Film Screening: Everything Must Fall

As part of the Contesting Governance Platform at Utrecht University, and in collaboration with students and staff from Cultural Anthropology and Educational Sciences, we are hosting a film series titled Re-imagining the University. To start, we recently watched The Uprising (2019), a powerful music documentary by Pravini Baboeram. The film not only traces the enduring histories of racism and colonialism in Europe but also highlights the radical knowledge formations and movements that have long envisioned and fought for transformative social change. The second film we will watch is Everything Must Fall (2019), a vivid reconstruction of the student protests at Wits University, Johannesburg, by Rehad Desai. For the post-film discussion, we are honoured to welcome Zuleika Bibi Sheik (UU) and Shaeera Kalla, one of the student leaders of the #FeesMustFall movement. 

Re-Imagining the University Film Series

By using film as a catalyst for discussion, we aim to create an environment for critical reflection on the challenges and opportunities facing the university as a place for critical reflection. This series is an invitation to rethink the university as a critical political space, to dream up new possibilities, and to chart a course towards a more equitable, inclusive, and transformative vision of learning and knowledge cultivation. This is especially crucial in view of the student-led liberation struggles we’ve witnessed on campus, as well as the unprecedented budget cuts announced by the far-right government. Each screening will be followed by a conversation led by invited discussants who will help frame key themes and open the floor for reflection. In these post-film discussions, participants will also be encouraged to experiment with various forms of knowledge-sharing, such as storytelling and creating collective archives. These interactive elements are designed to foster a collaborative environment where attendees can collectively re-imagine the purpose and future of the university.

Everything Must Fall (2019)

For the second screening, we are showing Everything Must Fall: The High Costs of Free Education by Rehad Desai, a documentary that is a vivid reconstruction of the student protests at Wits University, Johannesburg. When the South African government decided to raise tuition fees in 2015, students rose up, using the hashtag #FeesMustFall. Quickly gaining momentum and scope, the battle cry turned into a national conversation as one protest followed after the other. The #FeesMustFall movement not only aimed at keeping education accessible to the underprivileged but also at resolving the predicament for many of the university’s support workers, ultimately calling for the decolonisation of the entire education system. Everything Must Fall features student leaders and their opposition as they unpack how a moment evolved into a mass movement. Challenging deeper racial, gender, class and sexual identity discrimination, this inspiring group of students demonstrate the power that comes from collective organising that embraces intersectionality to create lasting change. 

The following screenings are planned for April 17 and May 22.