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35 Shots of Rum (12A) [35mm] + ScreenTalk with Dr Hélène Neveu Kringelbach & Rōgan Graham, hosted by Clive Nwonka

The Devil Finds Work: James Baldwin on Film

,Cinema 1
Two people hold hands in a dark, moody landscape.

This 35mm screening of Claire Denis' drama exploring a father/daughter relationship against the backdrop of the multiracial city, followed by a ScreenTalk relating the work to Baldwin's ideas.

Central to Baldwin’s The Devil May Find Work is the question of interracial relationships as a cinematic spectacle. By looking at interracial relationships on screen, we gain an understanding of the racial climate of American society through the way it responds to different forms of Black masculinity. 

Building on Baldwin’s thinking, we are screening Claire Denis’ outstanding exploration of the human condition, and the subtle and everyday experiences of multiracial community, 35 Shots of Rum. The film asks us to consider the now diurnal role of interraciality in relations to social change, belonging and cultural identify, through the complicated dynamics of a father/daughter relationship.

Tagged with: Cinema The Devil Finds Work

2008 France/Germany dir. Claire Denis 100 min, in French and German with English subtitles

This project is part of the ‘James Baldwin and Britain’ project (2024-2027), led by Douglas Field, Kennetta Hammond Perry and Rob Waters, with thanks for the generous support by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. 

The film programme is curated by Dr Clive Chijioke Nwonka.

Dr Hélène Neveu Kringelbach is an Associate Professor of African Anthropology at University College London. She has carried out fieldwork in Senegal, France and the UK. Her study of social mobility in Dakar, as seen through the lives and work of dancers and musicians, was published in 2013 as a prize-winning monograph, Dance Circles: Movement, Morality and Self-Fashioning in Urban Senegal. She is currently working on an ethnographic study of binational and transnational families between Senegal and Europe.

Rōgan Graham is a writer and programmer from South London. Working broadly in film exhibition, her areas of interest are works by Women and Black filmmakers. She previously edited the award-winning The Underground Railroad campaign book for Barry Jenkins’ series adaptation, and recently wrapped up her time as public programme producer for national film charity Reclaim The Frame.


 

Cinema 1

Location
Barbican Cinema 1 is located within the main Barbican building on Level -2. Head to Level G and walk towards the Lakeside Terrace where you’ll find stairs and lifts to take you down to the venue floor.   

Address
Barbican Centre
Silk Street, London
EC2Y 8DS

Public transport
The Barbican is widely accessible by bus, tube, train and by foot or bicycle. Plan your journey and find more route information in ‘Your Visit’ or book your car parking space in advance.