The Oscars: Does Africa have what it takes to win?
Africa has submitted 7 films for the Oscars this year under the category, ‘Best International Feature Film’ (formerly called Best Foreign Film).
Despite over 100 numerous submissions over the years, only 3 African films have snatched the prestigious award, with the last one being South African crime drama and hit film "Tsotsi" in 2005.
Previous winners from the category include 1969’s “Z”, an Algerian-French satirical political thriller, and 1976’s “Black and White in Colour”, a war film and black comedy hit.
Last year alone, Africa made 12 submissions for the Oscars – the most in any year.
This year, Uganda made its first-ever submission for the Best International Feature Film with the award-winning "Tembele". Kenya also submitted ‘Terastorm’, the first Sci-fi animation feature film made entirely using Unreal Engine, a 3D computer graphics game engine developed by Epic Games.
HOW DO FILMS QUALIFY FOR SUBMISSION
For foreign films to qualify for the Oscars nominations in the category of Best International Feature Film, they need to:
Have a theatrical release: Submitted movies must be played at least in one theatre in their own country for a minimum of seven days during the year of consideration. For this year’s Academy Awards, the timeframe was between January 1, 2022, and November 30, 2022.
The dialogue must be predominantly (more than 50%) in a language or languages other than English.
Submitted movies must be the country’s official submission (1 movie for each country).
The submitting country must certify that creative control of the film was largely in the hands of citizens or residents of that country.
THE OSCAR NOMINATION PROCESS
There are three rounds of voting that determine the nominations for the Best International Film.
The International Feature Film Preliminary Committee views all eligible submissions and votes by secret ballot to produce a shortlist of 15 films.
The International Feature Film Nominating Committee then views the 15 shortlisted films and votes by secret ballot to establish the final five nominees.
Finally, the winner of the Best International Film Award is chosen through voting restricted to active Academy members who have viewed all five nominated films.
2022’S AFRICAN SUBMISSIONS
This year, African countries have made 7 film submissions to the Oscars under the category of Best International Feature Film.
Of these, Eastern Africa has the most submissions. The youngest contestants are Uganda, which has made its first official submission ever, and Tanzania, making its second submission, after its 2001's hit thriller "Maangamizi: The Ancient One" which was its first submission.
The feature films submitted this year, with respect to their country of origin, in no particular order, are:
Tug of War, Tanzania
Adam Shafi’s famous period novel has been adapted for cinemas by Director Amil Shivji, a young aspiring Tanzanian filmmaker. The adaptation tells the story of a brewing love between an Indian-Zanzibari ‘Yasmin’ and a Black-Swahili ‘Denge’ amidst the end of British rule in Zanzibar.
The coming-of-age political drama is about societal tensions, love, resistance, and Pan-Africanism. The film was filmed in Ng’ambo, Zanzibar (Tanzania’s Archipelago), and is Shivji’s second directed film.
Read our review: https://www.thecontinentalapproach.com/around-the-continent/vuta-nkuvuteBlue Caftan, Morocco
Filmmaker Maryam Touzani has created a romance film widely acclaimed overseas for its fresh take and paced narrative on homosexuality. The story follows Halim, husband of Mina, who develops feelings for Youssef, a male intern employed at the couple’s traditional Caftan shop in Sale, a city in Morocco.
The film explores themes of homosexuality, love, and traditions. Though the movie has received homophobic sentiments in Morocco, it has received positive acclaim internationally for its original take on romanticised love.
Terastorm, Kenya
The world’s first feature film animated entirely using Unreal Engine doesn’t shy away from the spotlight either. Terastorm is a sci-fi African-themed animation directed by Andrew Kaggia. The multi-talented Kenyan also wrote and animated the movie, a feat not many self-taught animators can claim.
The story is set in a fictional Nairobi – Kenya’s Capital – where a group of superheroes joins forces in an attempt to defeat an ancient wizard who threatens to destroy the Earth with a powerful and mysterious artefact.
Under The Fig Trees, Tunisia
“Under The Fig Trees” is Erige Sehiri’s film that showcases the bond shared by older women and girls – sisterhood –as they go on with their daily lives working in a fig plantation.
The picture seamlessly shifts from the ordeals done by characters to scenes like harvesting the fig fruits, telling a story of love, gossip, drama, history, and even fate, cementing women’s place in a modern Tunisian society.
Tembele, Uganda
Tembele is a thought-provoking film where we – the viewers – are led into the soul of a garbage collector working 12 hours a day, who loses grip with society when his infant son dies soon after birth.
The drama shows the hardship and vulnerability African men have to face when dealing with difficulties and mental hurdles like depression. “Tembele” is a film about mental health, poverty, brotherhood, and hope.
Morris Mugisha, the movie's director, has had bright beginnings as a photographer and model before being featured in Big Brother Africa in 2008.
Nos Frangins (Our Brothers), Algeria
For decades, French Film Director Rachid Bouchareb has been telling the story of racial issues plaguing different societies through films like “Days of Glory” and “Little Senegal”. This year, Algeria submits the Oscars with Bouchareb’s “Nos Frangins” a docudrama about the cruel murders of two North African bystanders at the hands of the police.
Abdel Benyahia and Malik Oussekine were killed on two separate occasions in 1986 Paris through police brutality after a country-wide protest over an education reform bill. In the movie, we follow Oussekine’s older brother, Mohamed, who tries to investigate what happened to Malik, and discovers police who will stop at nothing to hide their misconduct.
The enraging, yet cleansing “Nos Frangins” talks of police brutality, racial discrimination, desire for justice, and pain.
Xalé, Senegal
Moussa Sene Absa’s Senegalese melodrama starts with an attractive middle-aged lady seducing a man in a crowded bar. After the drinks, we watch as the lady vigorously stabs the man in his room.
Later, we see two twins, Awa and Adama, under the care of their ailing grandma. She dies soon after and so the children are left under the care of their uncle, Atoumane. One of the twins’ grandma’s last requests is for Atoumane to marry his cousin, Fatou.
Atoumane makes his advances on her but she rejects them, sparking a catastrophic effect on the entire family for years to come. “Xalé” (meaning Child) is an emotionally resonant tale of familial love, loyalty, and diaspora.
The talented film director has a knack for other creative hobbies like writing, composing, and even painting, that have earned him wide recognition in and out of Senegal.
SUCCESS OVERSEAS
Despite the Oscar's rules not being in Africa's favour, the continent still continues to strive in the film industry. Most notably, streaming platforms like Netflix, Hulu, and Showtime have taken a keen eye and appreciation of various film media the continent churns out.
Netflix has renewed the production of "Blood & Water" a South African teen crime show, Hulu is streaming Ivory Coast's "Night of the Kings", and "Rafiki" Kenya's coming-out drama film is on Showtime.
Apart from that, this year's Oscar submissions from Africa have gone on to win several awards and garnered a reputation internationally like at the Toronto Film Festivals, the African Movie Academy Awards, and the Seattle International Film Festival.
But the dream shouldn't have to end there. We've had foreign films like "Parasite", a South Korean dark comedy thriller film, that has gone on to not only win the Best International Feature Film Award, but also several other awards as well like the Academy Award for Best Writing, and the most prestigious of them all, the Academy Award for Best Picture, defeating the likes of "Joker" and "Once upon a Time.in Hollywood"
Remarkable films from Africa can, and will achieve that aspiration too. Each African country is rich in culture, ideas, and a blend of talent and storytelling which can cross boundaries through the film media. Recall Black Panther, an African-themed blockbuster film, that exceeded the expectations of the whole of Hollywood and also became the first superhero film ever to be nominated for Best Picture. Although the movie was not made by Africans predominantly, the global positive reaction to the movie indicates that the world is hungry for sincere, pure and entertaining African films, as is also, the Oscars.