Event Details
Tue, April 21, 2026
18:00 – 19:30
VILLA SASSETTI
Villa La Pietra
Via Bolognese, 120
50139 Florence, Italy
AFRICAN DIASPORA CINEMA FESTIVAL
Followed by a discussion with Fide Dayo, Festival Director and NYU Florence students Eric Ramirez Naranjo and Sofia Loushin-Obregon.
Synopsis:
Across classrooms, cultures, and continents, African women’s hair holds history, scrutiny, and meaning. Crown or Class follows two young women whose natural hair journeys spark deeper conversations about beauty, identity, and the quiet systems shaping self-worth across Africa and its diaspora.
A documentary film directed by Kwaku Sikahene-Adarkwa (29:59 minutes)
Country of Origin: Belgium, Ghana
Country of Filming: Belgium, Ghana, Germany, Netherland, United Kingdom
Director Statement
I made Crown or Class to explore a quiet but deeply rooted question many African women grow up with: who decides what is acceptable and beautiful? Hair, in our communities, is never just hair — it carries history, power, and identity. Through this film, I wanted to amplify the voices of women navigating inherited standards and reclaiming self-definition on their own terms. Crown or Class invites audiences to reflect on how systems shape confidence and belonging, often without us noticing.
Featured Biographies
Kwaku Sikahene-Adarkwa
DIRECTOR
Kwaku Sikahene-Adarkwa, also known as Kaay Difilmer, is a Pan-African filmmaker and storyteller whose work explores identity, culture, and underrepresented narratives across Africa and its global diaspora. Based in Europe, his films bridge personal storytelling with social inquiry, focusing on how history, power, and inherited systems shape everyday lived experiences. Through his production company Wuku Studios, Kwaku develops documentary and narrative projects that center African voices and challenge dominant frameworks of representation. Crown or Class marks his latest feature documentary, continuing his commitment to culturally grounded, impact-driven storytelling that invites reflection, dialogue, and re-definition.