Cinema
Tumult
Gir-gir
Yemane Demissie · 1996
Synopsis
Addis Ababa, December 1960. Yoseph, the son of an aristocratic family, has joined a clandestine group opposed to the emperor, drawn like other educated young men by impatience at the slowness of reforms. When the coup, attempted in the sovereign's absence, fails, he has to go into hiding, and the manhunt forces him to look squarely at what he believed and at the world he comes from. The film opens with an allusion to the fall of Adam and Eve, driven out for having tasted the fruit of the tree of knowledge.
Context
The film was shot in southern California, and its making stretched over seven years. An Ethiopian and American co-production, it was written by the director from a story by Wassy Tesfa and himself; he also produced it and handled the sets and the editing, and the cinematography is by Costas Kitsos and Jeffrey Crum. It is its author's first fiction feature, after a career turned until then towards short films and portraits of artists.
Who it is for
One hundred and seventeen minutes, in Amharic with English subtitles. The failed coup of December 1960 was led by the imperial guard during the emperor's trip to Brazil.
Prizes and reception
It was shown at more than forty festivals, from Rotterdam to Ouagadougou, and was released in cinemas in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Germany.