Produced by SFINX FILM/TV
The colorful markets of Africa are often dominated by strong older women. They control price and determine who can buy their goods. These imperious women rule the market and are treated with deference. Thanks to their business acumen, they have amassed a great deal of wealth.
These women are affectionately referred to as Mama Benz. Why? Because each one has as her trademark a prized possession, a chauffeured Mercedes Benz. This film focuses on one woman who presides over the cloth market in Lomé, Togo. She is a lavishly dressed matron with a fully- staffed mansion who proudly travels the rutted dirt roads in her limousine.
Despite her success, Mama Benz has not become too grand for the hurly burly of the marketplace. Everyday she takes her accustomed place in the stall, surrounded by gloriously colored textiles, and haggles with her customers. The other market women look up to her. Perhaps one day they too will attain her success and become a Mama Benz.
Margaret Mead Film Festival, 1995
National Women's Studies Association, 1994
48 min. Video or DVD. Sale $295. Video rental $65.
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