Burning in the Sun

This documentary from filmmakers Cambria Matlow and Morgan Robinson focuses on an effort by some remarkable homegrown heroes in drought-stricken Mali—one of Africa's poorest nations—who take a gentle leap forward with a grassroots solar-panel construction business. A prime-mover protagonist is Daniel Dembélé, the son of a prosperous Mali artist and a European woman, who decided at age 26 to use his education and connections for the betterment of the villages, more than 80 percent of which lack electricity. Blazing sunlight seems to be the only resource with which Mali is especially blessed, and harnessing the sun to charge batteries means having regular access to radio, water pumps, refrigerators, and night illumination (not a luxury but a necessity for schoolchildren, who use their daylight hours for farm labor and can only study after dusk). Buying broken and discarded solar cells from giant multinationals, Dembélé and his cohorts of friends, farmers, teachers, and aid workers contract with locals to wire up off-the-grid communities—a technological miracle greeted with ancient tribal fanfare and celebration. Watching the new Afriq-Power company achieve its small revolution is an uplifting experience, with Dembélé an exceptional role model. DVD extras include a 22-minute condensed version and a compelling mirror-image look at students in a related solar-panel school workshop in multicultural Manhattan. Recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (C. Cassady)