A Rwandan film opened this year’s Film Africa at BFI Southbank in London. Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo’s Ben’Imana was chosen as the opening-night film of the 2026 programme, which runs from 23 October to 1 November.
It has already been quite a year for Dusabejambo. In 2026 she became the first director from Rwanda to premiere a film in the Cannes Official Selection, the BFI noted.
The opening-night programme advertised a Q&A with producer Samantha Biffot, executive producer Noella Rwema and actor Adelite Mugabo.
A festival of women’s voices
This year the BFI’s Film Africa programme is dedicated to African women filmmakers, with a selection of recent films directed by women. Alongside the screenings is Twende: African Women and Cinema, a symposium looking at women’s filmmaking across Africa and the diaspora, past, present and future.
Other highlights include My Father and Qaddafi, the feature documentary debut of Libyan American filmmaker Jihan K, which premiered at the 82nd Venice Film Festival. She will introduce the screening.
For Rwandan cinema, opening night in London is another sign that its filmmakers are being seen on the world’s biggest stages.
