Matta Fancanta, Come Guard Yourself Against Self-Destruction

(2026)

Matta Fancanta: Come Guard Yourself Against Self-Destruction", commission by Arts Collective and the Northamptonshire Black History Association (NBHA). The work explores the legacy of the Matta Fancanta Movement (MFM), a Rastafari youth movement that occupied the former Salvation Army citadel on Sheep Street in the late 1970s.

Sitting with hours of oral histories and community-held knowledge, Mitchell has distilled a vast archive of resistance and self-education into a 25-minute ambient film. The project focuses on these testimonies, honouring the voices of founding members and elders to present MFM as both a historical movement and a living legacy. By weaving together influential music, literature and raw testimonies, the film positions the movement as a radical model for collective learning and self-determination that continues to resonate within Northampton’s contemporary cultural landscape.