Join us for a weekend of live readings, performances, screenings and talks to reflect on and explore the cultural memory and transformative power different art forms hold as instruments for survival and continuation in times of conflict. 

Breaking down barriers, the programme explores the experiences and reflections of Sudanese artists whose voices have been adopted as tools to navigate everyday struggles, hopes and memories surrounding the notion of identity, homeland and (be)longing. Through sound and storytelling, conversations are opened to give new meaning to shared oral traditions, experiences and paths of intervention for and with communities facing conflict, trauma, displacement and grief. 

The programme has been developed to support and offer an open space for learning, connections and catharsis, using poetry, film and music to navigate cultural and colloquial narratives of resistance and power, present challenges and prospects of change in Sudan and elsewhere for generations to come. 

Full details of the programme below:

Day 1: Thursday, November 28

Opening remarks by Snoopy and Rafa Renas from Aflam Sudan 

Day 2: Friday, November 29

Poetry reading and reflection with Azhari Mohamed Ali
In Arabic
Moderated by Qutouf Elobaid
5 – 6:30pm

Talk and Musical Performance with Asim Gurashi & Osman Al Naw
In Arabic
Moderated by Rund Alarabi
7 – 9:30pm

Day 3: Saturday, November 30

Film program co-curated by Hayy cinema and Aflam Sudan
5 – 10pm 

Day 4: Sunday, December 1

Film program co-curated by Hayy cinema and Aflam Sudan
5 – 10pm 

Music curated by Haneen Sidahmed from the Sudan Tapes Archive is featured throughout the duration of the programme in Hayy Cinema lobby and inside Cinema 1, prior screening starts.

ABOUT THE PARTICIPANTS

Azhari Mohamed Ali  is a prominent Sudanese poet, known for his contributions to modern Arabic poetry. Ali’s work is marked by its direct and unflinching exploration of themes related to injustice, adversity and the plight of marginalized communities. His verses often evoke strong emotions, drawing from both personal experiences and collective suffering. 

Asim Gorashi is a musician and multi-instrumentalist known for his mastery of  Sudanese folk traditions. Gurashi is a professor of music and world whistling champion whose practice focuses on the spiritual and psychological dimension of sound in promoting peace and wellbeing. His work  stands as a testament to the enduring power of music to connect people across cultures and generations.

Osman Annaw is a composer and founder of Igd-Aljalad;  one of Sudan’s most coveted and popular music bands. Founded in 1984, the group has been pivotal in shaping the sensibilities of older and younger Sudanese generations and credited for ‘giving voice to the neglected, disadvantaged, and those who are left behind’ through its poetic lyricism and musical compositions.

Rund Alarabi is an artist, editor and translator with a BA in French Language and Linguistics from the University of Khartoum and currently pursuing her graduate studies at the Städelschule in Frankfurt, Germany. By exploring the semiotics of collective memory and delving into common linguistic tendencies, she peers into the way structures outpour from such spatial and lingual habits. In 2016, she co-founded Locale, a female-led platform focusing on local content, art and storytelling.

Haneen Sidahmed is a multimedia artist, storyteller, and archivist based in California, USA. Her archival work and artwork are intimately entwined, both seeking to explore the intricacies and contradictions of diasporic experience through collective memory and radical imagination. Her current projects include the Sudan Tapes Archive, an audio digitization project that seeks to build an accessible sonic archive of Sudanese cassette tapes. 

Ibrahim ‘Snoopy’ Mohammed is a director, producer and co-founder of Aflam Sudan, a festival celebrating Sudanese cinema. As the visionary behind Deep Visions Productions, he is passionate about unique storytelling and has received critical acclaim from film festivals worldwide for his documentary ‘Journey to Kenya’ amongst several other projects. 

Rafa Renas is a filmmaker, producer and co-curator of Aflam Sudan. She produces for international media outlets and delivers cross-media campaigns promoting civil society engagement, equality and gender issues. Rafa was also a guest curator for the segment Revolutionary Tales at the Twin Cities Arab Film Festival in 2024. 

Programme design by graphic designer and illustrator Abdalla Abbas