of the death of the Protestant martyr Rafaravavy Rasalama. Philippe Raberojo was the president of an association of French citizens of Malagasy origin, where he had access to a 9.5mm camera. Thus he was able to realise his film. The complete version is lost. [3]

In the following years there was considerable political upheaval in the country. In 1960 independence was regained in Madagascar, but political instability remains. This complicated post-colonial period led to the closure or transformation of the country's cinemas into places of religious worship.[ citation needed ]

The film industry started to recover slowly around the year 2006 also due to the founding of Rencontres du Film Court Madagascar, which is the only film festival in the country.

Around 60 short films and 1 or 2 feature films are made each year. [3] Most Malagasy productions receive no public funding.

In the Malagasy language, the word “cinema” is translated “sarimihetsika” (mg) which literally means “moving image”. [3]

Films

YearTitleDirectorGenreNotes
1937Rasalama maritiora (Rasalama, the Martyr)Philippe RaberojoBlack and white documentaryPortrait of the protestant martyr Rasalama Rafaravavy (1810 – 1837) at the centenary of this death. 22 minutes.
1973L'accident
(The Accident)
Benoît Ramampy Drama shortBest short film award Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (FESPACO), 1973. A son kills his father by accident.
1974Very Remby Ignace Solo Randrasana DramaJean Soutter Award at Dinard Festival du film britannique (fr), France, 1974. 90 minutes.
1980FitampohaJacques Lombard and Jean-Claude RahagaDocumentary77 minutes.
1984Dahalo, Dahalo, il était une fois le moyen ouest
(Dahalo, Dahalo, Once upon a Time in the Midwest)
Benoît RamampyDrama75 minutes.
1987Ilo Tsy Very
(Eternal Blessing)
Ignace Solo RandrasanaDramaThe story of Madagascar from 1895 to 1975, including the 1947 Malagasy Uprising. 90 minutes.
1988Tabataba (fr) Raymond Rajaonarivelo Drama featureStory of a small Malagasy village during the independence uprising. 76 minutes.
1989Le Prix de la paix
(The Price of Peace)
Abel Rakotozanany and Benoît RamampyShort dramaShown at the African Film Festival in Montreal in 1988. 72 minutes.
1989 Angano... Angano... nouvelles de Madagascar Marie-Clémence Paes, Cesar PaesDocumentaryStorytellers recount the Malagasy founding myths. 64 minutes.
1996Quand les étoiles rencontrent la mer (When the Stars Meet the Sea, fr)Raymond RajaonariveloDramaDepicts the Malagasy liberation struggle. Best Film award Istanbul Film Festival (1998). 86 minutes.
2001 Makibefo Alexander Abela DramaBased on William Shakespeare's Macbeth . 73 minutes.
2004 Souli Alexander AbelaDramaBased on William Shakespeare's Othello . 94 minutes.
2004Sur les murs de la ville
(On the walls of the city, fr)
Fabrice Maminirina RazafindralamboShort animationThe first Malagasy animation short film in official competition at Annecy International Animated Film Festival 2004, 5 minutes.
2005Mahaleo (fr)Marie-Clémence Paes and Raymond RajaonariveloDocumentaryTraces the history of Mahaleo, Madagascar's most popular folk-pop band. Best Documentary award at Regards sur le cinema du Sud, Rouen (fr), 2006. Public Award and second place at Festival du film insulaire de Groix (fr), 2005.
2006The sun rises...then sets Jiva Eric Razafindralambo Short animationBest Film Rencontres du Film Court Madagascar 2006.
2007Raketa mena (fr) Hery A. Rasolo DocumentaryAward Festival Ciné Sud de Cozès (Charente-Maritime). 52 minutes.
2007Tafasiry Toky Randriamahazosoa ShortBest Film Rencontres du Film Court Madagascar 2007.
2010Varavarankely Sitraka Randriamahaly ShortBest Animation Film Rencontres du Film Court Madagascar in 2010.
2011Dzaomalaza et le saphir bleu
(Dzaomalaza and the Blue Sapphire)
Andriamanisa Radoniaina and Mamihasina Raminosoa Fiction featureDzaomalaza goes in search of a unique sapphire in Southern Madagascar in order to enrich himself. But three women are in his path. 60 minutes.
2012Malagasy Mankany Haminiaina Ratovoarivony Road-movieDiaspora Award Hollywood Black Film Festival 2013, USA. Audience Award Festival of African Cinema (then Festival Cine Africano Cordoba 2013, Spain), Youth Jury Award at Cinémas d'Afrique 2013, France. Africa Connexion Award at Vues d'Afrique film Festival 2014, Canada. Best feature film and best actress at Iarivo film festival 2014, Madagascar. Jury special mention Festival du Cinéma Africain de Khouribga 2013, Morocco. 93 minutes.
2012La photographie -
Sary Iray Tsy Nipika
David Randriamanana ShortSecond place FESPACO festival, Ouagadougou 2013. An old lady is waiting for her grandson. 18 minutes.
2013Madame EstherLuck RazanajaonaShortSecond prize Carthage Film Festival, Tunisia 2014. Second place FESPACO festival, Ouagadougou 2015. 15 minutes.
2014Ady gasy Lova Nantenaina DocumentaryPrix Fétnèt Ocean Indien at Festival international du film d'Afrique et des îles de La Réunion (FIFAI, fr), La Réunion. Grand Prix Eden Documentaire at Lumières d'Afrique (fr), Besançon. Mention spéciale du Jury documentaire at Festival Quintessence (Festival international du film de Ouidah, fr), Bénin. “The Chinese make things, the Malagasy fix them.” 84 minutes.
2014Odyaina, fragments of lives Laza Razanajatovo DocumentaryShows the relationship between music and mental illness, through the work of some malagasy music therapist. 85 minutes.
2015FasaLaza RazanajatovoShortWe observe Fasa as she is coping with the loss of her father.
2019 Fahavalo, Madagascar 1947 Marie-Clémence Andriamonta-PaesHistorical war documentaryDoc of the World Award Montreal World Film Festival, Special Mention Carthage Film Festival. 90 minutes.
2022JoeZo Tahiana HariminosonThriller
2024 Disco Afrika : A Malagasy Story Luck RazanajaonaDramaFilm selected at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival in the Generation competition. [4]

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References

  1. Heale, Jay; Latif, Zawiah Abdul (2008). Madagascar. Cultures of the World. New York: Marshall Cavendish Benchmark. p. 111. ISBN   978-0-7614-3036-0. OCLC   182857000.
  2. Laza and Raymond Rajaonarivelo (2016). Kolosary - cinéma malagasy. Madagascar en 11 films. ifcinema.institutfrancais.com. Institut Francais. Retrieved 1 March 2024.. Box with 11 Malagasy films on DVD, including 4 legacy films: L'Accident by Benoit Ramampy, Very Remby by Ignace Solo Randrasana, Tabataba by Raymond Rajaonarivelo, and Quand les étoiles rencontrent la mer by Raymond Rajaonarivelo, 1 documentary: Fragments de vie/Odyaina by Laza, 2 short fiction films: Madama Esther by Luck Razanajoana, and Le Petit Bonhomme de riz by Ludovic Rianando Randriamanantsoa. 4 animated films:Le Soleil se lève... puis se couche by Jiva Eric Razafindralambo, Afropower by Manohoray Randriamanjo, Iny Hono Izy Ravorona by Sirtaka Randriamahaly, and Ray by Erico Ramilijaonina.
  3. 1 2 3 Laza; Rajaonarivelo, Raymond (2016). Kolosary Cinéma Malagasy – Madagascar en 11 Films (in French and English). Madagascar: Institut Français, Paris, and Institut Français Madagascar, Antananarivo. Retrieved 1 March 2024. Full-text book online at issuu.com.
  4. "Disco Afrika : une histoire malgache | Disco Afrika: A Malagasy Story". www.berlinale.de. Retrieved 2024-02-28.