SANKOFA (1993, U.S./Ghana, 124 min.), directed by Haile Gerima; screenplay by Haile Gerima; produced by Shirikiana Aina and Gerima; cinematography by Augustin Cubano; edited by Gerima and Aina; music by David J. White; production design by Kerry Marshall; with Kofi Ghanaba (Sankofa), Oyafunmike Ogunlano (Mona/Shola) Alexandra Duah (Nunu), Nick Medley (Joe), Mtabaruka (Shango), Afemo Omilami (Noble Ali), Reginald Carter (Father Raphael), Mzuri (Lucy).

Please jot down answers to the following, with longer answers (c. 150 words each) to three. One of the three should be the last one, #12.

1. "Sankofa" refers both to the African guide at the fort and to the bird that is on his staff. In the Akan language the word means "Looking back in order to look forward." Discuss the relevance of this theme to this film. Is the Sankofa character the film's central character.

2. Discuss Mona as she is at the beginning of the film. In what ways does she maintain the same personality during the main part of the film (i.e., as Shola)? In what ways is she different? Does she develop?

3. Discuss the transition scene, where Mona is drawn back into the past. Does it work for you? Do you find it frightening? How does the film go about making this transition? Think in terms both of sound and image.

4. Discuss the power hierarchy on the plantation. How do the various characters fit onto the power ladder?

5. Discuss Nunu and Noble Ali as secondary characters. How does their relationship develop? What do we come to learn about them as the film goes on?

6. What does Nunu represent for Shola/Mona?

7. Discuss Joe. He is definitely a character in conflict, no? Why is his story an important one?

8. What does Shango represent for the other characters and for us?

9. Discuss the film's climax, as Shola is attacked by the Owner. How is this scene climactic, both in terms of her character and of the overall theme of the film. How do image and sound contribute to this sense of climax?

10. What do you notice about the final scene of the film? Things come full circle, right? What is the same? What has changed?

11. How does this film portray European-Americans (i.e., Whites)? What do you think of this portrayal?

12. How does the film's "Sankofa" message (see Question #1) relate to the issue of slavery? How does the film want us to think of slavery's legacy? This is a film about a distant time, of course, but it's also to some extent a film about today. Who is the intended audience of this film? What is the purpose of this film? Use the handout on Sankofa in order to answer this.

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