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Carnival: They Can’t Steal Our Joy

Carnival: They Can’t Steal Our Joy

Carnival: They Can’t Steal Our Joy

Dir. Ian Mark Kimanje
75 min

Thursday, July 23 at 7pm

The Main Cinema • 115 SE Main Street • Minneapolis

Special screening event with Canadian-Ugandan filmmaker Ian Mark Kimanje in attendance.

Co-presented by the Ghanaian Association of Minnesota (GhanAM), Ugandan Association of Minnesota, West African Collaborative (WAC), and the Sierra Leone Community in Minnesota (SLCM)

ABOUT THE FILM

Caribbean Carnival is not just celebration. It is liberation, a voice of freedom, and a cultural movement born from defiance, transformed into a global street parade of color, memory, music, and joy.

Carnival: They Can't Steal Our Joy follows Canadian-Ugandan filmmaker Ian Mark Kimanje as he explores why Caribbean Carnival continues to carry such deep emotional, cultural, and historical meaning across generations of African and Caribbean diasporic communities. Filmed across five countries, the documentary reveals Carnival as a living expression of resistance, survival, migration, creativity, and collective joy. Through intimate personal stories, historical reflection, and vibrant access to Carnival communities, the film reframes Carnival as more than spectacle: it is a cultural force rooted in memory, freedom, and the refusal to surrender joy.

TICKETS

Member - $10 (no online fee - sign in to access Member rate)
General - $15 (+$2 online fee / no fee at box office)
Student - $12 (box office only)

Film Details

Film Type: Documentary Feature
Release Year: 2025
Runtime: 75 min
Country/Region: Canada, United Kingdom, Ghana, USA, Trinidad & Tobago
Language: English
Print Source: Film Garage Studios
Tags: Africa & African Diaspora, Arts, Culture & Society, Documentary, History
Program: Special Screenings

Cast/Crew

Director: Ian Mark Kimanje
Executive Producer: Robert Lang, Ian Mark Kimanje, Emily Jane DeVries, Jane Jankovic, Alexandra Roberts, Patrice Ramsay
Producer: Robert Lang, Ian Mark Kimanje, Emily Jane DeVries
Cinematographer: Russell Gienapp
Screenwriter: Allen Booth, Ian Mark Kimanje
Editor: Mark Stork, Sonia Godding Togoba
Composer: Derek Brin

Sponsor for Carnival: They Can’t Steal Our Joy

Click Showtimes for Tickets

Showtimes

Theater 3

Thursday, July 23rd