“Teza” Wins African Oscar

“Teza,” an Ethiopian film about the ruthless regime of the former dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam, who was in power in Ethiopia from 1974 until 1991, won the Golden Stallion of Yennenga, the top prize at the Fespaco film festival in Burkina Faso, Reuters reported. The film’s Ethiopian-born director, Haile Gerima, currently lives in the United States and his sister Selome Gerima, who also co-produced the film, accepted in his honor at the event, which plays a similar role in Africa to the Academy Awards in the United States.

The second-place prize was awarded to the South African film “Nothing But The Truth,” directed by and starring John Kani as a librarian struggling against racism before and after apartheid. The film is based on Mr. Kani’s play of the same name. “Teza,” about a scientist who returns to Ethiopia after studying in Germany in the 1970s, also won best screenplay and a special jury award at the 2008 Venice film festival in September.