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Djibril Diop Mambety’s 89-minute Senegalese film follows two young lovers planning to leave Dakar for France, in a style that shifts between naturalism and surrealism. YBCA screens it as part of Ashley Clark’s survey of global Black cinema.
All times are local to the venue · America/Los Angeles
The destination in Touki Bouki is France; the film’s route there is less settled. Djibril Diop Mambety’s 1973 fantasy-drama follows two young lovers whose plan to leave Dakar encounters practical obstacles and mystical ones, using a mix of realism and surrealism to portray Senegal in the early 1970s.
Mambety’s film takes migration as its central desire but resists a single mode of storytelling. Its French New Wave influence sits alongside surreal episodes and naturalistic moments; YBCA characterizes its pace as moving between restless and contemplative. That contrast is part of the screening’s appeal for viewers interested in how a film’s form can complicate a familiar story of departure.
The film is set in Senegal in the early 1970s and runs 89 minutes. YBCA lists it as a 1973 Senegalese production directed by Mambety and presented in Blu-ray format.
Further reading: Touki Bouki - YBCA ↗
YBCA places Touki Bouki in The World of Black Film: Revolutions, a Saturday series spanning Nov. 14, 2026, through Jan. 16, 2027. The series frames the 1960s through the early 1980s against decolonization movements and growing radical political consciousness, and highlights how Black filmmakers explored memory, migration, politics, identity and rebellion.
Other selections take up different histories and forms. Med Hondo’s West Indies: The Fugitive Slaves of Liberty, scheduled for Nov. 14, uses a mock slave ship as its only soundstage in a film about imperialism that YBCA describes as a landmark musical in African cinema. Later, Sarah Maldoror’s Sambizanga turns to Angola’s independence movement, while Horace Ové’s Pressure focuses on Black characters in Britain. These are separate screenings, not part of the Nov. 21 program.
Further reading: The World of Black Film: Revolutions - YBCA ↗ · Touki Bouki - YBCA ↗
The series is curated by Ashley Clark, the Criterion Collection’s curatorial director. YBCA notes that he previously directed film programming at the Brooklyn Academy of Music and has curated programs at venues including BFI Southbank, the Museum of Modern Art and TIFF Bell Lightbox.
The survey draws on Clark’s book The World of Black Film: A Journey Through Cinematic Blackness in 100 Films, which considers influential films across more than 100 years and 30 countries. YBCA says copies will be available at its front desk at a discounted price for moviegoers; the book’s price is not listed.
Further reading: Ashley Clark - YBCA ↗ · The World of Black Film: Revolutions - YBCA ↗ · Touki Bouki - YBCA ↗
The Nov. 21 screening is one installment in YBCA’s Saturday series, which runs from Nov. 14, 2026, through Jan. 16, 2027. The other titles are separate programs.
The screening is Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026. It starts promptly at 2 p.m., with no trailers, and YBCA recommends arriving a few minutes early to be seated. The film runs 89 minutes; no event end time is announced.
A ticket includes the film, curator-selected snacks while supplies last, and gallery admission. YBCA members receive free admission.
YBCA invites ticket holders to visit the galleries before or after the film. Saturday gallery hours are 11 a.m.–5 p.m.
YBCA says its public entrances are accessible. The Gallery & Forum Building entrances at 701 Mission Street and the Garden Esplanade have push-button doors, and elevators serve both buildings. Wheelchairs are available first-come, first-served.
Sign-language interpretation for YBCA programs can be arranged with three weeks’ notice. One caregiver accompanying a visitor with accessibility needs is admitted free. YBCA lists accessible seating for events in the Theater and Forum but does not specify seating arrangements for this Screening Room.
Service animals as defined by the ADA are welcome on leash and under their handler’s control; pets, emotional-support animals and therapy animals are not permitted.
YBCA does not state an age policy for this screening.
The screening is in the Screening Room at YBCA’s Gallery & Forum Building, 701 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94103. YBCA identifies 701 Mission Street as the main entrance to its galleries and forum event space, which houses the film screening room.
YBCA lists the site as reachable by public transit, car, bicycle or on foot, but does not provide mode-specific route details here. Use the map links to calculate directions from your starting point.
The film starts promptly at 2 p.m. with no trailers. YBCA recommends arriving a few minutes early; the film runs 89 minutes, but no event end time is listed.
The $15 ticket includes the film, curator-selected snacks while supplies last, and gallery admission. YBCA members attend free.
The Screening Room is in the Gallery & Forum Building. Use YBCA’s main entrance at 701 Mission Street.
YBCA lists accessible public entrances, push-button doors at 701 Mission and the Garden Esplanade, and elevators in both buildings. It does not specify Screening Room seating arrangements. Interpretation is available with three weeks’ notice, and one accompanying caregiver is admitted free.
701 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
Map search by venue and address. Check the organiser’s entrance details before travelling.
Images from the linked sources. Each caption identifies the context of the image.
Event, planning and background information checked 2026-11-01 against the linked sources.