Women Take the Reel Film Festival
- Mar 26
- 2 min read
March 2026
The FMS Department at Tufts recently welcomed students, faculty, and community members to a compelling installment of the Women Take the Reel Film Festival, featuring the work of acclaimed filmmaker and animator Ng’endu Mukii.
Co-sponsored by Consortium for Graduate Studies in GCWS; Women's, Gender, Sexuality Studies at Tufts; SMFA at Tufts; The Film and Media Studies Program at Tufts; Tufts Department of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies; Tufts Department of Studies in Race, Colonialism, and Diaspora (RCD).
Held in Barnum Hall, the event showcased a curated selection of Mukii’s short animated films spanning over a decade of her creative career. The screening offered a rich, immersive look into her creative evolution, highlighting her distinctive approach to storytelling through animation. Mukii’s work, deeply rooted in her Kenyan heritage and shaped by her experiences within the Afro diaspora, invites viewers to engage with complex themes of identity, memory, and perception.
Throughout the program, audiences encountered Mukii’s signature blending of visual styles and narrative forms. Her films explore the tensions between internal and external realities, often addressing how cultural and societal influences shape personal identity. These works were particularly resonant in her works like Yellow Fever, her widely celebrated animated documentary examining Western beauty standards and their impact on African women, and Enaki, her Annie Award-winning contribution to Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire. Following the screening, Mukii joined attendees for a thoughtful Q&A session, offering insight into her creative process and the conceptual foundations of her work.
The event exemplified the mission of Women Take the Reel: to amplify the voices of women filmmakers from around the world. Mukii’s visit left a lasting impression, not only through the power of her films but through her candid and generous engagement with the Tufts community.
As the festival continues to bring diverse perspectives to campus, the screening stood out as a vivid reminder of animation’s capacity to challenge, connect, and inspire.
🎥 + 📷 : Geri Hart
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