Visual representations in and of Africa: A review of three books

Africa plays an important role in cultural representation, both as a site of visual production and as a locus of resonant yet often stereotypical visual images. The three books under review here illustrate the different ways in which the continent is narrated in various media, and especially in film. They also illuminate the different methodologies and approaches employed by scholars in the analysis of visual representations of and from Africa.

Cinema and Development in West Africa examines ‘the struggle by early African filmmakers to found a truly independent African cinema that would simultaneously contribute to the cultural renaissance of Africa’s peoples and play a central role in postcolonial development’ (p. 2) in a political and historical context where African states needed to quickly determine sectors that could secure the continent’s political, cultural and economic development. It highlights the importance of colonial policy in shaping film history, and explores the importance of the material infrastructure of film production.

The book consists of five chapters. After a well-crafted introduction that efficiently sets out the goals and the methodological framework, the first chapter examines the ‘structural aspects of the cinema industrial complex as it took shape in the late imperial era’ (p. 21). It was in these circumstances that the French empire not only took total control of the infrastructural and distributional aspects of the industry, but also made sure that the content of the films was monitored closely. The second chapter examines the importance for African cinema of French film policy, which was rooted in the idea that ‘films had real-world consequences’ and could therefore constitute a threat to French rule (p. 56). Drawing on the work of Theodor Adorno and Walter Benjamin, Chapter 3 explores ‘the strategic counterhegemonic film politics’ of the early colonial period (pp. 70–1). Genova argues that the ‘film politics that dominated cinematic practice in the late colonial era had to be explicitly referenced and combatted if any alternative tradition of motion picture production was going to be possible in west Africa’ (p. 73). Here, Genova’s emphasis on the contribution of filmmaker Paulin Soumanou Vieyra to the nationalist and ideological thrust of early African film practice is very useful. The next chapter discusses ‘the story of Francophone West African filmmakers’ efforts to found an African cinema aesthetic rooted in their experiences that would change the global field of motion picture production’ (p. 97, emphasis added). Looking at the works of Ousmane Sembène and Med Hondo as well as that of Vieyra, the author further develops his analysis of the nationalist trend that defined African cinema for decades and offers a refreshing reading of the work of Djibril Diop Mambéty, who took African film aesthetics to an unprecedented level of complexity. The final chapter explores areas not addressed by current cinema scholarship. While the prominent role of France in financing early West African film production has been noted by many scholars, ‘few have offered a detailed account of the ways in which the former metropole assiduously sought to perpetuate the fundamental structures of the colonial-era cinema industrial complex in their entirety’ (p. 131). Genova’s focus on material culture is an important addition to the often exclusively postmodern (Harrow), ideological (Ukadike) or sociological (Diawara) readings that have informed other studies in the discipline.

Overall, Cinema and Development in West Africa is a welcome addition to cinema scholarship. While one may question the author’s obsession with...