The 29th edition of the FESPACO took place from February 22 to March 1, 2025, in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso.
The host country, Burkina Faso was represented by two films: Katanga, la danse des scorpions by Dani Kouyaté and Les Invertueuses by Chloé Aïcha Boro. The guest country of honor, Chad, was represented by Diya by Achille Ronaimou. There were several entries from diverse countries including Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Côte d’Ivoire, Zambia, Somalia and many more.
On March 1, 2025, Burkinabè filmmaker Dani Kouyaté was awarded the prestigious Étalon d’or de Yennenga (Golden Stallion of Yennenga). His film, Katanga, la danse des scorpions, is a cinematic adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth set in an African (Burkinabe) context and told in the Mooré language of Burkina Faso. His win marked Burkina Faso’s first Étalon d’or in 28 years after Buud Yam of Gaston Kaboré, and the third win of Burkina Faso 34 years after the first Tilai of Idrissa Ouedraogo. Beyond the Étalon d’or, Katanga, la danse des scorpions garnered several other accolades, including the Public Prize with an average score of 9.18/10, the Sembène Ousmane Prize from the Ecobank Foundation, the Special Prize from the Cultural and Tourism Development Fund (FDCT), the Special UEMOA Prize for feature fiction, and the Paulin Soumanou Vieyra African Critics’ Prize.
The Somali movie The Village next to Paradise by Mo Harawe won the Silver Stallion of Yennenga. The Bronze Stallion (Étalon de bronze) was awarded to On Becoming a Guinea Fowl by Rungano Nyoni (Zambia).
L’Homme-Vertige by Guadeloupean Malaury Eloi-Paisley won the Golden Stallion in the documentary section, as well as the Paul Robeson Prize for best diaspora film.
During the award ceremony, a special tribute was paid to Malian filmmaker Souleymane Cissé, who had been slated as jury president but passed away shortly before the festival. Dani Kouyaté, upon receiving his award, honored Cissé by saying, “Souleymane Cissé has been a model for me… he lives on in our hearts and minds.”
Burkina Faso’s President, Ibrahim Traoré, presented Kouyaté the award and praised film enthusiasts for the “resounding success of this celebration of African cinema.”
“The director [Dani Kouyaté] shows legitimate recognition for the courage and self-sacrifice of our worthy daughters and sons committed to victory over the forces of evil,” Traoré said on social media after the event.
The 30th edition of FESPACO is set for 2027. To read more about FESPACO 2025, please check out TRT Global – FESPACO Festival 2025 shines with cinematic triumphs in Burkina Faso
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