The Bokola Film Festival will return for it’s 2025 edition on August 23 at Studio Moto with a bold new theme: “Dream. Now!” A dynamic celebration of storytelling, resistance, and imagination.
“We’re so excited to bring Bokola 2025 to Studio Moto; a vibrant, immersive space where creativity and community meet. We invite everyone to experience powerful films, meaningful conversations, and a fresh energy that reflects the spirit of Bokola,” shared Sikhanyiswe Sebata, Festival Co-Director
This year’s edition of Bokola Film Festival is set to be a rallying cry. In a world reeling from inequality, climate collapse, and war, Bokola 2025 calls on filmmakers, artists, and activists to respond with urgency, clarity, and radical imagination.
The festival will showcase powerful documentary screenings across three curated strands: Stories From The Emergency, featuring urgent narratives confronting climate collapse, authoritarianism, and surveillance; Dreamers, a spotlight on unapologetic young African storytellers whose work is bold, rooted, and audacious; and Frontlines of Change, highlighting the visual work of activists, indigenous filmmakers, and global movements pushing for justice, land rights, gender equity, and liberation through poetic, hybrid, and genre-defying forms.
Festival goers can also explore Radical Futures, an immersive space of virtual reality, augmented reality and interactive installations. Beyond the screen, Bokola will offer behind-the-scenes access to acclaimed digital productions like The Week, a fun kids’ zone, a vibrant food & drinks space, chill spots and surprise musical appearances—creating a rich, multi-sensory experience for all ages.
“This year, Bokola has been rebranded. We’re focusing on you—the people. Your films, your dreams, your experiences,” stated Dexter Fundire, Festival Co-Director
Firmly rooted in truth-telling, resistance, and community, Bokola 2025 reaffirms its place as a platform for fearless storytelling. The festival showcases documentaries, experimental visuals, and immersive media from the frontlines of change—especially work by young, African, and marginalized creators.
Bokola is currently accepting powerful, urgent, and visionary work across four key categories—from frontline documentaries to Afrofuturist explorations and radical youth narratives. You can submit your films here. https://filmfreeway.com/BokolaFilmFestival
