At his high school on the Kenyan coast, Daudi Anguka could only get non-speaking roles, like closing and opening doors, in the school’s stage productions. The southeast Kenyan region where he grew up is similarly overlooked by the country’s growing film biz, but Anguka not only produced his directorial feature debut, “Mvera,” there — he also did what he did in high school: He opened the door for others.
As Kenya’s submission in the Best International Feature category for the 96th Oscars — the first-ever from that country’s coastal region — the debut film of the 29-year-old Mombasa helmer has been selected for the buzzy 6th Joburg Film Festival in South Africa.
Originally intended to be a modern retelling of the story of the Kenyan independence activist Mekatilili Wa Menze that proved too costly to produce, Anguka’s screenplay morphed into an unflinching story of a woman, played by upcoming star Linah Sande, determined to expose a vast organ harvesting ring.
Filmed over a month early last year from a screenplay that took him three years to complete, Anguka tells PvNew that “Mvera,” which means “blessing” in Swahili, “is still a hero story.”
“I did research but in terms of budget, I couldn’t do a Mekatilili story. That’s how the idea of ‘Mvera’ started. I changed the story to modern-day exploitation in Kenyan society and how people look abroad and are lured there under false pretences — conned by the idea that what is overseas must be better.”
On why the CEO of AR Films populated the cast with a majority of new and upcoming talent, Anguka says: “Even Sande as lead is an upcoming talent. I knew it was risky working with mostly upcoming talent, especially on a feature project that I’m personally and financially invested in.”
“I didn’t go looking for a big star or talent, I just wanted people willing to work with me.”
“It was a big risk since I’ve invested a lot but as a producer I’m proud and happy with what they delivered on-screen.”
He says: “As a Kenyan coastal independent filmmaker, the way we’ve been working hard, looking for finance to produce content from here, like ‘Mvera’ — it’s about trying to get recognition that we’re here; for people to understand that we’re moving in the right direction.”
“Doing film here on the coast is tough,” Anguka says. “It’s one of the toughest things to try and do in Mombasa since people focus on stories from and done in metropolitan Nairobi.”
“If you have a dream as a filmmaker in Africa, hold on to it, even if you’re in a place like coastal Kenya,” he says.
“Have a dream like any other Hollywood director. Work to put your idea into action. Any idea is a business. Any idea is a company. Who knows what idea can become a blockbuster?”
“Go for it even if you just have a handicam. We are in a time where a new generation will enjoy your story despite the technicalities. If you have a great idea, if you have a good story made with just a phone, do your story.”
Anguka implores Africa’s filmmakers to focus their lens on telling their own stories in their own style.
“Everyone wants to do Hollywood. Do your own stories, with your own standards. Do stories that speak directly to your audience. It’s a big challenge, I know. As an African producer go look at the foreign productions on Netflix — look at how unashamed foreign producers are bringing their visions and projects to life; how they are moving their stories. Maybe you start to feel: I can also do that.”
“If you have a story, even if it’s in your local language, tell your story in the way that it feels most authentic — where the audience understands you best. Have the courage to tell your story the way you yourself best understand it and leave the Hollywood things to the Hollywood people.”
“Even Hollywood right now will tell you: They’re looking at us as the next wave to see how we as local African filmmakers create our stories. We want them to copy us, not us copying them.”
