Malagasy filmmaker Luck Razanajaona’s feature debut DISCO AFRIKA: A MALAGASY STORY, will be distributed by Sudu Connexion in various theaters across Madagascar, starting November 1, 2024.
Telling the story of a young man named Kwame working in Madagascar’s clandestine sapphire mines, the film’s release follows its success at the 2024 Berlinale, earning an Ag Kino-gilde-cinema Vision Special Mention from German distributors.
The specifics:
- November 1, 2024, at 8 PM at Le Petit Cinoche, Toamasina
- November 8, 2024, at 8 PM at Cinepax, Antananarivo
- November 15, 2024, at 8 PM at CanalOlympia Iarivo, Antananarivo
The cast includes Parista Sambo (making his film debut), Laurette Ramawsinjanahary (who passed away in 2023), artist Drwina Razafimahaleo, Joe Lerova, and Jérôme Oza.
Razanajaona is an alumnus of the Ecole Supérieure des Arts Visuels in Marrakech, Morocco, and gained recognition for his short film MADAMA ESTHER (Silver Tanit at JCC 2014, Silver Stallion at FESPACO 2015).
The production was led by We Film (France), in co-production with Africamadavive Production (Madagascar), Niko Film (Germany), Caméléon Production (Mauritius), and Free Women Films (South Africa).
An itinerant tour across Madagascar will begin on November 22, 2024, with specific cities and times to be announced.
The Malagasy release is supported by the French National Centre for Cinema and the Moving Image (ACM Distribution), Europe Creative Media, and the Ateliers de l’Atlas at the Marrakech Film Festival, and will be held under the auspices of the Ministry of Communication and Culture of Madagascar.
Internationally represented by the pan-African distribution company Sudu Connexion—earlier this year, the company lent its expertise to the release of Mati Diop’s DAHOMEY in Benin and Senegal—DISCO AFRIKA will also premiere in Kenya in December 2024, in Francophone Africa in March 2025, in France in April 2025, and the United Kingdom in June 2025.
This release is the culmination of an eight-year journey for Razanajaona.