Anne Mashiloane
07.01.2025
LECTURE TITLE: "South Africa - The Influence of Black Consciousness and the Soweto Uprising towards the End of Apartheid"
The lecture on the 7th of January 2025 focuses on the life and ideologies of Steve “Bantu” Biko, a key figure in the South African revolutionary history and the founder of a “Black Consciousness”. Biko's philosophy emphasized the importance of psychological and cultural liberation for black South Africans, encouraging them to embrace their identity and reject the inferiority imposed by apartheid. His ideas influenced many, including another revolutionary leader explored in the lecture, Teboho “Tsietsi”Mashinini, a prominent leader in the 1976 June 16 Soweto student uprising. Mashinini and other students were inspired by Biko's call for self-empowerment and resistance against systemic oppression. The lecture highlights a few artists in exile during the time as well as how student-led movements became one of the crucial tipping points in challenging apartheid and bringing global attention to the injustices of the regime.
Anne Nomgqibelo Mashiloane is a South African award-winning filmmaker and television director currently based in Berlin. Her artistic work is inspired by transformative impact for Africa through storytelling, tackling of social issues in South Africa, heritage, biodiversity conservation, climate justice and the preservation of African languages. Besides recently lecturing, she is a proud fellow of the 2024/2025 Alexander von Humboldt German Chancellor Fellowship where she is embarking on a career in digital storytelling and digital museum curation. Her dedication to film and storytelling is evident through numerous awards and nominations in the field, including the South African Film and Television Award (SAFTAs) from 2020 to 2024. Her directing team at 'The River' was nominated for the International Emmy Award in 2019. Her consistently outstanding performance exhibits a high degree of mobility, both in terms of adapting to new environments and pursuing opportunities for growth.