Private Project

Behind a Performance: Tufo da Mafalala

Tufo is a traditional Mozambican dance of Arabic origins practiced by Makhuwa communities from Nampula province in north-eastern Mozambique. Tufo groups are generally made up of fifteen to twenty women –the Muriana Orena, the beautiful ladies– dressed in colorful fabrics, wearing sparkling jewelry and displaying complex facial drawings made with mussiro, a white cream used primarily in the north as feminine beauty treatment. They sing and dance to the rhythm of drums, the lyrics of their songs often serving for political commentary and as catalyst for social cohesion and women empowerment.

This film follows one of this groups in the country’s capital of Maputo, where a large population of Makhuwas settled after fleeing the consequences of Mozambique’s civil war, severe droughts and famines. Founded in the 1970s, the Grupo de Tufo da Mafalala has kept the practice of Tufo alive in the multiethnic and multicultural neighborhood of Mafalala. This group of women resorted to Tufo dancing as a vehicle to redefine their identity, reconstruct their social fabric and perpetuate their traditions in the unfamiliar context of the urban environment. Por trás de uma performance takes us deep into the personal stories of these women and deconstructs the various rituals that this practice involves, which usually go unnoticed in the eyes of the audience. By articulating different forms of knowledge (traditional, scientific, artistic), the film embraces the group’s initial ambition: to expand their own practice in order to break with tradition and move forward to the future.

  • PEDRO REBELO
    Director
  • MATILDE MEIRELES
    Director
  • IÑIGO SÁNCHEZ
    Director
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    32 minutes 45 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    September 1, 2018
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    Mozambique
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Director Biography - PEDRO REBELO, MATILDE MEIRELES, IÑIGO SÁNCHEZ

Pedro Rebelo

Pedro is a composer, sound artist and performer. In 2002, he was awarded a PhD by the University of Edinburgh where he conducted research in both music and architecture.

Pedro has recently led participatory projects involving communities in Belfast, favelas in Maré, Rio de Janeiro, the gypsy community in Portugal. This work has resulted in sound art exhibitions at venues such as the Metropolitan Arts Centre, Belfast, Espaço Ecco in Brasilia and Parque Lage and Museu da Maré in Rio and MAC Nitéroi. His music has been presented in venues such as the Melbourne Recital Hall, National Concert Hall Dublin, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Ars Electronica, Casa da Música, and in events such as Weimarer Frühjahrstage fur zeitgenössische Musik, Wien Modern Festival, Cynetart and Música Viva. His work as a pianist and improvisor has been released by Creative Source Recordings and he has collaborated with musicians such as Chris Brown, Mark Applebaum, Carlos Zingaro, Evan Parker and Pauline Oliveros.

His writings reflect his approach to design and creative practice in a wider understanding of contemporary culture and emerging technologies. Pedro has been Visiting Professor at Stanford University (2007), senior visiting professor at UFRJ, Brazil (2014) and Collaborating Researcher at INEM-md Universidade Nova, Lisboa (2016). He has been Music Chair for international conferences such as ICMC 2008, SMC 2009, ISMIR 2012 and has been invited keynote speaker at ANPPOM 2017, ISEA 2017, CCMMR 2016 and EMS 2013. At Queen's University Belfast, he has held posts as Director of Education, Director of Research and Head of School. In 2012 he was appointed Professor of Sonic Arts at Queen's and awarded the Northern Bank's "Building Tomorrow's Belfast" prize. He has recently been awarded two major grants from the Arts and Humanities Research Council including interdisciplinary project “Sounding Conflict”, investigating relationships between sound, music and conflict situations.

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