Bold stories: celebrating the power of African women filmmakers
UNITED NATIONS, New York - As the world converged in New York for the Global Africa Business Initiative on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, The Rev Canon Dr. Betsee Parker, Naila Media, the United Nations Global Compact and Spotlight Initiative presented a short-film showcase dedicated to celebrating the transformative power of African women filmmakers in the entertainment industry.
The ‘Bold Stories’ showcase on Thursday, 26 September reflected the vibrant and diverse experiences of African women, emphasizing their role as catalysts for social change and cultural dialogue. The films were followed by a conversation with the filmmakers.
In her opening remarks, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed thanked the filmmakers and highlighted the need for more resources to support African creators to tell their own stories.
“Watch the films, take them away with you, spread them. That’s what stories are, they’re for us to tell generation after generation,” she said.
The films traversed a wide range of subjects, from the personal story of a Rwandan genocide survivor in ‘Ishimwa: from Bloodshed to Grace’ to ‘Deafening Silence’, a Spotlight Initiative-supported film that deals with the impacts of sexual and gender-based violence. Nollywood screenwriter, director and producer Emem Isong-Misodi collaborated with Spotlight Initiative and UNDP on the film, which premiered in Nigeria in June and has since been turned into a television series.
“The most important thing for me was that it was going to be a great human story and for us not to project our own thoughts onto the people, but for the people to tell us what they wanted the world to know about them,” said director Nadine Ibrahim, whose documentary ‘Forgotten Shores’ highlights the unique history and present-day experiences of the residents of Saint Helena.
Cynthia Butare, the director of ‘Ishimwa’, spoke about the need to see more diverse experiences on screen and the challenge of telling personal stories in a way that remains universal.
“I’m passionate about telling stories that we don't see on screen every day,” said Ms. Butare. “Why do we know so much about Manhattan [when] it’s my very first time in New York, my very first time in the US? [Because] that’s what we see in the mainstream.”
Judy Kibinge, Kenyan filmmaker and the subject of the documentary ‘Out of the Box’ echoed the need for greater infrastructure and funding.
“I got into film because I realized that we are what we consume... How seriously do we take our storytellers? And yet we know why people get voted into power - it’s the stories that they tell.
“That’s why I started a film fund – at some point you realize you can't wait for things to come to you, so you gather and you organize.”
