Dahomey - PATOIS 2025

Dahomey (Mati Diop, 2024) The African kingdom of Dahomey, which ruled over its region at the west of the continent until the turn of the 20th century, saw hundreds of its splendid royal artifacts plundered by French colonial troops in its waning days. Now, as 26 of these treasures are set to return to their homeland, filmmaker Mati Diop documents their voyage back. As with her layered, supernaturally tinged Atlantics, Diop takes a singular approach to contemporary questions around belonging in our postcolonial world, transforming this rich subject matter into a multifaceted examination of ownership and exhibition, and employing multiple points of view, includingmost strikinglythose of the artifacts themselves as they sail in darkness over the ocean to their rightful home. Dahomey brilliantly negotiates a lost past and an unsure present. 68 min. 

Post-screening discussion with scholars Jeri Hilt and Shana M. griffin to follow.