Legendary Director Haile Gerima Returns with Black Lions – Roman Wolves

The film, premiering at Berlinale, is Gerima's first work in nearly two decades and a 30-year exploration of Italian colonialism in Ethiopia.

Published on Feb. 13, 2026

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Ethiopian director Haile Gerima, a guiding figure in the L.A. Rebellion movement, is returning with his first work in nearly two decades, the nine-hour epic Black Lions – Roman Wolves. The film is described as a treatise on Ethiopian resistance to the second Italian invasion in 1935, correcting the historic record long dominated by false characterizations by Italian and western narratives.

Why it matters

Gerima's film aims to give voice to the men and women barefoot soldiers who fought against Italian colonialism, challenging the long-standing European dominance over the archives and visual representation of this history. As a veteran of the L.A. Rebellion and New Black Cinema movements, Gerima's return is highly anticipated.

The details

Black Lions – Roman Wolves is the result of Gerima's 30-year obsession to tell the story of the Ethiopian resistance against the second Italian invasion in 1935. The film weaves together archive material, conversations with historical witnesses, and the director's father's plays to present a panorama of self-affirmation and colonial murder, European complicity and Black solidarity.

  • Black Lions – Roman Wolves will premiere at the Berlinale film festival beginning on February 13, 2026.

The players

Haile Gerima

An Ethiopian director and a guiding figure in the L.A. Rebellion movement, known for films such as Bush Mama and Ashes and Embers. Black Lions – Roman Wolves is his first work in nearly two decades.

Charles Burnett

A fellow L.A. Rebellion director who will return to the Berlinale to present a new 4K restoration of his second feature, My Brother's Wedding.

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What they’re saying

“Black Lions – Roman Wolves is a 30-year obsession that has transformed my own idea of storytelling. It is a story of remembrance or my right to remember a history that is completely dominated by European narratives, a power that has not only the resources but the right of absolute ownership of the archives of this specific history, which deals with Italian second or third attempts to colonize my country, Ethiopia. It is a struggle to bring to fruition my right to tell that story.”

— Haile Gerima (thefilmstage.com)

What’s next

Black Lions – Roman Wolves will premiere at the Berlinale film festival beginning on February 13, 2026.

The takeaway

Gerima's return with Black Lions – Roman Wolves represents a significant challenge to the long-standing European dominance over the archives and visual representation of the history of Italian colonialism in Ethiopia. The film aims to give voice to the Ethiopian resistance and correct the historical record.