Kenya Film Commission Newsletter May 2008

The sun sets in the land of a thousand hills and a cascade of lights greets you as you drive past the streets of Kigali.

Kigali is built on hills and valleys and the view at night is simply breathtaking. The hilly areas make for a great vantage point.

I was in Kigali for the second Rwanda Film Festival (R.F.F) which would run from 16 th - 30 th March 2008.

The Commission was invited as a guest/ observer and this was definitely a grand opportunity for us to see how community screenings are carried out, festival calendars are drawn up and how other events within the festival are executed.

This year's theme for the film industry that is nicknamed "Hillywood" was "World Exposure".

The two week festival featured a team of 32 hands on personnel, from the festival chairperson to the logistics director. The festival went round to seven rural locations covering all four regions of Rwanda. The rural locations were Umutara, Kibungo, Byumba, Ruhengeri, Gisenyi, Kibuye and Butare.

Our first rural stop was NYAGATARE. By the time the stage, sound system and screen were set up, the villagers were already milling around patiently waiting for the action to start. Rwandans keep time! They were told to gather around by 6pm and they had all comfortably selected a spot by 5.30pm. The event kicked off with a roadshow hosted by MTN to curtain raise the main event which was the screenings.

After one hour of dance competitions and hype by the MCees, the first film began rolling.

Mobile cinema has been the most effective means of communication in rural areas, especially in the case of Rwanda. The festival used what is referred to as the inflatable cinema model.

The inflatable cinema was used in the different rural locations and during the screening; the entire atmosphere in the township turns festive and creates an excellent socializing opportunity for rural communities.

Rwanda has only ONE cinema hall, the "Centre d'echanges culturel" in Kigali which was to be the venue for some of the screenings.

The Kenya Film Festival partly sponsored the director of K.I.F.F, Charles Asiba to attend the Rwanda Film Festival.

In the framework of establishing regional co-operation, Mr. Asiba planned to meet and discuss with festival organizers of R.F.F, how to establish an East Africa Film makers forum to be held during the third edition of K.I.F.F.

A mutually beneficial collaboration, according to Mr. Asiba, can be established in these festivals in areas of skills training, film collection, regional experts and programme exchange between festival organizers.

Excellent teamwork-the team worked together very well, in solidarity and harmony regardless of budgetary constraints.
The team was very young- R.F.F was characterized by young people.
The presence of international films and film makers was commendable- film makers from as far off as Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, UK, Canada, Sweden, USA, India and Finland participated at R.F.F.
Regular exchange programmes should be encouraged- this will allow for transfer of technical skills and expertise.
Urgent need to set up regional body for film makers in the region to bring together stakeholders in the audio visual industry.
A regular East African film forum should be held at all regional festivals.

Two hundred films were submitted; eighty films were selected for screening. Ten of these films were from Kenya.

Several international films were screened including the Zimbabwean hit " TANYARADZWA " which received rave reviews at last year's Kenya International Film Festival (KIFF) event.

Seven Kenyan films were showcased, some of them being: " BABU'S BABIES ", " ENOUGH IS ENOUGH ", " EXTRACTS OF ME ", " LIFE IN D MAJOR " and " THE BATTLE FOR THE SACRED TREE ". Notable Kenyan film makers William Owusu, Angelo Kinyua, Zippy Kimunda, Wanjiru Kairu and Albert Wandago submitted their films for screening.

A Kenyan director based in the USA, PATRICK MUREITHI showcased a heart wrenching documentary " ICYIZERE " (meaning: HOPE) based on a reconciliation workshop that was held in Gisenyi. The workshop consisted of Tutsi and Hutu participants; the Tutsis victims sat across their Hutu genocide perpetrators, searching for ways to heal the hurt. The film left the audience quite emotional and some walked away to avoid re-living the hurt caused by the genocide.

Other films that were top rated in the festival were: " WE ARE ALL RWANDANS" - the story of high school students who refused to divide themselves into Hutu and Tutsis when militiamen raided their school during night preps and demanded that they stand according to their tribes. The students were eventually massacred and today, their remains are buried at the Kigali's Hero's Corner.

"SHAKE THE HANDS OF THE DEVIL " was another hit at the festival as it highlights the story of ROMEO DALLAIRE, the renowned military commander of the U.N Mission in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide. Dallaire appealed to the UN on several occasions to step in and stop the massacre; however when his request fell on deaf ears, Dallaires hands were tied and there was very little he could do to save the 800,000 Tutsis who were brutally massacred.

Genocide is still very much at the forefront of Rwanda's day to day life. It is a scar in history that has not been forgotten. Several films carried the genocide and post-genocide theme. Festival organizers argue that their primary objectives for screening these painful reminders are to illustrate the effect of the politics of hate and genocide on the lives of Rwandese people; to create space for dialogue amongst film makers and peers, enhance the world's attention on the continuing sufferers of genocide.

R.F.F organizers believe that women hold the family foundation together and as such, they decided to host a special component of the festival entitled: WOMEN PANAROMA. The event brought together women from various regions to discuss and share views regarding women's issues, through film.

Films by women on women issues were showcased during this event. It was an opportunity to celebrate women who are behind the cameras, directors, producers, scriptwriters.

The centre was the heart of the festival; it was the pulse of all the activities. Located in a quiet suburb of Kigali, RCC was the convergence point for all festival activities; it was the headquarters of the well co-ordinated festival.

R.C.C's Director and Festival Chairperson Eric Kabera has been instrumental in creating a vibrant film industry in Rwanda. Kabera has single-handedly set up institutions and systems that have made Rwandan film what it is today.

Kabera's background was in radio journalism for 3 years whereby he worked as a freelancer for the Africa Section of the BBC. He has been running Link Media Production Company in Rwanda since 1994 which produced the first feature length film on the Rwandan genocide"100 Days".

Kabera founded the Rwanda Cinema Centre with the intention of training and facilitating filmmaking in Rwanda. He organized the first Rwanda Film Festival in March 2005.

Overall, the Rwanda Film Festival was a success as they continue to enjoy goodwill from the local audience. Rwandans love to watch films and they are hungry for events such as R.F.F. Perhaps our very own KIFF can borrow a leaf from R.F.F in terms of securing sponsorships early in the year and including rural screenings in their festival calendar.

CROWDS FROM NYAGATARE VILLAGE WHO TURNED UP IN LARGE NUMBERS TO WATCH THE FIVE FILMS SCREENED AS PART OF THE RWANDA FILM FESTIVAL