Rwandan films nominated for Africa’s Oscars

“Rwanda: Beyond The Deadly Pit” (2011, 104 min, documentary) and “Kinyarwanda” (2011, 100 min, drama/romance) have been nominated for 2012 African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA), Africa’s most prestigious awards for filmmakers.Gilbert Ndahayo’s “Rwanda: Beyond The Deadly Pit” is a documentary about his struggle to rebuild his family’s honour destroyed during the 1994 Rwanda Genocide against the Tutsi. The film is a rare appearance of the filmmaker‘s parents’ killers in a court case; visually, contemporary footage enhances cinematic call for peace. “Rwanda: Beyond The Deadly Pit” is nominated for Best Documentary. Ndahayo told The New Times that if “Rwanda: Beyond The Deadly Pit” wins the AMAA, he would be the first Rwandan to earn such a prestige. Ndahayo debuted in 2006, “Scars of My Days” (30 min.) dubbed “Sex And The City” that received the Golden Impala First Time Filmmaker at Amakula International Film Festival and premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in the presence of an audience that included Former U.S. President Bill Clinton, and Hollywood celebrities such as Robert De Nero and Jane Rosenthal.His feature films, “Behind This Convent” (2008 66 min.), “Rwanda Beyond the Deadly Pit” received a distribution grant from Paul Robeson Fund for Independent Media in New York. The films also received Verona Award (2008), and Best Documentary feature award at the Santa Clara County Commendation and U.S. House of Representatives – Special Congregational Recognition in Silicon Valley Film Festival this year. He has been in Greece, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, South Africa and many other countries premiering his movies in the last two years.Ndahayo’s films have been the subject of scholarly scrutiny in America. He is currently completing his Masters in Fine Arts (Film Directing) at Columbia University in New York.Alrick Brown (US, Kinyarwanda)‘Kinyarwanda’, a movie directed by Jamaican-born U.S. director Alrick Brown, is based on true accounts from survivors who took refuge at the Grand Mosque of Kigali and the Imams who opened their doors to give refuge to the Tutsi and Hutu who refused to participate in the 1994 Rwanda Genocide against the Tutsi. The story interweaves different tales which form one grand narrative, providing the most complex and real depiction yet presented of life and human resilience during the genocide. With a combination of characters, Kinyarwanda pays homage to many, using the voices of a few.The debut feature from Brown scooped the Grand Prize at the Skip City D-Cinema Festival in Tokyo, Japan, 2011- and also won an Audience award at the Sundance Film Festival, the same year.Beautifully shot, Kinyarwanda is a story of healing, moving past the tragedy and outrage to find justice, and, finally, peace.AMAA Nominees AMAA, the continent’s most prestigious awards for filmmakers announced the 2012 nominees in Banjul, the capital of Gambia, at an exclusive ceremony attended by celebrities, top government officials and capitals of industry from Gambia and other African countries.From the 328 films submitted to the AMAA 2012, Nigeria has bagged 52 nominations, South Africa 45, Ghana 17 and Kenya 14. Also appearing on the list are Uganda with 5 nominations and the rest with one nomination each: Tanzania, Algeria, Cameroon, Guinea, Rwanda, and Zimbabwe. Most nominated films include South Africa’s ‘Otelo Burning’ and ‘How to 2 Steal 2 Million’; Nigeria’s ‘Adesuwa’; Ghana’s Somewhere in Africa; The Nigerian-South African co-production Man on Ground; and Kenya’s Rugged Priest. The winners will be announced at a glittering ceremony on April 22, 2012, hosted by “Heroes” star Jimmy Jean-Louis. The event will be held in Lagos. A variety of international observers have fondly called the African Movie Academy Awards the “African Oscars”.About the AMAAThe African Movie Academy Awards, popularly known as AMAA Awards, are presented annually to recognise excellence of professionals in the African film industry, including directors, actors, and writers. The awards are aimed at honouring and promoting excellence in the African movie industry as well as uniting the African continent through arts and culture. The first African Movie Academy Awards were held in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria on May 30 2005.

Leisure

Rwandan films nominated for Africa’s Oscars