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‘African America’ Follows S. African Woman Chasing American Dream
Film tackles immigration, cultural differences between Africans, African Americans
“African America,” a film that looks at the immigrant experience through the lens of a South African woman, has been nominated for the Best 1st Feature Director award by the Pan African Film Festival.
The film tells the story of Nompumelelo, a South African who absconds to America to pursue her dream of appearing on Broadway. But once in America, she finds chasing her dream is a lot more complex than she imagined. She encounters immigration hurdles, sexism, exploitation and domestic violence. She learns the hard way that the streets are not paved with gold. Through her relationship with Jaquan, an African American man, she also learns about the impact of mass incarceration.
“African America” is the brainchild of brother and sister Muzi Mthembu (writer/director) and Phumelele “Phumi” Mthembu, who plays Nompumelelo in the film.
“My film asks the question, where do we go with our dreams, and this is particularly poignant to ask given the year that we have all just left behind, a year beset by a pandemic that has devastated the medical and economic wellbeing of many, but more tragically to communities of color around the world,” said Muzi in a press release. “We see our leaders exploiting the…
