Rihla: An Illustrated and Commented History of Algerian Cinema

Rihla, meaning journey, is a lecture performance tracing the history of cinema in Algeria, from the arrival of the Lumière brothers’ cinematograph in the late 19th century to the upheavals of October 1988.  

Nabil Djedouani blends oral narration with projections of rare excerpts, restored archives, photographs, and previously unseen documents. Retracing the path from the colonial period to the first images shot by Algerians and the birth of a revolutionary national cinema, the journey continues to the golden age of the 1960s and 1970s, up to the cultural and social transformations that preceded the events of October 1988, protests and riots carried by the youth advocating for more rights.

Rihla reveals how cinema accompanied, reflected, and sometimes anticipated the history of the country, while championing an under-represented cinematic heritage.