VISIBILITY AND INVISIBILITY OF CINEMAS IN COLONIAL AFRICA: reviving the first scenes

Abstract

Abstract: The cinema had its peak during the 1950s-1970s, but what do we know about the modalities of  its  diffusion  from  the  beginning  of  the  twentieth  century?  This  paper  analyses  the  success  of cinema,  a  pastime  which  followed  European  colonization,  through  various  sources:  travellers’ accounts,  newspapers,  memoirs  and  recollections  of  audience  members.  Entrepreneurs,  African  or European, played a powerful role as conveyors of modernity by circulating moving images. They were photographers,  engineers  and merchants.  At first, movie  shows were sporadic  events,  taking place in compound yards or hotels; they gradually found permanent locations. While mobile shows sometimes animated village squares, cinemas were built in the main cities. The colonial administration focused its attention  on  them.  But  the  main  model  between  the  two  World  Wars  remained  the  open-air  cinema, protected only at the rear by an awning. This differentiation of spaces was accompanied for the same process  for  the  spectators.  The  poorest,  mainly  Africans,  were  located  at  the  front.  Therefore, atmosphere  and  audience  experiences  differed  greatly.  The  Audience  behavior  at  open-air  shows, where  Westerns  and  action  movies  dominated,  contrasted  with  more  polite  behavior  in  downtown theaters.

Keywords: Cinema. Colonialism. Africa.