BAZIGAGA A short film about Rwanda. Review by Penny Nair
Price.
Finding tenderness and sympathy in a thumbnail sketch of a deeply
disturbed civil conflit.
The above- named film premiered at the Rhode Island International
Festival and Angouleme in France. This live action film will soon
screen at Whitaker St Louis International Film Festival, Leeds
International Film Festival and Namur International Film Festival.
The BAFTA Ceremony will be held on Sunday 19 th February, where
the film has received a nomination.
Directed by Jo Ingabire Moys, it is the real life drama of a woman in
the Rwandan civil war pretending to be a witch doctor with special
powers to help save lives. Set in 1994, her name is Zura Kahuhimbi
she is a Shaman and traditional healer. The film focuses on bravery
by women and was shot on a small island in Mauritius – exterior shots
were mainly in Rwanda. Jo Ingabire Moys came to England when
she was fourteen and lost many of her family during the civil guerrilla
conflict and later worked on making this fil. The film embraces the
problems of genocide denial. The music is evocative, eery and
powerful with use of a Rwandan song.
Elements of fear when the local pastor and his daughter are firstly
helped although the pastor is criticised by the shaman, and then have
to run for cover from guerrillas and hide in a dugout with a cover
where they nearly but do not drown.
The marks on the shaman’s face are interesting and powerful. Her
acting is intense and demanding, drawing viewers into the story
intensely. At a future date this film may spawn a feature.