A scene from the film Unheard. Photo/Courtesy/Polka media
In 2019, the Uganda Communications Commission mooted a plan to support the local film industry. It had been an industry call that in countries such as Uganda, where corporate companies are not ready to support the work of creatives, there was a need for a fund. In many countries where the arts thrive, there are funds that creatives apply for in order to make art the way they want it.
For filmmakers, the need was for a film fund.
At the 2019 edition of the UCC-sponsored Uganda Film Festival, it was announced that a support programme was in the pipeline.
The programme was eventually launched in 2020, but it was not until 2021 that the first recipients of the support were selected.
Two films from the project have since been released this year. First was Eleanor Nabwiso’s Karamoja and on Friday at Century Cinemax, it was Polly Kamukama’s Unheard.
The story of Unheard takes place in a small fishing village where modernity and the values it comes with are still myths. When a young widow decides to take on her husband’s former job as a fisherman, she obviously faces resistance from many who believe it is an abomination.
But soon they are to realise that the widow fishing is just a little of their worries; the area leader is planning on selling the landing site to an investor, something that will deprive the entire village. It is a bigger problem whose solution has to be immediate.
Kamukama, formerly a journalist, says he has been working on the story for nearly 10 years. The story is not based on his mother’s life, but it is heavily inspired by her resilience. Kamukama is a well-travelled film curator, and thus, there was an Afro-centric influence that ran through the film, especially the use of symbols, colours, and language.
The film is entirely in Rukiga, something that aids it in terms of being authentic, emotional, and true.
Many of the characters are believable and do not struggle to convey their emotions. The beauty of the film, according to James King Bgyenzi, a filmmaker based in Kabale, is that the film gave an opportunity to filmmakers and actors from Kabale to showcase what they are made of.
He says, for instance, that about 60 percent of the crew were filmmakers he has trained, while even the actors were mainly from the area.
The Runyakitara industry has been making strides over the years, trying to make its presence felt on the scene. During the Pearl International Film Festival of 2018, at least 20 percent of all the films submitted for consideration were from the region.
However, they only managed a solo nomination that never materialised into a win.
In 2019, the film November Tear, another film primarily in Runyankole, premiered. It was heralded as a great achievement for films from western Uganda. However, the difference between the two films is that while November Tear heavily relied on cast and crew from the central region, Unheard went back to the source.
According to Kamukama, they intend to take the film to public screenings in the places it was shot, and next year, they will proceed with school tours.
Jackline Katusiime, Joe Kahirimbanyi, and Cyril Baryabawe made up the formidable cast of Ken Ssebaggala’s film Unheard.