Dahomey | Reel Lives
Nerve Centre, 7-8 Magazine Street, Derry~Londonderry
Admission: £6 + booking fee
From acclaimed auteur Mati Diop, Dahomey is a poetic and immersive work of art that delves into real perspectives on far-reaching issues surrounding appropriation, self-determination and restitution.
Set in November 2021, the documentary charts 26 royal treasures from the Kingdom of Dahomey that are due to leave Paris and return to their country of origin: the present-day Republic of Benin.
Using multiple perspectives, Diop questions how these artefacts should be received in a country that has reinvented itself in their absence. Winner of the coveted Golden Bear prize at the 2024 Berlinale, Mati Diop’s dynamic film is an affecting though altogether singular conversation piece that amplifies voices from beyond the walls of international museums, in turn redefining the spaces of culture and art.
This film contains flickering or flashing lights that may affect those with photosensitive epilepsy.
Mati Diop | France, Senegal, Benin, Singapore | 2024 | 68 mins | Subtitled | PG
