Behind a Performance: Tufo da Mafalala is an experimental documentary exploring the rituals of Tufo, a traditional Mozambican dance. The film is a collaboration between the Grupo de Tufo da Mafalala, the Associação IVERCA, and researchers in the field of sonic arts and ethnography from Queen’s University Belfast.

Tufo is a traditional Mozambican dance of Arabic origins practiced by Makhuwa communities from Nampula province in north-eastern Mozambique. Tufo groups are generally made up of fifteen to twenty women –the Muriana Orena, the beautiful ladies– dressed in colourful fabrics, wearing sparkling jewellery and displaying complex facial drawings. They sing and dance to the rhythm of drums, the lyrics of their songs often serving as political commentary and catalysts for social cohesion and female empowerment. Behind a Performance takes us deep into the personal stories of these women and deconstructs the various rituals that this practice involves, which usually go unnoticed in the eyes of the audience.

The film is an outcome of the project “Understanding the Role of Sound and Music in Conflict Transformation: The Mozambique Case Study” funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, and the Economic and Social Research Council, under the Partnership for Conflict, Crime and Security Research.

To find out more about the project visit https://www.qub.ac.uk/schools/ael/Research/ResearchinArts/ResearchImpact/Mozambique/

Dir: Pedro Rebelo, Matilde Meireles and Iñigo Sanchez | 2018 | UK | 33 mins | Subtitled | All ages