FILM DIRECTOR :
JUDY KIBINGE
“I don’t like stories that don’t mean anything at all. I like to reveal something about the world we live in. I was meeting maize farmers in Ethiopia and for the first time I was dealing with real issues. ”
Hailed for her harrowing tales of harsh realities, multi award winning filmmaker, director and writer Judy Kibinge has rocked the Kenyan film scene with her sensational shorts and passionate feature lengths.
The Nairobi-based big screen boss has picked up numerous prizes for her intense stories of civil unrest, cultural taboos and her earlier, completely contrasting, romantic comedies. Last year she launched Docubox, a film fund which aims to create a film community in Nairobi and East Africa.
Judy hopes to excite the government with Docubox. She tells me it’s hard to get them to understand the importance of film funding because there’s a myth in her country filmmakers are lazy and want commissions for nothing. She says until something happens that allows filmmakers to live off their proceeds they will keep going round in circles.
“Being a filmmaker in Kenya is very difficult and I will say this for most of Africa,” she added. “In the beginning I found myself taking on more NGO docs. It paid the rent but it wasn’t why I took the enormous risk for, what turned out to be, a successful career in filmmaking. It became evident how many people like me have amazing ideas up their sleeves but no means of achieving them.
“Kenya doesn’t have great film schools. People like Spike Lee who make shorts on no budgets can do so thanks to the enormous bonds they made in school. So in this market it becomes very difficult to get films made which is why I set up Docubox.”
Judy was perhaps destined for this path in life coming from a family of artists and writers on her mother’s side and constantly having pens and pencils fused to her finger tips growing up. She believes it is a combination of genes and a stubborn personality which has led to her success.
She enjoyed a multicultural education in America, Kenya and England. After completing her studies the Manchester Polytechnic Art School graduate threw herself straight into a career at McCann Erickson (now McCann Kenya), one of East Africa’s biggest advertising agencies.
Judy rapidly rose to become Kenya’s first black creative director and towards the end of her eight year stint she realised she really wanted to be a filmmaker.
“When you make a shiny big budget commercial it’s a story. It has a beginning, middle and end. It’s meant to grab the audience, it can be funny or emotional. So I suppose you can say advertising was my film school.
“I quit because I couldn’t bare the idea of one more Coca Cola ad. I started to feel like am I going to do this forever? I loved it while I was there but filmmaking opened up a totally new world to me, a lot harder work but more meaningful, interesting and more engaged in reality.”
Immediately after quitting offers began flooding in to do corporate NGO documentaries. Once she had a few to her name Judy was invited to pitch for a screen writer role, never did it occur to her she could be a director and she was shell shocked when she learnt that was the position she’d landed.
Judy said she was astonished at how much she loved it and what a kick directing gave her. The most amazing joy she found, still to this day, was trying to understand what it is to be human and staying true to every tiny personal detail of each character.
“I don’t like stories that don’t mean anything at all. I like to reveal something about the world we live in. I loved making rom coms but the documentaries were taking me into the villages of west Africa and I was meeting maize farmers in Ethiopia and for the first time I was dealing with real issues.
“My films are very diverse because I make films that answer questions I am dealing with at the time as I continue to understand my craft better. I think you’re never perfect at it. I like to explore different spaces I am curious about and they’ve ended up on the pages I am working on.”
Her mould breaking debut, A Dangerous Affair, is regarded as one of the most important films in Kenya’s film history and went on to win first prize at the 2013 Zanzibar Film Festival. In 2008, she was awarded Best Kenyan Director for her personal favourite short, Killer Necklace, produced by her co-founded production company, Seven Productions.
“In this market there’s no time to wait for inspiration. Filmmaking is a craft as well as a creative enterprise and something you have to work really hard at. Inspiration is a tiny glimmer, a couple of percent, the rest is a big fat slog.
“Going back to a career in advertising can be tempting when you’re your like why am I struggling doing this film thing with no money. But I keep going because it’s one thing I am good at and I love it. I think it’s what I’m supposed to do and maybe that’s what my inspiration is.”
Her third feature length masterpiece, Something Necessary, she found the toughest to direct. It depicts the postelection violence that ripped Kenya apart. Airing just five short years after the disaster she says it didn’t really leave much room for reflection.
“The horror is still quite alive because at some point you were living in a city in a country that was falling to pieces. When I saw the script my heart sunk. I knew it was time to make a feature film again but I really didn’t want to make one about the post-election violence so it took a while to get my head round.
“The issues we deal with are so complex and overwhelming if you live in Europe it’s impossible to describe what it’s like to live with poverty and difficulty always around the corner. Even if you’re successful and living well you’re always extremely aware 70 per cent are not and whether you like it or not you carry that.
“Going to other countries who are far more privileged are not as vibrant as Africa, where you are always a short step away from a tough life. You lose the grit, the edginess and truth of living with so many reminders of what it is to be alive and why it’s important to be grateful.
“People are so innovative here, Kenyans have embraced blogging and learning to create apps, it is like the mobile has freed people from where they live and that is enormously inspiring to me.”
Judy is currently trying to get her latest bloody massacre block buster, Scarred, which took four years to make, aired on Al Jeezera. But if, like Judy, you are tired of the dark social intensities you can look forward to seeing her new side-splitting screen play, The Messenger. One things for sure anything written by this amazingly talented lady is guaranteed not to disappoint.
>via: http://www.afrobougee.com/judy-kibinge.html