Afrofuturism in “To Catch a Dream”

A perfect example of an afrofuturistic work is the film “To Catch a Dream”. The short film features the work of eight Kenyan designers; the film is based on a grieving widow, by the name of Ajuma, who suffers from recurring nightmares. She relies on old fairy-tale remedies, which expands her realization beyond the physical realm. Hands down, a 10/10 production film, especially in the afrofuturism department. The film was shot in various locations in the beautiful Nairobi. From the playlist to the artistic designs of the movie, this movie gives all the feels of afrofuturism and is highly-recommended.

Week 3 Blog Post

The most interesting thing about this course so far has been the level of interaction with my fellow classmates, and the ability to share different thoughts amongst one another. Having been in a black studies class before, the difference between this one and the last one I have been in is that this class isn’t based on boring lectures by the professor. Not to sound repetitive, but the class is very interactive and gives an open space to share ideas.

 

The Snead article has by far been one of my favorite reads because of his relation back to culture. My favorite quotes from him states, “In any case, let us remember that, whenever we encounter repetition in cultural forms, we are indeed not viewing “the same thing” but its transformation, not just a formal ploy but often the willed grafting onto culture of an essentially philosophical insight about the shape of time and history.” When Snead said this, the first thing that came to mind was the saying “history repeats itself”. This phrase carries various meanings, but the meaning related to Snead’s phrase is that “through history, the future can be predicted”. In the past, some of the actions of blacks led to either consequences or rewards. Because of the outcome of these actions, we now know the “do’s” and “don’ts” to prevent events from happening again. With afrofuturism, everything comes full-circle and past and current events truly shape the intake on afrofuturism.

Short Reflection

“In any case, let us remember that, whenever we encounter repetition in cultural forms, we are indeed not viewing “the same thing” but its transformation, not just a formal ploy but often the willed grafting onto culture of an essentially philosophical insight about the shape of time and history.”

 

This statement stood out to me in particular because growing up in an African household and experiencing the interesting parenting style of my mom and dad, it was a real eye-opener. Most of the friends that I surrounded myself with always seem to be pampered and given the newest type of accesories out there. At the time, it was hard to grasp, and truthfully, I took it to the chest. It wasn’t until my grandmother came to live with my family and I in the US for a couple months that I realized why my parents were not into the concept of splurging money and showering their kids with expensive clothing, sneakers, and so on. The African culture back home has been revolved around hard-workers and people trying to set-up the best possible path to success for their children. Referring this back to the Black Panther discussion in class, when T’Challa’s sister introduced sneakers to him for the first time, it was symbolic of the lack of appeal for flashy items in the African culture. Rather than worrying about sneakers and so on, the Black Panther’s main focus was centered around the fate of his people; just like African parent’s main focus is centered around the fate of their children’s future.