Boubacar Boris Diop

Four junkyard kids go into town looking for something to cure their hero, Grand Batche. On the way, they come across various symbols of society: the cop, the mayor, the postman, the madman, the artist...

Despite the difference in their upbringings and family lives, five young children become friends. Omar is in love with Yacine, a pretty, intelligent girl from a wealthy family. He decides to pen her a love letter, which ends up causing misunderstanding and a rift between him and his childhood love. Meanwhile, Demba falls in love with a beggar and they share 'secret' stares and tender touches in brief meetings each time. All the children seek advice from their mentor, who sells bicycle-rides at the beach-front. The innocence of childhood infatuation is cleverly layered over a troubled Senegal laboring under the strains of strike action and economic upheaval.

A story about desire, choice and the freedom (or lack of it) of young people forced into a traditional practice where a male tags a girl at birth for marriage in adulthood.

La série "Afrique(s), une autre histoire du XXème siècle" propose de revivre 100 ans de l'histoire de l'Afrique, par la voix de ses grands acteurs, tous ceux qui, de près ou de loin, ont pris part à son réveil et l'ont fait entrer dans le 21ème siècle. Construit à partir d'entretiens avec les plus grandes personnalités africaines et d'archives inédites, "Afrique(s), une autre histoire du 20ème siècle" nous plonge dans le passé du continent ignoré, des soubresauts de l'ère coloniale aux grandes aventures de la démocratie et de l'unité africaine, en passant par le bouillonnement des indépendances et les guerres civiles, le chaos des conflits mondiaux, l'effervescence des crises et les renouveaux culturels.