UNMASKED presents Ebeneza Blanche
This evening, UNMASKED will shine the spotlight on film director and multidisciplinary creative Ebeneza Blanche. After the screening DJ Eben Badu will be DJ’ing in our café and you can enjoy a free cocktail on our entresol.
A “visual architect” moving between Amsterdam, the UK, and Ghana, Blanche developed an aesthetic language shaped by multiple cultural influences and has spent the past decade crafting a distinctive style that has made him a compelling voice in today’s directing landscape, particularly within music video culture.
During this UNMASKED session, we’ll start by letting tell Ebeneza about himself. Together with writer, presenter and cultural researcher Chloé Heyart, we’ll take a closer look at his work; it will become clear what inspired him and what has made him the exceptional artist he is today.
After that, we will screen two short films created in collaboration with Amsterdam-based clothing brand The New Originals: Mathlete (2023) and Creative Space (2024). The programme is complemented by a selection of standout music videos of Jae5 featuring Rema en Skepta (Dimension), Little Simz (Point & Kill) and Rimon (Sugarcoated Love).
Mathlete
Ebeneza Blanche | Ghana | 2023 | 15' | English spoken | English subtitles
The mother of young Ghanaian Emmanuel hasn’t paid his school fees yet, and that could easily mean he’ll be sent away from his boarding school. It’s a shame, because he’s doing well there, especially in maths. His maths teacher would therefore like him to take part in a maths competition, but that requires money too. A fellow pupil comes up with a dubious solution. What will Emmanuel do?
Creative Space
Ebeneza Blanche | Ghana | 2024 | 5’ | English spoken | English subtitles
A group of teenagers skip school and take their school fees to a game center, not just to play, but to gamble on themselves. What begins as harmless escape quickly takes an unexpected turn.
Raised across Ghana, the Netherlands and the UK, Ebeneza Blanche is a multidisciplinary filmmaker whose work is redefining the visual language of music, fashion, advertising and film. Known for creating elegant, cinematic and culturally rich worlds on screen, he has quickly become one of the most exciting emerging directors of his generation. With multiple Best New Director awards to his name, Blanche’s rise has been driven by a body of work that is both visually striking and emotionally resonant.
Eben Badu, born in Amsterdam with Ghanaian roots, inspired by people, ideas and our strong cultural heritage.
"In 2015, I co-founded The New Originals Clothing (TNO) with Rizky Lasahido and Maru Asmellash.
Alongside TNO, I collaborate independently with brands, artists and institutions on creative direction, music projects and cultural programming. I enjoy building a world that feel honest and playful.
Music remains my first language: when I’m not designing, I’m DJ'ing, or making music exploring the world."
