Rafiki Fariala - Congo Boy (Day 1)

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In Bangui, 17-year-old Robert dreams of a career in music. But he is not Central African like the others. He is a Congolese refugee. When his parents are arrested, he is left to look after his four younger brothers and sisters on his own. He tries to balance household chores with studying for his final exams, whilst evading the militias terrorising the city. One day, he hears that a music competition is being organised. Winning becomes his only hope.

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Born in 1997 in Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rafiki Fariala initially made a name for himself as a slam artist. During a workshop in Bangui he created his first film, Mbi na Mo - Toi et Moi, and became an immediate success with many festival selections and prizes. In 2022 he directed his first feature documentary, Nous, étudiants ! which got selected for the Berlinale making history as the first Central African film to be screened there. Congo Boy is his first feature-length fiction film and was straight away selected for the Un Certain Regard section at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival.