Missa Hebie's "Cellule 512" wins FESPACO's SIGNIS award 2015

The 24th Pan African Film Festival of Ouagadougou popularly referred to as FESPACO which came to an end last weekend, in Burkina Faso, has awarded the prestigious Catholic Church-sponsored SIGNIS award to the film, Cellule 512.

According to Father Ernest Kouakou, President of SIGNIS Africa and head of the SIGNIS Jury at FESPACO, the SIGNIS prize is always awarded to a film that promotes gospel, human or Christian values. SIGNIS as an international association promotes media for a culture of peace. This year’s award went to Missa Hebie of Burkina Faso. Fr. Kouakou said all jury members appreciated that Missa Hebie’s film Cellule 512 addressed itself to matters that promote the integrity of family values in the face of severe challenges.

Receiving the award, Missa Hebie said, "The SIGNIS award is for me a great prize and I am very honoured to see the Bishop personally hand me the trophy," Missa Hebie said. He dedicated the win to "to all those who have difficulties; are oppressed and to all the families that are torn apart and separated,” an emotional Hebie said.

In the opinion of many festival-goers, the 24th Pan-African Festival showed a marked increase in the quality of films presented. Father Ernest Kouakou also asserted that "Cinema in Africa is all about what is happening on the continent of Africa. It’s about topical issues such as socio-political, cultural and environmental events around us,” Father Kouakou said.

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