“Griot” is a cinematic exploration of ancestral memory told through the parallel, nonverbal languages of classical ballet and the West African kora. Directed by Yoram Savion of Oakland’s Yak Films, the film contrasts Dakar’s organic, street-level rhythms with San Francisco’s structured, tech-driven landscape. Anchored by the morphing motif of a wooden stick, it asks how we hear our ancestors’ call over the hum of the modern world.
The film features cousins Adji Cissoko, a dancer with LINES Ballet, and Youba Cissokho, a master kora player from Senegal. Born into a family of storytellers, they carry forward oral traditions passed down through generations and embody the internal tug-of-war diasporic artists feel when caught between two cultures.
This film was commissioned by Dance Film SF’s SIGHTLINE initiative.
