Art’s subtle, liberating ways: Violence, trauma and agency in Fanta Regina Nacro’s The Night of Truth (2004)

Fanta Regina Nacro’s The Night of Truth (2004) is a graphic post-war political film that mediates the conflict between ethnicities within a nation state that has failed to appreciate its diversity as a gift. We analyse how the artists use cinematic means to challenge individuals and communities to cross the borders of sectarianism and intolerance in order to discover their shared need for freedom as a human race. We argue that although individuals and communities are often caught up in the prison of intolerance and divisionism, the ultimate desire of the human person is to be free to associate and make choices. Our central argument is that art has the power to foster agency, and to liberate individuals and communities in subtle and effective ways.