Introduction

In 2009, the Nairobi-based Lola Kenya Screen audiovisual media initiative for children and youth in eastern Africa marked yet another milestone by training 33 children and youth in filmmaking, creative journalism, film judging and events organisation and presentation during the fourth edition of this annual festival that holds every second week of August.

 

Experts from Denmark, Norway, Spain, Nigeria and Kenya imparted skills on mentored children and youth through the highly popular hands-on, learn-as-you-do mentorship programmes August 10-15, 2009. From Spain were Rut Gomez Sobrino and Fina Sensada Boixader while Kenya provided Wanjiru Kairu, Vincho Nchogu and Ogova Ondego. Also present was Annette Tony Hansen from Denmark.

 

Independent Producers Organisation

Convinced of the need to create synergy between the efforts of the various stakeholders in the audiovisual media sector in eastern Africa, Lola Kenya Screen with the support of the Information and Communication Department of UNESCO in the French capital Paris, hosted the first Eastern Africa Independent Producers Summit. This was a three-day conference with the objective of helping develop favourable independent audiovisual media policies for Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Eastern Congo-Kinshasa, Ethiopia, Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia. The conference, that ran August 13-15, 2009, was task-based and resulted in the Nairobi Audiovisual Media Declaration and the formation of the Eastern Africa Independent Producers Organisation (IPO) network.

 

The Best Possible International Films for Children and Youth Showcased

The festival, held on the theme ‘The Circle’, showcased more than 250 films in 33 languages from 50 nations over six days of celebrating creativity, innovation, cinema and humanity.

 

The films were showcased under nine categories with 21 competing for the prestigious Golden Mboni Award for the best children’s film and 12 others in the newly introduced 14-Plus Award for the best youth film.

 

Among some of the memorable films showcased was EL REGALA De La PACHAMAMA/Pachamama; directed by US-based Japanese Toshifumi Matsushita, this fictional spiritual tale set in Bolivia in South America is the story of a 13-year-old boy who lives in the traditional way with his family near the salt lake of Uyuni. One spring he goes with his father on his first caravan. Strapping blocks of salt to the backs of their Ilamas, they follow the salt trail four months exchanging the precious mineral for both products of the Andes. Along the way through many experiences and encounters, the boy discovers who he is as a young man and a Quechua. As the trip comes to a close he meets a beautiful girl at a festival. Their two young hearts awaken as they share a simple but profound dream: to ride a bicycle together across the salt lake.

 

Apart from the captivating story-line, the film celebrates childhood, showing that children should be free to play, have an opinion, participate in socio-cultural activities of their communities and be brought up in loving homes. Many films that were showcased at Lola Kenya Screen in 2009 were particularly centred on children.

 

In another enthralling and almost annoying film, KUR PALUDIS ELVIS/Finding Elvis, a 78-minute fictional film directed by Latvian Una Celma. This is an amusing and almost annoying re-telling of how children are ignored by the adults in their lives. It features parents who work 24/7, don’t care how or where their children are, wouldn’t care less how a child’s names are spelled or the ever-smiling adults who, to them, everything the children say bear little or no meaning and can only be smiled at even when the situation is serious such as the disappearance of a child.

 

KIRIKOU ET LA SORCIERE/Kirikou and the Sorceress, a 74-minute animated feature made in 1998 by French Michel Ocelot but dubbed into Kiswahili in 2009, was the talk on every child’s and adult’s lips even after the screening was over and in the days that followed the weeklong celebration. The West African fairy tale revolves around Kirikou, a small boy with magical powers who delivers his community from Karaba, the most horrid of witches.

 

Though screened under a special focus programme titled, ‘Films Dubbed into Kiswahili’, KIRIKOU ET LA SORCIERE scooped the Audience’s Choice prize.

 

The Festival Jury comprising children and youth gave the Lola Kenya Screen Golden Mboni Award for the best children’s film to IO PARLO/I’ll Tell on You, a 2009 Italian production revolving around a 12-year-old boy who longs for friendship with the 25-year-old boyfriend of his sister but who, unfortunately, doesn’t even seem to see him. However the former’s big break comes when he catches the latter with another girl. Directed by Marco Gianfreda, IO PARLO was lauded by the jury for using the art of suspense to call the attention of the audience and for showing the ability of a child to influence circumstances in life.

 

While pointing out THE HAPPY DUCKLING for being concise, clear and creatively directed with the use of a pop-up book style, the jury awarded the nine-minute animation the Lola Kenya Screen Silver Mboni Award as PAMELA of Kenyan James Kanja was awarded the Lola Kenya Screen Bronze Mboni Award for the third best children’s film for what the jury said to be a portrayal of a lifestyle close to home for many children around the world who come from homes torn by gender-based violence.

 

The inaugural 14-Plus Prize for the best youth film went to South African Minky Schlesinger’s UGUGU NO ANDILE/Gugu and Andile, a 96-minute drama set against the backdrop of political rivalry and young romance. In the film Gugu, a 16-year-old from a Zulu-speaking family falls in love with Andile, an 18-year-old Xhosa youth in a plot not unlike that of Shakespeare’s Montague and Capulet families of Verona, Italy. As expected, their love is frowned upon by both communities that are killing each other every passing day. The jury praised the film and placed it in the league of other good South African productions such as TSOTSI and SARAFINA.

 

The 14-Plus Award for the second best youth film went to A BEAUTIFUL TRAGEDY by Norway-based documentary maker David Kinsella for what the jury described as a unique way of making documentaries, being well directed and teaching the audience the importance of determination and consistency in life.

 

FROM A WHISPER, a Kenyan production by Wanuri Kahiu, took the 14-Plus Award for the third best youth film for , according to the jury, ‘challenging the definitions of faith, betrayal, honour and forgiveness artistically while reconnecting with the silent trauma of people who live the past loss, trying to find unique and sometimes flawed ways of survival’. The film is on the 1998 terrorist bombing of the American embassy in 1998 and the loss to life and property.

 

ZLAMANA PIECZPC/The Broken Seal by Polish Panea Czarzasty, the eighth episode of the Mis Fantazy (Fantasy, the Bear), won both the best television series and best animation awards.

 

ELEPHANTS of the UK took away the best student film award. Directed by Sally Pearce, ELEPHANTS is the story of a girl growing up in a very grey world who conspires with the elephants that have infected their home to send her own parents, not the elephants, to the zoo.

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Awkward Moments

However all was not well with the 4^th Lola Kenya Screen as it recorded a paltry 3023 people attendance over the six-day duration of the festival. Though all activities had been centralised by having only one festival venue, the turn out at the various screenings was not impressive. Besides showing the films without gate charges, Lola Kenya Screen had also to ferry children and youth to and from the screening venue to ensure that the good films were not showcased to an almost empty auditorium. 

Another awkward moment was when the festival directorate had to withdraw two South African films—IZULU LAMI and ZIMBABWE—from the programme after producer Jeremy Nathan accused the festival management of screening his films without permission demanded to be paid 500 Euros per screening of each film, something not usually done by Lola Kenya Screen that does not even charge film submission fee.

 

International Experts Mentor Children and Youth

But with individuals travelling from Spain, Norway, Denmark, Nigeria and Canada to witness their films being showcased and receiving films in 33 languages from 50 nations across the world, Lola Kenya Screen will keep with her intention to cultivate and entrench the film-going culture in Africa, train children and youth through her skill-development programmes during the fifth edition of the annual event that will held in Nairobi August 9-14, 2010.

 

2009 Partners

Presented by ComMattersKenya in conjunction with Goethe-Institut in Kenya, the partners of Lola Kenya Screen 2009 were UNESCO, Africalia, Jan Vrijman Fund/IDFA, Prix Jeunese, ArtMatters.Info, and Cinematic Solutions.

 

Call for 2010 Films

Meanwhile, Lola Kenya Screen is calling for film entries from all over the world for the 5th Lola Kenya Screen August 9-14, 2010). 

 

Lola Kenya Screen accepts films made by professionals, students, amateurs, youth, and children that focus on children, youth and family.

 

Experimental films, television series, video games and even creatively packaged music videos tackling issues related to children, youth and family are also accepted.

 

The deadline for receiving films in Nairobi, Kenya, is 15 April 2010.

 

Film submission details, the entry form and regulations are available online at lolakenyascreen.org, i.e. http://www.lolakenyascreen.org/downloads/2010.film.submissions.pdf

Founded in October 2005, Lola Kenya Screen is an annual international film festival, production workshop and audiovisual media market that seeks to empower children and youth.

 

Children/Youth Mobile Cinema, Advocacy and Skill-Development Programmes

Lola Kenya Screen is in 2010-2011 embarking on an ambitious travelling film festival for children and youth in Nairobi. High quality educational, informational and entertaining development-related African films will be showcased to children and youth in schools, rehabilitation homes and youth vocational and religious centres in five Nairobi neighbourhoods.

 

Lola Kenya Screen is undertaking this project in collaboration with Africalia of Belgium in line with the European Commission's "Investing in people: Access to local culture, protection and promotion of cultural diversity" programme.

 

The objectives of this project include strengthening organisational, methodological and technical competencies of festivals involved in promoting African cinematography; raising awareness among culture professionals of issues surrounding the dissemination of African cinema; raising public awareness in areas which are socially, geographically and economically underprivileged in the South over the expression and the content of films from different geographical areas of Africa; and promoting unity in diversity.

 

Together with film shows and the advocacy that goes with it, Lola Kenya Screen shall also conduct skill-development mentorship programmes for children and youth in media literacy, film production, creative journalism, programme preparation and presentation, book production, and critical appreciation of creativity in the institutions we shall partner with.

 

Lola Kenya Screen needs partners to assist with motor vehicles for transport, security during screenings, human resource to organise logistics, facilitators with expertise in advocating issues related to children, youth and mass media, and financial support for mass media publicity, training material and venues, and for helping pay for operational costs.

 

Lola Kenya Screen 2009 Awards and Prizes

 

Main Awards

 

·      The 4^th Lola Kenya Screen Golden Mboni Award for the best children’s film: IO PARLO (I'll Tell on You!) by Marco Gianfreda, Italy

·      The 4^th Lola Kenya Screen Silver Mboni for the second best children’s film:  THE HAPPY DUCKLING by Gili Dolev of Scotland/Israel

·      The 4^th Lola Kenya Screen Bronze Mboni for the third best children’s film: PAMELA by James Kanja, Kenya

·      The Lola Screen 14-Plus Award for the best youth film: UGUGU NO ANDILE (Gugu and Andile) by Minky Schlesinger, South Africa

·      The Lola Kenya Screen 14-Plus Award for the second best youth film: A BEAUTIFUL TRAGEDY by David Kinsella, Norway/UK

·      The Lola Kenya Screen 14-Plus Award for the third best youth film: FROM A WHISPER by Wanuri Kahiu, Kenya

 

Special Awards     

 

·      Best Animation: Z?amana piecz?? /The Broken Seal by Pawe? Czarzasty, Poland

·      Best TV Series: Z?amana piecz??/The Broken Seal by Pawe? Czarzasty, Poland

·      Best Children’s Rights Film: El Regala De La Pachamama/Pachamama by Toshifumi Matsushita, USA

·      Best Experimental Film: Delroy Kincaid by Powys Dewhurst, Canada

·      Best Documentary: A Beautiful Tragedy by David Kinsella

·      Best Student Film: Elephants by Sally Pearce, UK

·      Best Film by Youth: How Do You Score?, off the YOUNG LOVE documentary compilation, by Azariah Simon, Indigo Sanders, Austin Harris, April Monetbon, Douglas Moffat Jr, Everett Anderson, USA

 

Special Mention

 

The following films—mainly from the Industrialised North—exhibited great promise in terms of artistry and the ability of grappling with international themes of universal appeal using children aged 5-17 years. These children step in when authority figures like parents, teachers and the police display inaction or unwillingness in solving problems affecting society. This presentation of children as empowered humans with the ability to deal with issues affecting them is quite refreshing, stimulating and worth of mention:

 

·      Kur Paludis Elvis by Una Celma, Latvia

·      Cuento De La C by Carlos Navarro, Spain

·      Soto Il Mio Giardino by Andrea Lodovichetti, Italy

·      Babalwa’s Story by Charlene Houston, South Africa

·      Una Vida Mejor by Luis Fernandez Reneo, Spain

 

The 2009 Jury

While the jury comprising only children and youth—6-15-years—judges and awards the Lola Kenya Screen Golden Mboni Award for the best children’s film and the Lola Kenya Screen 14-Plus Award for the best youth film, the festival-goers give the Audience’s Choice Award.

 

Over the past four years, special prizes have been presented by the ArtMatters.Info Critics Guild/Mentorship Programme with the support of ComMattersKenya. However, starting from the 2010 festival (August 9-14, 2010), an academy—the Lola Kenya Screen Academy—will take over this arduous but important task.

 

The Creativity Award for the best project at the Lola Kenya Screen Film Production Workshops is usually given by the film workshop facilitators and mentors in conjunction with the festival directorate.

 

Contributor details

 

Creative Director and Managing Trustee of Lola Kenya Screen, Ogova Ondego is a creative and cultural entrepreneur, writer, journalist and audiovisual media practitioner based in Nairobi, Kenya.