In April 2024, a small bus left Dakar carrying a portable cinema, three actors from Oscar-nominated film “Io Capitano” and the man whose story inspired Matteo Garrone’s homeric tale of two young boys who leave Senegal to follow their dreams. For the following 18 days, as Senegal’s new government was being formed, the itinerant cinema organised by the Cinemovel Foundation criss-crossed the country, setting up screenings in vibrant cultural centres and sandy basketball courts, from the country’s biggest cities to its most remote communities.
This is the story of a country looking at itself on the big screen, projecting its hopes for a better future and its fears for the challenges ahead, debating the right to dream a life far away and the responsibility to take part in the country’s development. A Senegal in the mirror, reflecting on its past, present and future.
