Against the backdrop of the Cold War, the US State Department sends ‘jazz ambassadors’ Louis Armstrong, Nina Simone, and Duke Ellington to Congo, a newly independent, resource-rich African nation, to deflect attention from the CIA-backed coup that would lead to the assassination of Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba. In the months that follow, drummer Max Roach leads Maya Angelou in a protest at the United Nations. Belgian director Johan Grimonprez’s bravura cinematic essay, drawn from a wealth of archival footage, newsreels, testimonials, and newly uncovered home movies, won the Special Jury Award for Cinematic Innovation at the Sundance Film Festival.

Notes by David O‘Mahony