Yeelen (Bambara for "brightness"/"light") is a 1987 Malian film directed by Souleymane Cissé, though the era is undefined, it is presumably set in the 13th century in which empire in West Africa, from 1230 to 1670?
Mali Empire The Mali Empire (Manding: "Nyeni" or "Niani"; also historically referred to as the Manden Kurufaba, sometimes shortened to Manden) was an empire in West Africa from 1230 to 1670. The empire was founded by Sundiata Keita and became renowned for the wealth of its rulers, especially Musa Keita. The Manding languages were spoken in the empire. It was the largest empire in West Africa and profoundly influenced the culture of West Africa through the spread of its language, laws and customs. Much of the recorded information about the Mali Empire comes from 14th century North African Arab historian Ibn Khaldun, 14th century Moroccan traveller Ibn Battuta and 16th century Moroccan traveller Leo Africanus. The other major source of information is Mandinka oral tradition, through storytellers known as griots.
Mandingo people of Sierra Leone The Mandinka people of Sierra Leone (commonly referred to as the Mandingo, Mandinka or Malinke) are a major ethnic group in Sierra Leone and a branch of the Mandinka people of West Africa, with whom they share the same culture, religion, tradition and language. Most Sierra Leonean Mandingo are the direct descendants of Mandinka warriors from Guinea, who conquered large territories in areas of the North and East of Sierra Leone in the 1870s under the leadership of Samori Ture. They were followed by thousands of Mandingo settlers from Guinea in the late 19th and early-to-mid-20th century.