BIMBI NERI NOTTI BIANCHE - BLACK CHILDREN SLEEPLESS NIGHTS

TITLE
BLACK CHILDREN SLEEPLESS NIGHTS, 59’

DIRECTOR
GIULIO MANFREDONIA

WITH
GIOBBE COVATTA

SCREENPLAY
PAOLA CATELLA

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
MAURO SACCA’/ FRANCO ANGELI

PRODUCED BY
AMREF / MESTIERE CINEMA

Northern Uganda 2005. Every night around forty thousand children leave their houses. The “night commuters” walk at least ten kilometres in order to reach a safe place. They risk getting kidnapped by the rebel army and being forced to become either child soldiers or “bush wives”. This is the story of Maria, Jean-Paul and Pasquale, three Acholi orphans caught in a conflict that lasts for twenty years. One night the two boys are too tired to walk and are abducted by the rebels. In order to save Maria from the same fate, Ayoo, her aunt, adopts her and takes her to Italy. Constantly worried, she keeps looking for the boys in Uganda. Two weeks after the kidnapping, Jean-Paul was left injured in the forest but managed to survive. Pasquale would escape four months later. Both are severely traumatized by their experience and therefore are included in a rehabilitation programme for former child soldiers.

BIMBI NERI NOTTI BIANCHE is a dramatic story told by Giobbe Covatta, a travelling DJ who follows the paths of Maria, Jean-Paul and Pasquale, who are symbols of all Ugandan children affected by the conflict. The film’s original approach combines background information, testimonies, ironic comments, music, and takes into account different languages and sensitivities. While displaying Northern Uganda’s dramatic reality, the film emphasizes the children’s ability to keep a smile, even under the harshest living conditions. Through an insightful and intelligent humour, the film leaves the viewer with a feeling of empathy and hope rather than sympathy and resignation.