Mati Diop’s “Atlantics” is making history as the first film directed by a black woman to screen in Cannes’ main Competition. The drama centers on Ada (Mame Bineta Sane), a young woman whose lover has disappeared. Everyone in her village, Dakar, Senegal, believes Souleiman (Traore) is dead, as does Ada, until she receives a strange text message with his signature.

In two new clips of “Atlantics,” we see Ada before and after Souleiman’s disappearance.

In the first spot, Ada and Souleiman flirt and kiss near the ocean. He tells her how beautiful she is, to which she responds, “You’re a joker.” “Too bad if you don’t believe me,” he replies.

The second clip shows Ada meeting her friend, Dior (Nicole Sougou), at a café. She swears Dior to secrecy before showing her the text message. Dior is suspicious: “Ada, it’s the police,” she says. But Ada is sure her boyfriend is back. “It’s Souleiman, I can feel it,” she insists.

“Atlantics” debuted at Cannes May 16 and will soon receive a theatrical release in France. It marks Diop’s first feature film and is based on her award-winning short doc “Atlantiques.” The French-Senegalese filmmaker has helmed other shorts, worked as a DP, and acted in projects such as “35 Shots of Rum” and “Hermia & Helena.”

The Cannes Film Festival runs through May 25.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mI49KQ7Y-8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwbYjp89K0Q