Feminist Media Studio

Thank you to everyone who joined us on Wednesday for the screening of Cuba: An African Odyssey and keynote b the wonderfully charming writer and director, Jihan El Tahri. As always, this concluding event in this season of the Political Aesthetic screening series was curated by Farah Atoui and Sanaz Sohrabi.

[Slide one: Jihan, Sanaz, and Farah standing with mics before the audience at La Sala Rossa.
Slide two: Jihan seated, delivering her keynote, Sankofa: look back to see the future. The screen behind her displays a chart of Adinkra symbols.
Slide three: a still of the film, Cuba: An African Odyssey, in which someone is seen saying "this fighting spirit," with the rest of the caption hidden behind the heads of audience members.]

Jihan El Tahri is an Egyptian and French national who is an award winning director, writer, visual artist and producer. In 2017 she was invited to join the Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Oscars) and continues as a Mentor at various film labs. Her documentaries include Nasser, Behind the Rainbow, Cuba: an African Odyssey, and The House of Saud. Her work as a Visual Artist have been exhibited worldwide in both galleries and biennales. Her writings include “Les Sept Vies de Yasser Arafat” (Grasset) and “Israel and the Arabs, The 50 Years war” (Penguin). El-Tahri is also engaged in various associations and institutions working with African Cinema. She served as treasurer of the Guild of African Filmmakers in the Diaspora, an Advisor on Focus Feature’s Africa first Program and as Regional Secretary of the Federation of Pan African Cinema (FEPACI).

Don't miss Jihan El Tahri's keynote, SANKOFA: look back to see the future, as well as a screening of her film, Cuba: An African Odyssey (part 1), presented by The Political Aesthetic at La Sala Rossa on April 22, at 6pm.

The Political Aesthetic is curated by Farah Atoui and Sanaz Sohrabi. Visit our website to learn more.

[Image descriptions: slide one: A colour photo of Jihan El Tahri. She wears red-framed glasses, pearl earrings, a sleeveless ribbed black blouse, a large silver medallion, and is smiling at the camera with red lipstick and a perfectly coiffed afro.
slide two: Text reads, "April 22, 2026, 6:00-9:30pm, La Sala Rossa, "Cuba: An African Odyssey (Part 1) Jihan El Tahri, France, 2006, 97'. SANKOFA: look back to see the future, Keynote by writer and director Jihan El Tahri, Presented by The Political Aesthetic," over a very faint image of Agostinho Neto, the first president of Angola, riding alongside Cuban leader Fidel Castro in a motorcade.]

Join us on at 4:30 PM on Thursday, April 23rd for a discussion and writing session on our lab values, exploring what they mean to us as individuals and a collective, and how we can and do implement these values in our work, scholarship, and lives. We will build on previous conversations and writing sessions, turning our focus on the value fostering spaces of refuge—selected by our members ahead of this meeting—and collaborate on how we as a lab can continue to engage with this value in practice. We encourage you to visit our library, at the FMS and through our website, ahead of this meeting if you are interested in learning more about how we arrived at our lab values and their working definitions.

Following this (approximately one hour) work session, we invite folks to stay or join us for a casual end of term gathering. Tour the space and equipment library, meet our staff, and learn more about ways to get involved at the FMS in the coming year. Current membership is not required, everyone is welcome to attend this event.

Light vegetarian and vegan snacks and refreshments will be served. We ask that you kindly RSVP (link in bio) to help us gauge numbers, but drop-ins are also welcome. Bring a friend!

[Image description: The event details are typed in black sans-serif font over a collaged background of notes made by FMS members across previous sessions building our feminist library and identifying our lab values.]

Join us on April 22 for the final edition of season two of The Political Aesthetic screening series from 6:00-9:30 PM at La Sala Rossa.

We will be screening part one of the film, Cuba: An African Odyssey, followed by a keynote by writer and director Jihan El Tahri, SANKOFA: look back to see the future.

“Sankofa” is the name of the Adinkra Symbol which portrays a mythical bird flying forward with its head looking back. In African Akan culture the symbol translates to: “recognize the importance of looking to the past to make a better future.” The discussion delves into how archival narratives – or the lack of them – are an essential factor in allowing us to reassess the way forward at such a critical juncture in world history.

Cuba: An African Odyssey is the previously untold story of Cuba's support for various African revolutions, one of the Cold War's most vigorous contests over resources and ideology. This film attempts to understand the world today through the saga of these Cuban internationalists who won every battle but ultimately lost the war.

There is no need to RSVP for this free event, simply arrive on time to ensure access to seating. Please note that La Sala Rossa is up two flights of stairs. Visit our website to learn more about this exciting event.

[Image descriptions:

slide one: Black text on a white background reads "Jihan El Tahri Keynote & Screening, SANKOFA: look back to see the future, The Political Aesthetic Screening Series, April 22, 2026, 6:00-9:30 PM, La Sala Rossa." Beneath the title of the keynote there is a green-saturated black and white still from Jihan El Tahri’s film, Cuba: An African Odyssey. Agostinho Neto, the first president of Angola, is pictured riding alongside Cuban leader Fidel Castro in a motorcade.

slide two: Text reads, "April 22, 2026, "Cuba: An African Odyssey (Part 1) Jihan El Tahri, France, 2006, 97'. SANKOFA: look back to see the future, Keynote by writer and director Jihan El Tahri, Presented by The Political Aesthetic," over a very faint copy of the image from slide one.]