Tastes of Africa launches on YouTube from August 31 – Tastes of Africa, a new three-part short-form series hosted by Santilla Chingaipe, will launch globally on YouTube from Sunday, 31 August.
The 3 x 15-minute series visits home kitchens and hidden eateries across Melbourne’s African-Australian community. Through food and conversation, Chingaipe explores memory, migration, identity and belonging.
For Australian streaming audiences, the release is a compact but distinctive local project. It puts a spotlight on African-Australian stories and takes them directly to viewers through YouTube.
Watch The Trailer
Melbourne’s African Food Scene On Screen
Tastes of Africa follows Chingaipe through a cross-cultural journey shaped by food. Along the way, she meets aunties who have carried recipes across oceans. She also meets younger African-Australian friends and chefs who are adapting traditions in bold ways.
Across the series, dishes including Ghana’s waakye and Zimbabwe’s umxhanxa become entry points into larger stories. As a result, the series is not only about what is served at the table. It is also about family, survival, community and memory.
The finale brings Chingaipe back to her own kitchen for a celebratory feast. There, she brings together some of the dishes and memories gathered during the series.
Chingaipe said food works like language. It changes over time, but it can also keep people connected to where they come from.
The Creative Team
Tastes of Africa is created and produced by Blacksand Pictures’ Kauthar Abdulalim. Rendah Haj writes and directs the series, while Kalu Oji edits.
The series is a Blacksand Pictures production. Principal production funding comes from Screen Australia, in association with VicScreen.
Santilla Chingaipe is a Zambian-born filmmaker, historian and author. Her work explores settler colonialism, slavery and contemporary migration in Australia. In 2019, she was recognised at the United Nations as one of the most influential people of African descent in the world.
Kauthar Abdulalim is an award-winning Australian Muslim filmmaker and producer. She is originally from Kenya and is now based in Melbourne. Her screen credits include Salma’s Season, The Ninth Tower and the TikTok rom-com #MATCHED.
Rendah Haj is a documentary filmmaker whose work focuses on social issues, human rights and untold stories of the African diaspora. Her graduate film Hayat screened internationally and is available on SBS On Demand.
Streaming details: Tastes of Africa launches on Sunday, 31 August and will be available globally through African Australian on YouTube.
For more streaming stories, visit TV Central’s Streaming section.