Moving to the Beat (Sierra Leone, USA)
Directed by Caleb Heymann and Abdul Fofanah
2007, 52 min.
In Moving to the Beat, an African American hip hop group, Rebel Soulz from Portland, Oregon, journeys to Freetown, Sierra Leone, to discover a spiritual homeland and resurrect Chuck D's notion of hip hop as the "black CNN." The language of hip hop allows for a dialogue between Black Americans and Africans to explore issues of race, gender, war, and more, and to confront each side's stereotype of the other. The result is a deeply forged connection that transcends centuries of misunderstanding and separation.
Co-director Abdul Fofanah will introduce and discuss the film. Rebel Soulz and members of the film crew, among them PC Peri, one of the film's photographers and CFAF Committee member, will also be on hand.