Biographical documentary: from DIFF to ZIFF 05

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Biographical documentary: from DIFF to ZIFF 2015 --

Wed, 22 Jul 2015 12:02

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The Zanzibar International Film Festival (ZIFF), which runs until 26 July in Stone Town, will close with a screening of I Shot Bi Kidude, Andy Jones follow up to As Old as my Tongue, his biographical documentary on this legendary Zanzibari artist.

After visiting Zanzibar every year for almost a decade, Jones hadn t seen Kidude for almost three years. In August 2012, word reached the UK that East Africa s most famous musical icon had been kidnapped. It wasn t long before Jones was back in Zanzibar, looking to get to the bottom of the story. He began to untangle a web of rumours, started by a jealous nephew who had taken Kidude from her home in the belief that unscrupulous music promoters were making millions from his ageing aunt. Just weeks after the drama unravelled before the camera, with South African Natalie Haarhoff behind the lens, the world s oldest singer died, at a reported age of over a hundred years old.

I Shot Bi Kidude, is my account of what happened at the end of Bi Kidude s life. As with any story, there are many versions of the truth. There are of course elements that are hard for an outsider to grasp, but I hope that there is also an insight which fresh eyes can bring. What emerges for me is a sense of the celebratory power of music, and the importance of doing those things which bring us happiness while we still can, explains Jones.

Having screened I Shot Bi Kidude as a work in progress to audiences at the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), Durban FilmMart (DFM) and the Luthuli Museum in 2014, Jones credits Durban with a crucial role in the development of his new feature film. To be able to attend DIFF and DFM with a work in progress was an invaluable opportunity to reflect on how this story would resonate with people across the continent. I was worried that the film could come across as another example of European director exploiting Africa for stories. The consistant feedback from everyone who saw the film was that this issue should be addressed directly on screen, so I could express why this story had to be told in such a personal way. We held on to that tightly throughout the whole process in the edit room.

I Shot Bi Kidude screens on 26 July at 19h15 at the Old Fort Amphitheatre.

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