01 / 2026
ScreeningHeights Theater
A Gathering
May 2026 · Heights Theater · Minneapolis
A curated East African shorts screening at the historic Heights Theater. More than a screening — a gathering of community, culture, and story.
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Our Work
A curated slate, screened with ceremony.
Three films. Three nights. One community, on screen.
Somali Cinema Week2026 Recap
Somali Week 2026
Three films, three venues, one packed house after another.
Every summer, Mawimbi brings Somali stories to Minneapolis screens — from intimate love stories to sweeping cultural celebration. This year's Somali Week spanned three venues, three very different films, and one packed house after another.
Barni
📍 The Main Cinema — Made in MN
🗓️ June 30
A powerful character study screened as part of Made in MN, followed by a live Q&A. Barni brought Minneapolis audiences face to face with a story of quiet strength — the kind Mawimbi exists to platform.
Sold OutQ&A Included
The Gravedigger's Wife
📍 Minneapolis Institute of Art (MIA)
🗓️ July 2 · 2:00 – 9:00 PM
More than a screening — a full cultural gathering. Traditional Somali dance and live music, a vendor market with coffee, tea, and mocktails, and a headline set from DJ Fawzi, all anchored by a screening of The Gravedigger's Wife.
Live MusicTraditional DanceVendorsDJ Fawzi
A Tribe Called Love
📍 Heights Theater
🗓️ July 3
Filmed in Toronto, A Tribe Called Love tells a modern Somali love story for the diaspora generation. The screening closed out Somali Week with a Q&A, bringing the week's celebration of Somali storytelling full circle.
Diaspora StoryQ&A Included
This is Mawimbi.
Somali Week is one chapter in Mawimbi's larger mission: building a community-owned home for East African film — where the people the stories are about also share in what they earn.
02 / 2026
ShowcaseMSPIFF 45
What We Carry
April 2026 · The Main Cinema · Minneapolis
Mawimbi's debut programming — an East African shorts showcase at MSPIFF. Five films. One stage. A community gathered to witness itself on screen.
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In the works
Original productions in development and our next distribution chapter.
01
OriginalShort Film
Bloody Hands
A politically charged Somali-American drama. A candidate, a community, a choice that can't be taken back. Pre-production — filming summer 2026.
02
OriginalIn Development
Kuulaan
Kuulaan — 'to come together' in English. An intergenerational short film in development, exploring what binds us across ages and eras.
03
DistributionTour
Shorts Block — World Tour
Our curated East African shorts block prepared for cities across North America. Minneapolis → Seattle → Toronto → Ohio → the world.