Experiências Queer nas Cinematografias Africanas: Possibilidades Analíticas entre a Representação e o Figural

Abstract

This dissertation investigates sexual and gender dissidences in South African and Kenyan contexts through the analysis of three contemporary films: Inxeba – The Wound (2017) and Heaven Reaches Down to Earth (2020), from South Africa, and Stories of Our Lives (2014), from Kenya. The research starts from the recognition that dissident experiences existed in the pre-colonial period (Murray; Roscoe, 1998), although they have been silenced by normative discourses throughout history. Two dominant imaginaries prevail in narratives about these experiences on the continent: that of structural homophobia and the interpretation of queerness as a Western import (Ekine; Abbas, 2018; Rea et al., 2018). Based on film studies, with emphasis on representational analysis (Hall, 2016) and figural analysis (Brenez, 2023), this dissertation examines how queer African cinemas articulate these experiences through visual, symbolic, and narrative elements, addressing issues such as desire, identity conflict, corporeality, nature, and pleasure. It also considers the contexts of production and reception of the works, as well as other artistic languages, such as photography and literature, that dialogue with the films. The central aim is to identify how the figural resources in the films challenge normative conceptions and construct new images of dissident identities on the African continent. Ultimately, the study reaffirms the role of cinema as a powerful language in shaping subjectivities and expanding contemporary discussions on gender and sexuality.