Valeria (17) is an introverted teenager who likes to dance alone. Her parents take her to the family farmhouse to celebrate her grandparents’ golden wedding. In this place she meets her cousin Sol (16), whom she had not seen for years. Valeria and Sol share the same room for a week in which Valeria must face her sexual awakening amid the repression of her parents and she will discover a dark secret that her family hides in those lands.

Jean, a PE teacher, is forced to live a double life. When a new student arrives and threatens to expose her sexuality, Jean is pushed to extreme lengths to keep her job and her integrity.

There is a word in South Africa; Ubuntu. It is a concept or philosophy recognizing that we are all tied together in infinite ways that can seem invisible to the eye. That there is a oneness, a wholeness to humanity; that we achieve our true selves by sharing ourselves with others, and caring for those around us - and vice versa. I hope this year’s BIPOC program takes you on a journey of the thoughts, feelings, connections, visibility, relatability, awareness, emotions, pain, strength and so much more that is the beating pulse behind the vastness of the African diaspora.