Frequently Asked Questions

How did the festival begin?

The person who first came up with the idea of starting the African film festival was Linda Elegant, writing and literature instructor at PCC Cascade. In the spring of 1990, Linda approached her colleague, Mary Holmström, and asked what she thought about starting an African film festival.  Mary, a native of South Africa, had started teaching African Literature in the spring of 1989 and was looking for African films to complement the African novels and plays she was teaching, having realized her students had western images in their heads instead of realistic pictures of Africa. She responded to Linda’s proposal with an enthusiastic yes. Linda then set about recruiting Michael Dembrow, who taught a course in Film as Literature and had met and interviewed the great Senegalese filmmaker Ousmane Sembene during his graduate school days, and Joseph Smith-Buani, who was from Sierra Leone and was a math tutor in the Cascade Alternative Learning Center where Linda also worked. Belva Seaberry, director of the Alternative Learning Center, provided advice, support and encouragement, while “A/V Bill” Phillips provided audio/visual assistance.

In the early years of the festival, Linda was the festival coordinator, Mary was the film programmer, Michael wrote the film notes, and Joseph was the evening host. In 1998 Dr. Mildred Ollée, dean of the Cascade Campus, recruited Linda to work on the newly proposed Community History Center. Shortly after that, Mary took on the festival coordinating work in addition to doing the film programming.

Ronna Neuenschwander was the festival’s first after-film speaker for the Malian film Yeelen, as her husband, Baba Wagué Diakité, was visiting his family in Mali at the time. Shortly thereafter, Ronna and Wagué became the first community members to join the CFAF Committee.

Why is the Cascade Festival of African Films held at the same time as the Portland International Film Festival?

Since its inception in 1991, CFAF has been held in February in celebration of Black History Month at Portland Community College. When the Cascade Festival of African Films began in 1991, the Portland International Film Festival was held in March. Subsequently, PIFF moved into February.

How much does it cost to attend the Cascade Festival of African Films?

The festival is free and open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis. Because seating is limited, come early to get a seat.

Are the films shown at CFAF suitable for children?

Most of the films we show at CFAF are not rated. As a rule, most are not suitable for children. We hold an annual Thursday matinée StudentFest with films geared toward mature middle school, high school, and college-aged students. We also hold an annual Family Film Day event with story-telling and films suitable for children 5 years of age and up.

Can the public check out festival films for home-viewing from the PCC Library?

Yes, there are more than 200 films in DVD and VHS format in the African Film Festival Collection at the PCC Library. To see what is available, click on the “Resources” button and then on “Filmography.” The films with asterisks* are available in the PCC Library.

You do not have to be a PCC student to check out these titles. The films can be borrowed for seven days and can be renewed once. You can borrow up to seven films at a time. The PCC Library issues guest cards to residents of Multnomah and Washington counties. To get a guest card, all you need is a state-issued ID with a current address. For more information, go to www.pcc.edu/library/catalog/guest_cards.html.

If you live outside these counties, you can either use your library’s Inter-Library Loan service or you can visit the Cascade campus and watch films in the library.

Please note that these films are for home-viewing only. Copyright restrictions prohibit public screenings of these films even if no admission is charged.