Mahen Bonetti

Business leader, Concerned citizen, Connector, Consultant, Event planner, Global soul

Born in Sierra Leone, I am and multimedia consultant, community organizer and former print editor. As the founder and executive director of African Film Festival, Inc. (AFF), I curate and facilitate all AFF programming, which includes their flagship New York African Film Festival (NYAFF) hosted at Film Society of Lincoln Center, Maysles Documentary Center, and BAMcinématek, in-school film education programs for New York City schools, a National Traveling Series (a screening circuit that brings NYAFF’s tailored selection of films to institutions across the United States), year-round film screenings in collaboration with institutions such as the Schomburg Center of Black Culture, Queens Museum, Bronx Museum, and MoCADA, in addition to international initiatives and collaborations, such as the Sierra Leone Cultural Conservation Program and the Lights, Camera, Africa! Film Festival based in Lagos, Nigeria. I have served on panels for the Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ougadougou (FESPACO), the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, and U.S. diplomatic offices within Africa, among others. I am additionally proud to have been the recipient of France's Chevalier De L'Ordre Des Arts Et Des Lettres, an award bestowed by French Minister of Culture.

advancing an enhanced understanding of African culture through the moving image

Increasing visibility and recognition for African media artists