Films A to Z
Stories of our Lives
- Runtime:
- 60 min.
- Year of Production:
- 2014
- Country:
- Kenya
- Director:
- Cast:
- Kelly Gichohi
Paul Ogola
Tim Mutungi
Mugambi Nthiga
Rose Njenga - Production Company:
- The Nest
- Berlinale Section:
- Panorama
- Berlinale Category:
- Feature Film
Members of the multi-disciplinary art collective NEST spent several months travelling Kenya collecting stories of young LGBTI people – stories about their experiences and their lives in a country that is still extremely homophobic. Based on countless anonymous interviews, they developed five screenplays for short films which provide an insight into the current situation and the problems of these sexually marginalised young people.
These short, unadorned scenes are presented by director Jim Chuchu in crisp, poetic black-and-white images and accompanied by a measured soundtrack. The episodes, which address topics such as the search for identity and self-determination, enforced
These short, unadorned scenes are presented by director Jim Chuchu in crisp, poetic black-and-white images and accompanied by a measured soundtrack. The episodes, which address topics such as the search for identity and self-determination, enforced
heterosexualisation and the struggle for acceptance, have one thing in common: they all describe the need for love and the fear of fulfilling this love openly. Time and again, their fears prompt the question: it is better to hide away, resign oneself to the situation and leave the country, or to stay and fight openly for sexual diversity? In spite of the film being banned from public screenings in Kenya, the members of NEST have opted for the latter and are determined to continue their struggle for recognition.
BIOGRAFIE Jim Chuchu
Born in Nairobi, Kenya in 1982, he trained as an artist, musician and filmmaker and is one of the founding members of The NEST, an interdisciplinary art collective in Nairobi. His first short film, HOMECOMING, was one of six shorts in the AFRICAN METROPOLIS portmanteau film project which has screened at numerous international festivals.
FILMOGRAFIE Jim Chuchu (selection)
2014 Stories of our Lives
2013 Homecoming
Trailer
Jim Chuchu @ IMDb
website of Jim Chuchu