Shuku Blai: The Sierra Leone Basket That Crossed an Ocean

About the project

Shuku Blai is a research documentary exploring a traditional coiled basket from northern Sierra Leone and its remarkable connection to Gullah Geechee sweetgrass basket traditions in the United States.The film follows the history of Shuku Blai, from Temne weaving traditions in Sierra Leone to the movement of West African craft knowledge across the Atlantic during the transatlantic slave trade.It also explores how this heritage continues to live today through basket makers, contemporary art, music and cultural exchange, revealing how a simple basket can carry memory, identity and history across generations and continents.