Coltan plays a huge role in our day-to-day lives. But most of us have probably never even heard of this rare mineral, let alone have any clue about its devastating impacts on those who extract it for us.
Coltan — short for columbite-tantalite — is a metallic ore used in an array of modern innovations, from cars to smartphones and laptops. An estimated 80 per cent of the world’s coltan supply comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo, but the communities that live in coltan-rich areas — and in particular, those who risk their lives mining it by hand — are hardly reaping the benefits. Instead, they’re stuck in the middle of a vicious conflict involving militia groups, mine operators and the government.
This struggle is at the heart of French filmmaker Jean-Gabriel Laynaud’s 2025 documentary Of Mud and Blood, which opens the fifth edition of the Vancouver International Black Film Festival (VIBFF) on Dec. 5.
“God gave us a paradise,” says one Congolese man interviewed in the film. “But we live in hell.”
The film is a bold example of the VIBFF’s mission to ensure that Black stories have an enduring place on the big screen.
“When a festival is not only showing off beautiful cinema, but also trying to find meaningful movies and trying to talk about all those topics that are so important nowadays and are too much left aside, it’s really wonderful,” says Leynaud via phone from Paris. “And then, when such a festival wants to put you at the front [of its programming], you really think, ‘Okay, we’re getting somewhere. We’re fighting together in the same direction to change some of those things that need to be changed.’”
While Leynaud is not Black, he has dedicated much of his filmmaking career to telling stories about Africa. He has made more than 20 movies in the continent, and says that the region surrounding the town of Numbi — the epicentre of Congo’s coltan supply — has “profoundly, very deeply touched me.” It took him seven years to make Of Mud and Blood, he says, largely because he was told again and again that no one was interested in its subject matter.
“What I was hearing was, ‘Nobody cares about this suffering Africa,’” he says. “And I said, ‘It’s not only suffering in Africa — it’s our story, because it’s our everyday life that depends on [the African people who mine coltan], and we don’t know them.’”
By putting Of Mud and Blood in its programming, the VIBFF is doing its part. Now it’s up to audiences to show up, sit down and bear witness.
“We’re fired up,” says festival founder Fabienne Colas, a Haiti-born, Montreal-based filmmaker, actor and producer. “We’re waiting for everybody — especially people who are not Black, because we know that they don’t get easy access to Black films or Black realities. The festival is for everybody.”
Colas created the VIBFF to promote more diversity in film. Her non-profit arts organization, the Fabienne Colas Foundation, also runs Black film festivals in Ottawa, Calgary, Montreal, Toronto and Halifax. The fact that the Vancouver edition has hit its banner five-year anniversary, she says, is no small feat.
“For a Black film festival, it’s a lot,” she says. “Black organizations still face funding problems and all kinds of other challenges. So hitting five years, it’s a big milestone.”
A 2020 report by the Network for the Advancement of Black Communities and Carleton University’s Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership program found that less than 0.1 per cent of funds from Canadian foundations goes to Black-led organizations. As little as seven cents of every $100 donated to Canadian charities goes to Black causes.
Which is all to say that the ongoing success of a Black-led organization such as the VIBFF is a worthy cause for celebration — especially as DEI initiatives continue to roll back both in the U.S. and here in Canada.
Aside from showcasing Black stories the VIBFF is also focused on fostering Black talent within the film industry. This is particularly important, Colas says, in a city like Vancouver, where years of systemic erasure means that a lot of people don’t know about the city’s Black history.
“This festival is one place where people can not only gather, network, learn, get inspired and meet other film professionals,” she says, “but also find out where the opportunities are for Black people today in film. So this is not just another festival — it is the necessary festival right here in Vancouver. I’m very proud of that.”
Aside from its diverse selection of film screenings, the VIBFF also offers a series of industry talks and educational opportunities. Colas is particularly proud of Being Black in Canada (not to be confused with the CBC’s storytelling project of the same name). The initiative is a nationwide incubator program that provides mentorship to a cohort of up-and-coming Black filmmakers, culminating in festival screenings of their short films.
“I always say, ‘Don’t wait until they win an Oscar,’” says Colas. “Start supporting them right now.”
The fifth edition of the Vancouver International Black Film Festival takes place from Dec. 5 to 9 at the VIFF Centre (1181 Seymour St.) in Vancouver. Some programming is also available online.
