“Mr. Chweneyagae delivers a fine, sympathetic performance, and you root for the actor even when his character inspires unforgiving thoughts. To his credit, Mr. Hood's meditation on truth and reconciliation doesn't traffic in the cheap thrills of art-house exploitation, like CITY OF GOD; he wrings tears with sincerity, not cynicism.” – Manohla Dargis, The New York Times
Wednesday, April 8, 6:00 p.m. & Sunday, April 12, 12:00 p.m. | Tsotsi, a violent gang leader in Johannesburg's townships, carjacks a BMW and discovers an infant in the backseat after shooting the mother. Instead of abandoning the child, he takes the baby to his shack, beginning an unexpected journey of redemption. As Tsotsi cares for the infant—forcing a young mother at gunpoint to breastfeed, later seeking her help voluntarily—suppressed memories of his own traumatic childhood surface. Hood adapts Athol Fugard's novel into a post-apartheid narrative where violence stems from poverty and abandonment rather than racial oppression. Through parallel searches (Tsotsi seeking humanity, parents seeking their child), the film explores whether ubuntu—human compassion—can survive in spaces marked by structural violence and criminal economies.
African Cinema: From Independence to Now Lecture Series | January 28–May 17, 2026
This film series explores 65 years of African cinema, from anti-colonial resistance to digital reinvention. Through 14 films from across the continent, African filmmakers reimagine the medium as a tool for decolonization, self-representation, and artistic innovation, connecting the political with the poetic. Presented in collaboration with the School of the Art Institute of Chicago’s Art History, Theory, and Criticism department. Lecturer: Delinda Collier, Professor of Art History. Synopses by Delinda Collier. Select titles offered with encores; encores do not include lecture.
The Film Center is ADA accessible. This presentation will be projected without open captions. The theater is hearing-loop equipped. For accessibility requests, please email filmcenter@saic.edu