SINEMA NEWS

It’s no secret that Kenyans tend to prefer to watch what comes out of Hollywood and Europe and lately, there has been a craze for the ever dramatic Mexican soaps. African movies especially those produced in Nigeria also have a very strong following right here. Yet, KENYA has a kaleidoscope of stories that can be translated onto the silver screen and become a source of great entertainment, as much as the next Mexican soap. The Kenya Film Commission is mandated to develop and promote the local film industry and it is in line with this mandate that collaborating with MNET Africa to send a group of Kenyan audio visual artists for a two week training programme in Nigeria was a welcome idea.

PROJECT NOLLYWOOD The training programme dubbed “Project Nollywood” was the

brainchild of The Ke-nya Film Commission in collaboration with Pan African subscrip-tion TV channel, MNET Africa who saw it fit to partner together to see ten Kenyan film makers develop their skills and exchange ideas. It was also an opportunity for our local story tellers to delve into the multi bil-lion shilling Nigerian film industry which churns out thousands of pro-

ductions annually and which keeps the local and regional audience base loyal

and wanting more. Obviously, Nigerian film makers have lots to offer to our local film makers and this is our opportunity to tap into their “trade secrets”; a little knowledge gained will not hurt and this forum can serve as an opportunity for participants to exchange ideas. The Commission views this training in Nigeria as an opportunity to capacity build and develop the skills of our film makers. There is definitely need to see a marked improvement in the marketing and distribution machineries of our local productions and Nollywood seems to have found the key to success in these areas. The Commission’s intention is for these ten Kenyan filmmakers to adapt these skills and translate them into tangibleproductions that can be market-ed aptly and capture audi-

ences, leaving them wanting more.

THE SELECTION PROCESS After a well attend-ed press launch on the 4th of June, an advertisement was put out in the local press calling for applications. The Commission received an overwhelming response from hundreds of applicants countrywide, some from as far off as Kisumu. The Commission’s of-fice played host to the selection and short listing process, facilitated by a panel of veteran industry players who had the rigorous task of poring over each and every individual application. Twenty five outstanding participants were selected and were invited to pitch to the panel. The day long pitching process culminated in ten candidates being identified.

THE TRAINING The ten Kenyans will undergo what can be described as “script to screen” training; basically what is entailed from the pre-pro-duction stage all the way to the end product being realized. Veteran Ni-geria producers, cinematographers, scriptwriters and actors will facilitate the training in a period of two weeks.The ten will have firsthand experience

of being on a Nollywood film set as well.

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L-R (front row) Elijah Kahara (KFC), Mburu Kimani, Albert Ngonche, Sheila Mulinya, Naomi Kamau*has since been replaced by Robert Bresson,Nyatichi Sitati (KFC), Keith Oleng , (back row) Mariah Nzinzi, Kirumburu Nganga, Nicholas Njache ,Moses Oduwa Onyango , Patricia Mbatia-Macharia (Multichoice) and Simiyu Barasa

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JOIN SINEMA DATAKenya’s most comprehensive database of FILM MAKERS !

email info@filmingkenya.com OR visit www.filmingkenya.com

PROJECT NOLLYWOOD

category at Kenya International Film Festival (KIFF). Makbul Mohammed, who was the festival’s Best Actor, won the award for his performance in another short film directed by Mary Migui, Emancipation.

Other filmmakers do shorts target-ing features. Nathan Collett, who won a Student Emmy award for his short Kibera Kid was so inspired by the huge success of his film, he has written a 120 page script! The young director, who also directed The Oath admits that at first, short films didn’t do so well. But with seven awards and counting, Kibera Kid has proved that they are hugely popular. The short film has screened in over 50 festivals across the globe. The fea-ture film is expected to start filming in mid 2008.

With these levels of success on short films, we can only wait with baited breath for this year’s KIFF. It will defi-nitely be a festival of short films!

ELIJAH KAHARA

SHORT FILMREVOLUTION

Films in Kenya started back in the 1950’s. But it wasn’t until around the year 2000 that film makers started mak-ing short films.

A new breed of directors came up, with the likes of Willie Owusu, Aleks Kamau, Nathan Collett and Ravneet Chada taping into its full potential. They have received a lot of hype, carving their niche in society through the produc-tion of excellent short films, which I must add have been received very well by the audience.

In line with Commission’s mandate of developing the local industry, we start-ed the hype on short films with Great Shorts in KFC’s SINEMA LOUNGE. It was a night to celebrate short films, with five short films on the evening’s entertain-ment menu! Directors had a chance to mingle with producers and press, leading to an entire edition of KTN’s Artscene being dedicated to the films. KBC’s Grapevine featured Great Shorts as their main story as did NTV’s Insync. Biki Kangwana of Future Shorts tapped into this KFC idea by hosting a monthly short film night, and the event is gaining popularity. The May Future Shorts event

was held at the Pavement Club, West-lands and despite the fact that the UEFA champions league final was on at the same time, the films were screened to a full house. It just goes to show the growing popularity of independent film in Kenya.

With that much hype, short films have quickly become official festival material. More directors who cannot secure fund-ing for feature films are opting for shorts, as these are often cheaper to do. “With short films, I can shoot a little today, a little next week. Meanwhile I’ll be editing the little I have shot. You know how hard it is to get actors nowadays to commit to a free project. They are so busy. For now, we are shooting according to their schedule,” says Willie Owusu, who is cur-rently working on a short with veteran screen personali-ties Aleks Kamau and Nini Wacera. The film will be re-leased later this year. Willie Owusu has won accolades for his shorts including the Best Director- Short film

>> the crowd enjoys a film at the first Future Shorts

[www.futureshorts.com] event that was held at The Pavement Club

228/09 -> 5/10 2007www.kifftrust.org

K E N YAI N T E R NAT I O NA LF I L M Fe s t i v a l

3

The Kenya Film Commission was proud to host a pre-launch event at its auditorium on the 21st of April. The event show-cased a series of short films from FUTURE SHORTS, the world’s

largest short film network.

FUTURE SHORTS holds a monthly screening of the world’s finest in short film including drama, documentary, animation, music videos and more. The event, organised by Biki Kangwana of Future Shorts Kenya was graced by the likes of Keith Pearson (Theatre Company), Jim Shamoon (BlueSky Films), Eric Wain-ana- Kenya’s best known Afro-Fusion musician and several

other industry stakeholders.

Some of the films screened were Sentimental Journey (Dir: Nagi Noda/Japan/2005), City Paradise (Dir: Gaelle Denis/UK/2004), She Loves Me, She Loves Me Not (Dir: Jamie

Rafn/UK/2003) to name just a few of the great shorts that were screened.

P r e - l a u n c h o f F U T U R E S H O R T S K E N Y Ai n t h e S I N E M A L O U N G ESARAH KIRENGA

In order to improve on service delivery and assure our customers that we are providing the best, it was decided that the staff of KFC should get ISO certified. This meant the implementation of key quality management systems requirements as specified in ISO 9001: 2000 standard. The entire organization had to undergo training on the certification process.

The training

The training took place at the headquarters of the Ministry of Information and Communications, in Nairobi. It was facilitated Mr. Masinza and Mr. Maru of Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS).

The following sessions were covered:

1. Basic concepts of qualityThis session covered definition, dimensions and development of quality. It also covered importance and impact of quality on Business.

2. Introduction of ISO 9000 standards and the management system conceptIn this session, we learnt about the meaning of ISO and ISO 9000 and the evolution and structure of ISO 9000. We also covered the various

features of ISO 9000 standards, benefits of its implementation and the Concept of Management System.

3. Quality Management Principles Under this topic the participants were introduced to the eight (8) Quality Management Principles (QMPs), their implication to and organization and how they can be applied.

4. The process approach to Quality Management This session introduced the process approach to different activities/tasks that are performed in an organization. It also covered types of processes and how to identify and analyze processes.

5. ISO 9001: 2000 Requirements This session explained in details the various requirements of Quality management Systems (QMS). These included general requirements, documentation requirements, management responsibility, resource management, product realization, and measurement, analysis and improvement.

6. Documentation of quality management systemsUnder this, the participants

learnt about different levels of documentation, formats of documentation and how to design a maintenance system for QMS. The major document needed for certification include quality policy, quality manual, procedures and work instructions..

7. Preparing for a quality management system and steps to certificationThis session outlined 15 steps for preparing QMS for certification. It also explained what certification is, the responsibilities of Certifying Body (CB) and how to chose a such a body.

The participants rated the training highly. The trainers used very participatory training methods such discussions, case studies and group exercises, among others, to impart the skills. These approaches kept the participants alert throughout the training.

After the training the Commission was left to start the Documentation process. This would be followed by certification after successful auditing.

KFC is very certain that it will be ISO certified within the next few months.

BERNARD MUTURI

K F C G E T S ‘ I S O ’ C E R T I F I E D

are local favourites Churchill (Dan-iel Ndambuki) as the street urchin & Charles Bukeko as the dedicated night watchman Wanyonyi.

“One of our goals at Cinematic has been to bring contemporary Kenyans to “life”. We are proud of our country and people, it is inspiring to work within an industry that acknowledges and celebrates the diversity of Kenyan life,” stated Mr. Nyanja. “Malooned is an ideal platform to go about translating that reality into what we intend to be a major film event.”

“Our intention has always been to de-velop a rich fantasy that could be used to address many topical themes in our society,” states Nyanja, Malooned director & Cinematic Managing Direc-tor. “In addition to being a rewarding experience for us, this motion picture feels like a natural progression for the industry.” Malooned is scored with original mu-sic by savant Bruce Odhiambo. The film that played to thousands in its first weeks in Kenya has become so popu-lar that Fox theaters Uganda will pre-mier it on Friday 22nd June, 2007. It will be screened there for two weeks. The film will also be screened in Delaware, USA in July this year.

at Cinematic. Mr. Nyanja commented “The reality is currently there is not nearly enough feasible material, it wasn’t until we met Mark and Martin Munyua, our Director of Photography, that we felt we’d the perfect partner-ship. They share our high standards for creative development; there isn’t a better team to give our “toilet” story life.” This film has a lot of M’s. Malooned, Muriuki, Mark Mutahi, Mar-tin Munyua, Mutia, Mh!

Malooned brings together an impres-sive array of local talent, which in-cludes newcomer Gabrielle Mutia as the desirable Di and Godfrey Odhiam-bo as the dashing Luther. Malooned is a sharp and affectionate romantic

drama that charts the mis-adventures of Di & Luther as they try desperately to escape the ladies toilet on the 15th floor of a Nairobi building over Easter week-end. The caustic façade of independent woman Di lights the fuse on this unlikely relationship; while, the forced creativity of hero Luther, rivals the in-genuity of the most Bond-

esque gadgets. Making cameo appearances

BOB NYANJA’S N E W F I L M CREATES A STIR AT THE

KENYAN BOX OFFICE

Filming in Kenya has grown immensely over the past few years. Directors have become even more creative, with some even being described as daring! One such director is Bob Nyanja, whose film Malooned has caused quite a stir in the industry. Critics and fans alike have given a thumb’s up to the film that is set in a toilet! Yes, a toilet! If you thought that’s bad, it’s over Easter! One film buff, while reacting to the film said he thinks Bob was too daring to launch his film at a time when two of the biggest films in the world were premiering (Spiderman 3 and Pirates of the Caribbean 3)

Financed exclusively by Kenyan pro-duction house Cinematic Solutions, Malooned is the latest in home-grown films by Kenyans for Kenyans. Cine-matic focused on translating the origi-nal story by Bob Nyanja and crafted screenplay by Mark Mutahi into a distinctively Kenyan entertainment experience for the big screen.

“We searched for a very long time to find the right kind of material to show-case to the Kenyan industry,” said Muriuki Gitonga Production Manager

>> The director Bob Nyanja poses with actor Daniel Ndambuki aka Churchill

>> The two stars of the film Gabrielle Mutia

and Godfrey Odhaim-bo in a scene of

Malooned

4

UPDATE Since this story was first written there

have been some interesting developments with Malooned.

MALOONEDWINS ATZIFFArguably the one of the best films in the country, Malooned was a last minute entry to the renowned Zanzibar Interna-tional Film Festival. The film caused re-ceived rave reviews and created quite a buzz as the audience appreciated the suspense and drama that it entails.

Screened at the Old Fort’s outdoor au-ditorium to hundreds of film lovers, the starry night provided the perfect ambi-ence for Kenya’s feature length film.

Actress Gabrielle Mutia who played “Di” and Director Bob Nyanja were at the screening, accompanied by veteran funny man Charles Bukeko. KFC’s marketing team was on hand to encour-

A P R E T T YI N T E R N AT I O N A L

R E L E A S E

Cinemagoers the world over may have a chance to see a Kenyan movie that is making headlines thanks to a recent deal for its international release. The film is a study of tribal differences and stereotypes as well as the ethnic nature of Kenyan politics. However, the director intends it to have a message of reconciliation as the characters overcome their differences and learn to work together during their forced enclosure. The movie was released in Kenya on 27 April to enthusiastic reviews before sweeping two main awards at the Zanzibar international film festival from 29 June-8 July. Now Pretty Pictures International, a French distribution company has signed a $2.5 million deal to distribute the film globally. Pretty Pictures has networks of distribution all over the world, having distributed hundreds of films. So watch out for Malooned at a cinema near you.

ELIJAH KAHARA

age the filmmakers.Jurists were encouraged to watch the film at the auditorium to give it the de-sired feel. It seems that they enjoyed it. Malooned received the SIGNIS Jury special commendation award as well as the Silver Dhow from the ZIFF jury. The recipient of the Golden Dhow was Juju Factory, which received its first ever screening to an audience at KFC’s sinema lounge on 15th December 2007.

Malooned recently completed a ten state tour of the United States as direc-tor Bob Nyanja accompanied the Re-dykyulass comedy tour and marketed his movie.

>> Charles, Gabrielle and Bob during the screening of their film at ZIFF

>> the Old Forts Auditoirum where films at the Zanzibar International Film Festival were screened.

5

K F C g o e s t o

showcasing locations, a list of movies that have been shot in Kenya, a list of filming agents in the country, a copy of the Commission’s newsletter - the Sine-ma News (AFCI edition), an authenticKenyan key chain and our partners’ promotional material.

The Commission hosted a dinner at the Sheraton Delfina for networking pur-poses. Renowned award winning Hol-lywood actress CCH Pounder (from “The Shield”, “Law and Order” and “ER” TV series) graciously accepted our dinner invitation and gave ample opportunity for autographs and photo session. Other dignitaries at this dinner included Hon Kagwe, Hon Dzoro, Ambassador Ogego and Madame Nyambura Kamau. Ke-nyans living in LA and some key players in the audio visual industry were invited to network and touch base with the Commission. Collo and Robba of Klep-tomaniacs who happened to be in LA at the time were glad to join in the fun!

you may convince studio executives, agents , location scouts or even film makers themselves that your country is THE ideal place to shoot.

The Kenyan delegation consisted of the Deputy Secretary in the Ministry of Information Mr. Peter Alubale, the Department of Film Services’ CEO Mr. Kerich and the Film Licensing Officer Mr. Kibaara, African Heritage’s Ojay Hakim and the Commission’s Marketing team led by the Acting M.D Nyatichi Sitati. Also present and attending the Show from Kenya was Duncan Muriuki and Pat Awori from Maniago Safaris, Jenny Pont and Wambui Kairo as indepen-dent producers. On the afternoon of the opening day the stand was visited by Kenyan dignitaries: Hon. Mutahi Kagwe - Minister for Information and Communications, Tourism Minister -Hon Morris Nzoro, Madame Nyambura Kamau- Consular General of LA and Ambassador Oginga Ogego from New York.

For the first time in AFCI history, Kenya showcased its scenic locations with lots of grandeur! The Commission’s impres-sive booth was strategically located right at the entrance of the Show and as a result of our impressive positioning and attractive stand design, hundreds of industry professionals had no choice but to pass by our booth FIRST before proceeding into the inner sanctum where other countries had set up. Clearly, Kenya was the envy of many.

Visitors to the stand were treated to branded gift bags containing Com-mission brochures, a promotional DVD

Good Friday and the Kenya Film Commission is abuzz with final preparation for the much antici-pated Association of Film Commis-sions International Locations trade show being held in Santa Monica California. The Commission had been planning for this event for eight months on end with one objective in sight: to leave a lasting impression on the par-ticipants and guests at the Trade show

The Commission’s marketing team was off on a campaigning mission of sorts, though not political. Our agenda was simply to campaign for Kenya as a film location and make as much noise as possible about the advantages of shooting in Kenya.

In line with the Kenya Film Commission’s mandate to market Kenya as a film destination of choice, this particular trade show was definitely not one to be skipped. This was the first time in the AFCI history that a fully instituted Kenyan film commission was participat-ing on such a grand scale and in an imposing way. It is also worth noting that Kenya was the only other African country apart from South Africa exhibit-ing this year.

The AFCI trade show held once a year in Santa Monica California is the crème de la creme of Location trade shows! This is where the who’s who of the Film Commission business worldwide can be found and for this reason the red carpet is laid out for production com-pany representatives. This three day exclusive event saw over 300 commis-sions’ exhibit to over 3,000 attendees and key film industry players. With in-formation on the country , incentives offered, stand design, presentation and patriotic charm, the hope is that 6

Several enquiries about filming in Ke-nya were made during the Show and most film makers were especially inter-ested in one key area: INCENTIVES! Hon Kagwe was at hand to give an official standpoint on the issue, saying that it is an issue the government has taken note of and is working to ensure that incentives like tax rebates are made attractive to film makers.

During a meeting held with Paramount Pictures and CBS Studio executives, Hon Kagwe expressed his full support for the film industry and its develop-ment. He cited his attending the AFCI Locations Exhibitions as a show of his support.

An added perk to the meeting held at CBS Studios was encountering the top cast of the “Bold and the Beautiful”, one of the world’s leading TV soap operas. The Kenyan delegation was honoured to meet Stephanie (Susan Flannery) Eric (John Mc Cook) and Ridge (Ron Moss) Forrester courtesy of Margaret Kibe- a Kenyan working in the production team of the Bold and Beautiful. The team also met the son of the founder and creator of the show, Lee Phillip Bell.

There was such a buzz created by Ke-nya at the AFCI and the local media were hungry for information on Kenya as a filming location. They all asked why it had taken so many years for Ke-nya to exhibit on such a grand scale. The Commission’s booth was featured on the front and third page of the L.A Times Business pullout, dated 14th April 2007. L.A Times reporter Richard Ver-rier aptly called Kenya the film makers paradise and the Commission’s Acting C.E.O Nyatichi Sitati was also quoted in the same article. Hollywood’s Variety Magazine also featured the Kenyan stand stating that the establishment of a Commission in Kenya marked a significant step towards opening up Kenya to Hollywood. An interview with The Commission’s Information Officer Elijah Kahara was also aired on Hol-lywood Reporter TV.

The AFCI trade show was for the

most part an eye opener for the Film Commission as this was the first time participation was on such a grand and impressive scale. We won hands down with the positioning of our booth (at the entrance of the auditorium), our eye catching DVD showcasing locations, our attire (Kanga) which stood out from the rest and our exotic gifts and giveaways. The response we received from the media and partici-pants at the Show was overwhelming and only gave us more steam to out-perform at next year’s Show. Barely a month after the AFCI trade show, the Commission received nu-merous inquiries on filming logistics from attendees of the AFCI Trade Show who are interested in shoot-ing in Kenya in the near future. Even better news for Kenya is that some productions are being re-routed to Kenya from competing locations in Africa like South Africa. A contact list was distributed to the KFTPA and KNFA Associations for dissemination to their members.

Valuable lessons were learnt from the AFCI Trade Show and this experience will serve to enhance Kenya’s presen-tation next year!

NB - 260 visitors passed through the Kenya Film Commission’s booth dur-ing the AFCI show, according to the badge scanner registry. This list of attendees has since been dissemi-nated to the two film associations (KTPA & KNFA) and members of the audio-visual industry.

NYATICHI SITATI | NZILANI SIMU 7

>>Kagwe,CCH Pounder & Tichi at the Kenya Night

>>KibAara,Kerich of DFS, with Hon Alubale at the booth.

>>Nzilani, Wambui and Cynthia at the booth

>>Kenyan dignitaries on the set of the Bold Beautiful with actors ‘Stephanie’ and ‘Ridge’

>>Tichi,Wambui,Kahara,Cynthia,Jenny Pont,Nzilani with Kenyan raised actor Frederic Ade McCormack, better known as ‘Pastor Yemi’ in the Lost tv series

>>Kahara on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

MARTIN

MUNYUA :

The man

with the

STEADICAM

Martin Munyua has over 17 years experience in the film and TV world both as a director of photography and director for commercials, feature films, dramas and soaps. Upon gradu-ation from Rome, Italy.

Munyua has recently became the first person to bring a Steadycam/Handicam into the Kenya film scene- a huge step forward in the development of the local industry.KFC’s Elijah Kahara recently sat down to have a chat with MM about this recent development and the advantages it will bring to Kenya’s burgeoning film arena.

ELIJAH KAHARA (EK): Why a handy cam?

MARTIN MUNYUA (MM): As in why it is called a HandyMan?

EK: No. Was there any need for it in the country?

MM: Absolutely! The HandyMan (or Steadicam) was de-signed to perform certain camera movements where there are limitations such as rough terrain, narrow corridors or the focal length whereby tracking backwards would reveal dolly tracks.It can also follow an actor climbing stairs. It also saves time and money because of faster setup speeds as opposed to laying tracks each time a different shot is required.

EK: Tell us more about this revolutionary piece of equipment.

MM: The mere knowledge that we do not have a Steadicam in Kenya makes one plan shots without considering the need for this piece of equipment. However, with the knowledge it is here, creative directors, directors and producers will start creating ads and storyboards that will use the equipment. The whole secret lies behind the “arm”. It consists of a pulley system that stabilizes the camera whilst in movement, as well

as transferring the weight of the cam-era and sled to the operator. So one has the feeling of weightlessness where the camera sits while the operator gets the load on his body.

EK: So, how much did it cost you to bring in this piece of work?

MM: May I keep that info to myself for now?

EK: Well.....Give me a range?

MM: Definitely over a Million

EK: Has any Kenyan director used the Handyman yet?

MM: As you well know, everything in the filming industry is always expensive

EK: I agree

MM: Let me make something clear here....Steadicam is what this piece of equipment is known as worldwide. It was designed by Garret Brown and could and was only made in the US where it was copyright and registration present day, and whatever the poli-tics is, this piece of equipment is now manufactured in Germany and comes by the name HandyMan.... So Handy-Man and Steadicam are one and the same thing as BMW & Mercedes... both are cars.

EK: Ok... Back to my question...has any Kenyan director used it yet? And in which production?

MM: I am not sure....maybe Ken Olem-bo. Oh yes, myself and Judy Kibinge

used it on “Aftermath” and it is the sequence on my website under reels-Steadicam.

EK: Just to confirm...when was Aftermath done?

MM: In 2002 if my memory is right.

EK: Would that mean the Steadicam that was used then was hired from abroad?

MM: No, Vivid Features have a Steadicam and it used to be in Kenya. It was then moved to Lagos when they setup an of-fice there and that is where it is now based. In order to use it one has to pay air freight to and from Lagos as well as costs of daily hire. That proved to be very expensive for local pro-ducers so people stopped asking for it. It is my hope that now we have it available locally, people will ask for it more often

EK: Is there anything else you would like us to know about you?

MM: Google my name and it will come up [Martin’s website is www.martinmunyua.com]

EK: OK

MM: My film MIZOGA (Carcasses) was chosen for competi-tive screening from out of 700 films and I was in Brazil in June for that. MIZOGA is entirely made in Kenya.

EK: Thank you very much. I will come on of these days to see the Steadicam.

MM: CheersELIJAH KAHARA8

knowledge on what it takes to shoot in Kenya.Over 240 films from around the world were part of this year’s festival with its many segments including the Official Competition ,

Un Certain Regard, Critic’s Week, and the Director’s Fortnight pre-sentations. There were black tie events, dinners and receptions taking

place around the clock and because of the intense excitement in the atmo-sphere, when you are part of Cannes, you cannot help but get the feeling of being swallowed up in the hype of the movie fantasy land.

A Kenyan production was not to be ex-cluded from vast array of silver screen presentations. “MO AND ME” the story of the veteran photography guru, Mo-hammed Amin was screened at the Cinema du Monde on the 26th of May. A brief introduction by the film’s director (and son of Mo Amin), Salim Amin set the mood for what was about to unfold. A somber 1 hour, 15 minutes later, the hall erupted in deep meaningful ap-plause. There was not a dry eye as Salim narrated the painful Ethiopian famine ordeal which his father was first to pictorially document. It was the first time a Kenyan production was being screened at Cannes and for that rea-son, Salim and his team at Camerapix have made history.

Every day like clockwork, casual la-bourers would set about rolling out the red carpet and an endless array of international celebrities would eventu-ally grace it. Stars like George Clooney, Brad Pitt ,Angelina Jolie, Sharon Stone,

Jane Fonda, Don Cheadle , Jude Law, Quentin Tarantino, Chris Rock to name a few. Rock band U2 rocked the crowd just before their midnight screening of their concert film “U23D.”

American films and film stars was cer-tainly present at this year’s fest, with offerings that included the world pre-mieres of Michael Moore’s next expose dealing with the American health care system entitled “SICKO” - Michael Win-terbottom chilling and heartbreaking “A MIGHTY HEART” starring the brilliant Angelilna Jolie, based on the book by Mariane Pearl chronicling the kidnap-ping and killing of her husband, the Wall Street Journal writer Daniel Pearl n Pakistan -and the world premiere of “OCEANS 13” which had the entire beach front going ga-ga over the sight of Brad Pitt, Jolie, George Clooney, Matt Damon and the rest of their crew at their gala.

The big prize went to a small film by a di-rector who didn’t have money to shoot it just six months ago. Romanian direc-tor Cristian Mungiu won the top prize, the Palme d’Or for his film, “4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days”, a gritty, realistic look at illegal abortion in communist-era Romania - just the kind of movie that Cannes critics are proud to champion over films with better commercial pros-pects.

Kenya has a golden opportunity to mar-ket its filming locations at next year’s Cannes festival. With careful and thor-ough planning, the country’s impact will be felt more. The Commission in collaboration with the Department of Film Services pledge to see our exotic locations showcased on a grand scale at a festival which gathers the crème de la crème of the international filming industry.

NYATICHI SITATI

Glitz & Glamour

Glitterati and showbiz flamboyance are the words best used to describe 60th Cannes International Film Festival.What is considered one of the world’s most infamous film festivals turned 60 years old this year and the world de-scended on the French Riviera to cel-ebrate six decades of film glamour!

Cinephiles, critics, paparazzi, filmmak-ers, agents, actors and gawkers (i.e. members of the general public who show up just to gawk at the esteemed participants and celebs) from across the globe gathered to spend 12 days of glamour from the 15th of May to the 27 at the Cannes Film Festival.Kenya was represented by Department of Film Services and Booth number 22.28 played host to several visitors who marveled at Kenya’s unique wildlife and safari features; something that continues to keep us ahead of the competition. Our scenic filming loca-tions also stood out immensely from most.

Visitors to the stand would inquire about the country’s tax incentives and security conditions. Their fears were quickly put to rest as concerns security measures put in place. Logistical mat-ters were also addressed and visitors to the stand left having gained useful 9

The Kenya Film Commission is mandated to market Kenya as the centre of excellence in Film production. We strive to reclaim our place as the preferred filming destination in the world! KFC took the bold step to showcase our spectacular locations to the second largest film industry in the world, Bollywood. We set out to invite some of the best film makers from India. Our target was the new crop of directors who had revolutionised film in the sub-continent. We also set our eyes on India’s largest ad film makers, as well as directors of photography. And to ensure other film makers would get to know our stunning locations, we included a locations expert. Two journalists from CNN/IBN were also invited to cover the tour

This locations tour had been inspired by the Kenya Film Commission’s successful stint at the International Fair on Film Locales (I.F.F.L) in Mumbai in October, 2006; where it was felt that the Commission should go a step further to sell our magical country to Indian producers and directors as well as the Bollywood industry at large.

As a result of our attending the I.F.F.L, the Commission received numerous requests from some key Indian producers and directors who have expressed interest in touring Kenya to scout for locations and possibly shoot films/documentaries and other features here.

Bollywood has greatly boosted tourism numbers in several countries worldwide; a very good example being Singapore where the movie “Krish” was shot. This film resulted in a whooping FIVE million Indian tourists flocking to that country soon after its release. So why not Kenya?

The list of producers invited for the all expenses paid VIP trip to Kenya were:

1. NIKHIL ADVANI - Director of “Kal Ho Na Ho” and “Salame-Ishque”. The former assistant director to Karan Johar on hit film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai is one of the most sought after directors in India. He is likened to Spike Lee, a revolutionary in directing.

2. RAJ KUMAR HIRANI- Director of hit film “MunnaBhai Lage Raho”. Popularly known as Munna Bhai, Raju directed the two part Munna Bhai. He is currently working on the script for the third part of the film that will feature music from Kenyan diva, Achieng Abura. The film proposes to start shooting in November 2007.

3. SHAAD ALI- Yashraj Films. The young protégée of Bollywood guru Yah Chopra, Shaad has directed hit films like “Saathiya” and the hilarious “Bunty Aur Babli”.

4. VIKAS SIVARAMAN – “Viks”, has shot over one thousand five hundred Ad films. He has also directed documentaries.

5. JITENDRA CHACHA – International Location Scout. Jeet has been a consultant for Indian films that have been shot overseas.

6. DHARAM GULATI – the leader of the delegation and a veteran producer in Bollywood.

7. RAMYA RAMAMURTHY & BHARAT GORI – CNN/IBN journalist and cameraman covering the tour.

Elijah Kahara accompanied the directors on the locations visit and this is his journal of events:

BOLLYWOOD COMES TO KENYA

10 [L-R] Ramya Ramamurthy, Cynthia Kahumbura, Shaad Ali, Nikhil Advani, Dharam Gulati, Rajkumar Hirani, Jitendra Chacha Vikas Sivaranam at KONA BARIDI

BOLLYWOOD COMES TO KENYA

Day 1A trip to Hells Gate and Lake Naivasha Simba Lodge. The directors liked the hotel and espescially the acacia woodland. A press conference held at the Stanley Hotel was graced by Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information & Communication Dr. Bitange Ndemo and a host of media houses; this marked the official beginning of an interesting familiarisation trip. The delegation was introduced to the press and the P.S. Later that night, dinner at Thai Chi restaurant, where the guests loved the ambience of the restaurant. The food was excellent!

Day 2A long drive to Lake Magadi. On the way, we stopped at Kona Baridi. This place blew them away! Renowned film director Nikhil Advani asked me why we hadn’t started with this location. Back in the CBD, we took a walk on Kimathi Street and Moi Avenue during rush hour. The delegation was thoroughly impressed by the city life. Nikhil was first to exclaim: “I want to shoot here!”A lovely dinner, hosted by Fox theatres at Trattoria and some dancing at Florida gave the group a taste of Nairobi’s night life. Nikhil was very impressed and definitely wanted to shoot at the club. He used some unprintable words to express his excitement!

Day 3An early start for breakfast at the Victorian style Windsor Country Club. The sumptuous breakfast was set bythe lake, with a beautiful view of the manicured golf course. Lunch was at the Mt. Kenya Safari club in Nanyuki, with the mountain standing majestically in the background. The next hour was spent at the William Holden animal orphanage. A chartered plane was waiting to give the VIPs a breathtaking aerial view of our mangrove, pineapple plantations and vast savannah grassland that characterizes Shaba. The excitement was not over: a sundowner on the bed of Tana River was enough to blow them away! “This is amazing!” gasps Vikas (renowned cinematographer and advertisement guru), as he pulls out his wide lens and starts clicking away. The head of the delegation, Dharam Gulati (renowned director) pulls location expert Yahya Chavanga aside and over the next thirty minutes, he creates a thrilling script!

Day 5An Indian film cannot be complete without trains. So off we go to the Railway museum, the delegation is impressed by the array of relic trains and the whole layout of the museum. After that walk down history, the group visited the Kenya Film Commission offices, and spent some time shopping at Nakumatt Junction. The afternoon saw the group fly off to the Coast. A dhow trip as the sun sets takes us to the Old Port, where we walk to Fort Jesus. “I love this. It is any town in India” says Nikhil Advani. After the Sound and Lights show, a sumptuous dinner was laid out within the Fort.

Day 7It’s a sad day for all of us. The Indian High Commissioner H.E P.S Randhawa and his deputy, Dr. Shulka invite us to an excellent Indian lunch at Haveli’s. “We would have liked one more Kenyan meal,” says Shaad as Acting Managing Director Nyatichi Sitati presents to him a beaded Maasai belt. Souvenirs are presented, cameras click away, tears flow as goodbyes are said! The Acting M.D, Nyatichi sums it up well: “I hate goodbyes, so I will say to you “ see you later”

Day 4Early game drive, but no cats in sight. A herd of elephants will have to make do. Champagne breakfast by the pond await us at the Sarova Shaba. “Hey Kahara, after this we don’t want lunch. And delay the plane!” Shaad (director of popular hit Bunty aur Bubli) with sausage in hand. Back in Nairobi, dinner is at the Pampa grill, but not before shopping on Biashara Street. The CNN/IBN journalist Ramya Ramamurthy conducts afeature on hair braiding at Anchor Salon in Chester House!Club Afrique is our final destination and as we walk in to the celebrity filled club, Diva Achieng Abura is called on stage. Iddi Achieng, Eric Wainaina and Kayamba Africa all perform to the crowd, with our guests in a frenzy on the dance floor! Rajkumar calls me aside and says “I want to use the first lady in Munna Bhai- 3! She is amazing! I love the way she hits those notes! Can I talk to her tomorrow? Please?” Our role is to facilitate, so we do. Achieng Abura is now set to star in a Bollywood blockbuster.

Day 6Early morning bus ride to Kinazini Island, a deserted getaway for the romantic at heart. We spot several authentic villages on the way. “This is a typical Swahili village.” The guide explains. “This is a typical Maharashtra village.” Nikhil responds. The boat ride to the waiting Dhow is “excellent for a chase scene,” gasps Nikhil. CNN’s Ramya conducts an interview with Rajkumar Hirani (director of “Munna Bhai”) and he confesses that words cannot describe the beauty of this country. The Dhow takes us to a sand bank which rises when the tide is low. The delegation is quick to dive into the cool blue waters of the ocean and swim to shore! Lunch on the Island is to say the least,

amazing! “So, can we hire this place for a party and can we party all night?” asks party animal

Shaad!Back at the Whitesands, dinner is set

Swahili style: mbaazi and chapati, wali wa nazi, mshikakis and Kenya’s famous

brew “dawa” which did the rounds!

11

Bharat , Ramya’s

cameraman filming

Cynthia,Pinky Ghelani,

Nikhil, JS Vohra of Sarova,

Tichi & Nzilani

Bollywood guests with Amit & Sonal of Themescape

Nikhil in Magadi

Raj & Kahara

Tichi &Shaad

ROBERT BRESSON Director/Screenwriter Robert brings a wealth of experience to the team, He has directed numerous adverts and his area of interest is mainly distribution. He has written and directed his first feature film ‘Help’- it will premiere in August.ALBERT NGONCHE (24) Distributor/Score writer/ lighting di-rectorAlbert wrote the score for student film “Bloodline”. He plays all brass instruments and is almost attaining a diploma in Piano. With his creativity and talent in music, Albert will contribute greatly to the film industry’s score writing / music composing sectors. He also wants to improve his knowledge in lighting.MOSES ODUWA ONYANGO (32) Primary school teacherMoses is a Primary school teacher in Suba district with a unique talent of scripting and directing stories about the plight of those who live in the Lake region. He already has an established vernacular theatre group in Suba district which he hopes will churn out local productions based on issues af-fecting the lake region. KIRUMBURU NG’ANG’A (33)Producer/Cinematographer/Veteran actor cum TV presenterKirumburu whose face has graced the silver screen on sev-eral local productions and on TV as the presenter of a game show now has his sights set on directing and working as a cinematographer. He expects to leave Nigeria having im-proved his skills on camera work.MARIAH ZINZY (19) Novice scriptwriter Mariah’s winning script was the FIRST AND ONLY script she has ever written. She amazed the panelists with her simplicity but deeply inspirational tale of life in the ghetto. She hopes to leave Nigeria and continue telling the story of the voice-less in the ghetto.

CONCLUSION The “Project Nollywood” training is the beginning of a series of capacity building programmes which the Commission will undertake as part of its pledge to develop the local film industry. Following the success of this project, we will actively and aggressively begin appealing to corporates and other private sector institutions to partner with the Commission as we endeavour to promote the local film industry.

NYATICHI SITATI

Co-Production at berlinale FILM FESTIVAL

The European Film Market (EFM) is held in conjunc-tion with the Berlinale International Film Festival, February 8th - 18th 2007 and is one of the most im-portant events in the international film business. The Berlinale has the largest audience of any film festival in the world. The EFM is a film trade fair and offers the ideal infrastructure to inform oneself on the diversity of international cinema, to discover new trends and to strengthen one’s own position in the market. In 2005 the market hosted 264 exhibitors from over 50 countries.

Since 2004, the EFM has hosted and provided a solid forum for internation-al co-productions called the Berlinale Co-Production Market which takes place from the 11th -13th. This event is a 3 day professional conference which supports international co-pro-ductions and is a golden opportunity to interact with states that have co-production treaties and individuals in the film industry. This year there were 37 projects from 26 countries repre-sented. Kenya has never before been represented at the EFM. However this year, the Commission sent one repre-sentative, International Marketer Cyn-thia Kahumbura

The Berlinale Co-productions Market is held in conjunction with the Berlinale which has 19000 film professionals from

120 countries at the event; needless to say it is a huge event.

The Co-production market opens with an introduction from the German Film Board and a quick run through on the requirements an international produc-tion needs to qualify for funding and the extent of funding the board pro-vides.

The Heart of Fire production being shot in Kenya was on the opening panel and was one of the examples used by the panel to discuss the procedure of securing funding. It also carried weight that a representative from the Kenyan Government and Commission was there for the project to receive funding.

CYNTHIA KAHUMBURA

PROJECT NOLLYWOOD [continued from page one]

The ten will then return to participate in a workshop hosted by the Commission where the knowledge they acquired in Nigeria will be shared with other individuals in the audio vi-sual industry in a three day forum.

LIST OF SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATES ATTENDING THE TRAINING

NICHOLAS NJACHE(41) Veteran director, actor and Assistant Director on “Constant Gardener”. Director of the “Courtyard Theatre”. Nicholas aspires to hone his skills in directing. Njache strongly feels that after his experience in Nigeria, he will return to in-ject some life back into the film industry.SIMIYU BARASA(28) Scriptwriter/director Barasa has written scripts for local TV productions like “Tahidi High”, “Makutano Junction” and “Wingu la Moto”. He directed a feature film “Toto Millionaire” set for release November 2007.Barasa says his passion is in scripting and directing and he hopes to build his portfolio after the Nollywood training.MBURU KIMANI (30) RiverwoodDirector/producer/actorDirected the hilarious comedy “Cuando Sisimia” which re-ceived rave reviews with audiences. Mburu says Nigeria definitely have found the secret to success when it comes to distribution and he hopes to acquire these “trade secrets” and boost the Kenyans film industry.SHEILA MULINYA(26) Producer/Director/Screenwriter Sheila is the heart and soul of Ukweli Productions. Her creativ-ity has seen the production house churn out 16 produc-tions, including the feature film “Cry of the Innocent” and “Stigma”. With the Nollywood training, she says Kenyans should watch this space because she will emerge with a bang!KEITH OLENG (22) Director/Music composerKeith is currently writing music for a feature film titled “Blessed” and set to join the prestigious New York Film Acad-emy next year. He is one of those fresh faces on the scene but with loads of potential and a promising future ahead in the film industry.12

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