Shirine Shah responds to Flesh and Paper (1990), a lyrical exploration of the sense and sensibilities of Indian lesbian poet and writer, Suniti Namjoshi, directed by Pratibha Parmar.

Eilidh Akilade

Her hands bloom outwards again and again. Another’s hands clasp mid-air before sinking to the right, sweetly. One hand – of another, still – holds their fingers tightly and then suddenly detaches, spinning out in circles. And the left hand of another comes under the right and it is held, supported, by that which is its sistren, its brethren. It relaxes before springing upwards, fingertips splaying, signally a new thought for Maud Sulter and for us all.

Radha Patel

The opening scene of Cecilia Lim’s audiovisual poem, Pagpapa(-)alam: To Wish You Well, So You Know shows a care worker helping their elderly patient walk down a street. It is an image that feels hopeful; the future reflected in the present. Tenderly shot in Queens, New York, and captioned in three languages, Tagalog, Spanish and Bangla, the three and a half minutes that follow juxtaposes images of women from these communities cooking, caring and praying for each other.

Memuna Konteh

Journeying through dense forest into open fields, Mojereoma Ajayi-Egunjobi calls on Omolore, her mother’s mother who she never knew. She does not need a conversation partner, but a witness, an accomplice on a path paved with pain and promising freedom. Dear Omolore is testament to the power of poetry and film to distil otherwise indigestible emotions.

Ojo Taiye

I was a thirsty traveller in the bustling city of Benin, Nigeria, when I was sent Back on Home Soil to watch. At first, unable to wait, I skipped through the reel, and then finally home, sitting in my parlour after dinner, I settled to watch it.

Eilidh Akilade

It is left unsaid: Drexciya. I clasp it in my hands and it is as if I have held it before.

Drexciya rests on the seabed, beneath the ripples and the tides. From ships, the pregnant Africans were thrown overboard, their children then birthed into the sea. The water babies swam down and made their world at the very bottom. Drexciya.

Georgina Quach

Still We Thrive, written and directed by Campbell X, ensures we never look away from the past. It brings together contemporary Black actors speaking to camera with archive footage of Black history from the Caribbean, United Kingdom, United States and the African continent. As poet Elizabeth Alexander said, for so long, communities of colour have had to “carry around knowledge and stories in our bodies,” because resources were not devoted to preserving the spaces that held those stories and culture.

Georgina Quach

In Suffocation, sunlight feels harsh. Harsh in the sense that we have been kept in the dark for too long. We, scarred by racism and empire, welcome the sun: it exposes “colonial dust” – what is left in the wake of the bombs, deforestation and destruction used to maintain the mythscape of colonialism.

Theophina Gabriel responds to black queer nature poem for khadijah (and all of us), a gentle performance film by Mae Diansangu and one of Fringe of Colour’s 2021 commissions.

Nathaniel Brimmer-Beller responds to Agudas, a film by Amber Akaunu that tries to make sense of a painful family history linking Afro-Brazilians to Nigeria, mixing poetry, animation and the archive.

Andrés N Ordorica responds to Velvet by Ofem Ubi, a poetic appreciation of his grandpa in the form of a gentle and introspective black and white film, focusing on texture, routine and ageing.

Asyia Iftikhar responds to Transitions II: Moment in Isolation, a film by Tobi Adebajo that pushes the boundaries of bold, rich and wistful storytelling and depicts the daily realities of living with chronic pain.

Andrés N Ordorica responds 5 WAYS 2 RUN, a Jasmine Kahlia Multidisciplinary Installation Piece featuring original electrifying music, spoken word and striking citscapes.

Rho Chung responds to Hypnagogia Glossolalia, a film by Sekai Machache who presents a stunning combination of dance and several spoken word poetry pieces narrated in both Gaelic and Shona.

Lisa Williams responds to The Drift by Hannah Lavery, a poetic journey through history, Scottishness, belonging and grief, and a Fringe of Colour 2020 Commission.

Georgina Quach responds to Silk, a filmic poem by Martha Williams that provides a manifesto of defiant beauty, made as part of the Sorry I Was on Mute series.

Anahit Behrooz responds to Marjorie Lofti Gill’s poetry film They Want, which challenges demands for trauma and was part of the Sorry I Was On Mute series.

Asyia Iftikhar responds to plant portals: breath, a film by Nicky Chue who presents an experimental meditation on the concept of “rest” and asks: “Can nature heal us?”