Shirley Frimpong Manso, others awarded at 2017 Silicon Valley African Film Festival

Ghanaian film director, writer, and producer. Shirley Frimpong Manso won the award for best Narrative Feature Film in the just ended Silicon Valley African Film Festival in San Francisco Bay Area of California.

Her new movie POTATO POTAHTO, alongside an Ethiopian Movie God’s Bridge by Girum Ermyas Gebereselassie were both crowned Narrative Feature Film of the year.

‘POTATO Potahto”, an African marital comedy of errors, based in Ghana and directed by one of Africa’s best known female directors, Shirley Frimpong Manso, took the centre stage at the just concluded Cannes film festival, France when it was premiered.

London based Ghanaian soul/jazz singer Sutra and director Edem Dotse also made Ghana proud as they were both honoured with Special Recognition Award for Achievement in Narrative Short for their Waves/The Water music video.

Waves/The Water (#W) is a visual narrative or film that merges two songs off her 2016 mixtape The Art of Being.

The Silicon Valley African Film Festival (SVAFF) promotes an understanding and appreciation of Africa and Africans through moving images.

Aptly themed “Africa through the African lens”, it is the only film festival in California that is exclusively focused on films made by African filmmakers and, crucially, provides audiences with exquisite lenses to the real Africa.

The festival recognizes and celebrates the creation and discovery of cinematic art and innovation, and provides the San Francisco Bay Area community access to the richness, diversity and vitality of Africa’s creative expressions through the lenses of Africa’s seasoned and emerging filmmakers.

SVAFF has built a substantial following and has become an annual destination film event that draws out of state and international guests.

2017 SVAFF Awards List

Festival Awards

EMERGING FILMMAKER AWARD – NADA IBRAHIM (FINDING ME) Egypt

NARRATIVE FEATURE FILM AWARD – SHIRLEY FRIMPONG – MANSO (POTATO POTAHTO) Ghana and GIRUM ERMYAS GEBERESELASSIE (GOD’S BRIDGE) Ethiopia

NARRATIVE SHORT FILM AWARD – KENI OGUNLOLA (LODGERS) Nigeria

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE LENGTH AWARD – SONIA TERRAB (SHAKEAPEARE IN CASABLANCA) Morocco

DOCUMENTARY SHORT LENGTH AWARD – OBIANUJUAKU AKUKWE (AFIA ATTACK) Nigeria

ANIMATION AWARD – STEPHEN SHIMA LOSUN (CRUSH) Nigeria

Diaspora Spotlight Awards

DIASPORA NARRATIVE SHORT AWARD – SEWRA G. KIDANE (PROCLAMATION PUNCTUATION)and XAVIER BURGIN (ON TIME)

DIASPORA DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM AWARD – ELI JACOBS-FANTAUZZI (DANCE WITH YOUR HEART)

Special Recognition Awards

ACHIEVEMENT IN NARRATIVE FEATURE FILM – ARIAM WELDEAB (FORGIVENESS FOR WHOM?) Eritrea

ACHIEVEMENT IN NARRATIVE FEATURE FILM – SHEMU JOYAH (THE ROAD TO SUNSHINE) Malawi

ACHIEVEMENT IN NARRATIVE FEATURE FILM – ARNOLD AGANZE (N.G.O. NOTHING GOING ON) Uganda

ACHIEVEMENT IN NARRATIVE SHORT FILM – LUNGELO KUZWAYO (SAWUBONA) South Africa

ACHIEVEMENT IN NARRATIVE SHORT FILM – CONT DE MONK (ZAWAJA GALI) South Sudan

ACHIEVEMENT IN NARRATIVE SHORT – SUTRA AND EDEM DOTSE (WAVES/THE WATER) Ghana

ACHIEVEMENT IN ANIMATION FILM – GATUMIA GATUMIA (KURA) Kenya

ACHIEVEMENT IN DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM – MAY YAM (HEALING HANDS) Namibia / USA

ACHIEVEMENT IN DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM – OLUWASEUN BABALOLA (REPRESENT (SOJU) Nigeria / USA