Khartoum's Documentary: A New Paradigm for Sudan's Unity & Identity

What are the chances of Sudanese street kids, who collect plastic to survive, sharing a stage and a home with a Sudanese civil servant? Picture a tea stall holder, discriminated against due to her origins, telling her story on the big screen..

Unity and Transformation: A Call for Change in Sudan

Jawad, a Sufi Rastafarian resistance volunteer and one of Khartoum's main characters, cites the Koran during his filmed interview "Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves" as found in Surah Ar-Ra'd (13:11). By this, he emphasizes that for Sudan to rise again, its people must take responsibility for their actions and make concerted efforts to bring about enduring change in the nation.

Can all ethnic groups and social classes unite in pursuit of the greater good for all Sudanese people? As Sudan endeavors to rebuild and unify as a nation, what will define its people's common identity and shared heritage?

"Khartoum" is not just a captivating artistic exploration of the city and its people ; the filmmakers are setting a precedent and asking important questions.

Exploring Identity: The Complex Intersection of Arab and African Heritage in Sudan

"Are we Arabs or Africans?" asked a Khartoum resident, on screen, as she stopped by Khadmallah's tea stall in Khartoum, engaging in discussion with other locals.

Khadmallah, a tea vendor and single mum, is featured in the documentary by Sudanese filmmaker and photo-journalist Anas Saeed. Anas is one of Sudan Film Factory talent recruited to direct the documentary. Sudan Film Factory, a creative and cultural hub for filmmakers founded by Sudanese producer Talal Afifi, worked collaboratively with the British collective "Native Voice Films", represented by Creative Director and film writer Phil Cox, as well as producer Giovanna Stopponi, to bring Khartoum to life on screen.

During the insightful Q&A session, held at Richmix on Friday 21st November and hosted by FilmAfrica 2025, Giovanna Stopponi of Native Voice Films, explained that Anas made this choice because Khadmallah belonged to an ethnic group facing discrimination. In addition, her role as a tea vendor, often frowned upon by institutions, served as a powerful platform for ordinary people to gather, engage in discussions about politics, and critique the government's shortcomings.

Khadmallah is from the Nuba Mountains, in South Kordofan, Sudan, a region rich in history as the home of the Nuba peoples, who were originally part of the Kingdom of Kush (2500 BCE - 350 CE). She asserts that in Sudan, tribal affiliations have overshadowed national identity, leading to a significant identity crisis. On one hand, Sudanese Arabs are a hybrid group, resulting from waves of migration from the Arabian Peninsula that mixed with indigenous populations like the Nubians and Beja. On the other hand, the majority of Sudan's population is descended from the indigenous Nubian people who inhabited the Nile Valley for millennia. Ancient Nubian kingdoms, such as Kush and Meroe, have left a significant mark on the region's history.

Historical Roots of Conflict and Racism in Sudan

As war broke out in April 2023, Khadmallah vividly recalls the cold-blooded murder of a deaf man by an RSF officer as he sipped his coffee. It is important to note that the RSF, or Rapid Support Forces, is a paramilitary group in Sudan, originating from the Janjaweed militia, responsible for ethnic cleansing and mass atrocities against non-Arab ethnic groups in the Darfur region since 2003. Racial slurs were hurled, and Khadmallah was repeatedly called a slave. On that day, she thought she would die at the hand of the RSF soldiers.

In July 2020, Sudanese BBC journalist Zeinab Mohammed Salih wrote, "The superiority complex of many Arabs lies at the heart of some of the worst conflicts in Sudan". She explained, "The racism goes back to the founding of Khartoum in 1821 as a marketplace for slaves. By the second half of the century, about two-thirds of the city's population was enslaved, a practice that carried on into modern days. Two Sudanese academics, Sulimen Baldo and Ushari Mahoumd, publicly alleged in 1987 that they had uncovered evidence of some northern-based Arab groups enslaving black people from the south[...]The southern slave raids were widely reported to have continued until the end of the civil war in 2005, which led to the mainly black African South Sudan seceding from Arabic-speaking Sudan five years later."

Unity in Diversity: Sudanese Filmmakers Craft a New Paradigm for Sudan

In producing this film, the young Sudanese filmmakers have and pursue a shared dream. They have deliberately crafted a reality that presents a new paradigm, one that transcends race and social class. The team behind Khartoum, both on and off camera, is beautifully and creatively demonstrating to the Sudanese people and the world the potential of unity for Sudan.

Photo by Phil Cox featuring Khartoum's four Sudanese Filmmakers

The four young Sudanese filmmakers, namely Brahim Snoopy, Rawia Alhag, Anas Saeed, and Timeea Mohamed Ahmed further explained in an online statement:

“As filmmakers behind the camera and participants in front, we’re all from different backgrounds, ethnicities, ages, genders, and social classes. Such differences are what have too often been used to fuel past Sudanese conflicts as well as the current war in Sudan. However, in this film journey we discovered each other in a deeper and richer way and learnt to work together and support each other. We also realized that our diversity is actually a source of strength. We have become one cinema family irrespective of our age, class background, ethnicity or color. We wish our film to be a valuable piece of archive for the future and a poetic tribute to Khartoum and its people and to all the people of Sudan at this pivotal moment in our nation’s history.”

I fully commend this visionary approach.  Just like in the movie, where it ends with Madji's powerful declaration, "I am African", I wholeheartedly hope that the unity among the Sudanese people will surpass long-standing differences that have fueled division to the advantage of foreign powers and capitalist interests.

Long live Khartoum, Long live Sudan!

For more info on Khartoum's documentary and future screenings, visit https://www.khartoummovie.com/

Sources:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-53147864

https://www.khartoummovie.com/