Theo­rizing the intersection of colonialism, post-nationalism, and political amnesia in what is usually referred to – with a contested term – as post-colonial society, Encounter in the Archive offers a critical challenge to, and a vision for, institutional archive-keeping practice in the third world.

Encounter in the Archive

The Struggle to Reclaim Nigeria’s Audiovisual Heritage

The chance discovery of a collection of decaying, rusted film materials in the dusty rooms of the semi-abandoned old Colonial Film Unit in Lagos leads to this manifesto about archival interventions on the African continent. Theo­rizing the intersection of colonialism, post-nationalism, and political amnesia in what is usually referred to – with a contested term – as post-colonial society, Encounter in the Archive offers a critical challenge to, and a vision for, institutional archive-keeping practice in the third world.

September 2026

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Publishing Year
2026
Series
License
CC-BY-SA 4.0
ISBNs
978-3-95796-103-7 (Print)
978-3-95796-104-4 (PDF)
DOI
10.14619/1037
Available as
Print, PDF

The Author

Didi Cheeka is the artistic director of Decasia – Berlin-Lagos Archival Film Festival. He is co-founder and curator of Lagos Film Society – an alternative cinema centre dedicated to founding Nigeria’s first arthouse cinema. Didi is currently engaged in digitizing and researching Nigeria’s rediscovered colonial and post-war (1967-70) audiovisual archives.

Didi Cheeka's Author Profile

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