In conjunction with the current exhibition En Mas’: Carnival and Performance Art of the Caribbean, Musuem of the African Diaspora (MoAD) and the SF Latino Film Festival present Jump Up: The En Mas’ Film Series, six weeks of documentaries and features portraying the magical impact of Carnival in various places in the African Diaspora (Trinidad,  Brazil, Guadeloupe, New Orleans, Cape Verde and New York). Each program has a strong focus on the music, performers and the flamboyant attire so central to the celebrations including calypso and soca of Trinidad, Salvador’s blocos afros, Guadeloupe’s zouk, Mardi Gras’ Black Indian clubs, the transgender paraders on São Vicente island and Brooklyn’s Caribbean saturated Labor Day festivities.   ‍

Tchindas (Pablo García Pérez de Lara and Marc Serena, 95 minutes, in Cape Verdean Creole with English subtitles, 2015)

When interviewed by the filmmakers, the acclaimed singer Cesária Evora (whose music plays throughout this documentary) proclaimed that Cape Verde had the best Carnival in Africa.  LGBT people often play an important role in Carnivals and on the island of São Vicente the country’s cultural capitol,  Tchinda is one of most beloved women in Cape Verde, especially after she came out as a transgender person in the local newspaper in 1998. Tchinda and her colleagues prepare for and join the festivities that are particularly geared towards the participation of children.

Co-Presented by the San Francisco Latino Film Festival