Nou Akoma Nou Sinèji Haitian Dominican Transnational Film Festival

Name: Nou Akoma Nou Sinèji Haitian Dominican Transnational Film Festival
Start: 2025-10-09T17:00:00-04:00
End: 2025-10-12T13:00:00+00:00
Location: Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute

: Oct. 9 – 12, 10 am – 10 pm, 1 – 10 pm, Oct. 9, 5 – 8 pm.

: Sliding

Nou Akoma Nou Sinèji Haitian Dominican Transnational Film Festival returns for its third annual celebration. Running from October 9 to 12, 2025, this vital cultural event amplifies voices that mainstream media often overlooks, presenting authentic stories from the communities that live them. “Nou Akoma Nou Sinèji” translates to “our hearts, our synergy”—a fitting motto for a festival that refuses to let political borders divide shared Caribbean experiences. While Haiti and the Dominican Republic occupy the same island, their stories rarely intersect in contemporary cinema. This festival changes that narrative.

Four Days of Transformative Cinema

The festival launches on Thursday, October 9, at 5 PM at CCCADI’s Ilé Oyin with “Looking Within,” an evening of short films that explore identity and legacy. Opening night features “Making of A Matriarch,” celebrating Dominican-American strength; “Victorine,” a film following a dancer’s journey through grief; and “Papi Chulo,” a sharp take on masculinity in Washington Heights.

Friday’s workshops transform CCCADI into a creative laboratory. “The River Within” employs the body as a metaphor for the divided yet connected island, while “Love Letters to the Future” invites participants to envision the future through collaborative writing. The day concludes with “Cinema for Liberation,” a panel featuring award-winning filmmaker Anjanette Levert.

The weekend marathon at Maysles Documentary Center delivers the festival’s most powerful programming. Audiences will witness Haiti’s artistic resistance in “At All Kosts,” where theater becomes survival during political chaos in Haiti. “La 42” captures Dominican street life with infectious vitality, while “The Strong Man of Bureng” follows one person’s universal quest for belonging.

Sunday’s climax confronts history head-on. “1964: simitye Kamoken” presents Haitian peasants breaking decades of silence about Duvalier’s terror campaign. The festival closes with “Twice into Oblivion,” where Haitian and Dominican actors collaborate to examine the 1937 massacre of over 20,000 Haitian immigrants—an unprecedented artistic reckoning with shared trauma.

More Than Films: A Movement

This isn’t just a film festival—it’s cultural activism. In an entertainment landscape where Caribbean stories fight for visibility, Nou Akoma Nou Sinèji creates essential space for authentic representation.