The beginnings of the Ugandan 7th art
It appears that the Ugandan 7th art has its origins in the early 2000s. Indeed, in 2005, actor-director Ashraf Ssemwogerere's Feelings struggle is credited as the first all-Ugandan production. In the same year, filmmaker Isaac Nabwana (better known as Nabwana IGG) set up the Wakaliwood film studio in the Wakaliga slum of Kampala, the Ugandan capital. Producing mainly action and kung-fu films, the studio is mainly known for producing very low-budget films: none of the works cost more than 200 euros. Since its foundation in 2005, the studio has already produced nearly fifty films. Isaac Nabwana's (the studio's sole director) best-known works produced under the Wakaliwood umbrella are Who killed Captain Alex? (2010) and Bad Black (2016), which screened at the Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) in 2017 to critical acclaim. In recent years, filmmaking couple Eleanor and Matthew Nabwiso, are beginning to make a name for themselves at many festivals. Recently, the Nabwiso's produced and directed Rain (2016), Bed of Thorns (2019, featuring an all-female technical crew) and Prickly Roses (2020). Ugandan works that have been noticed at festivals (including the Uganda Film Festival) in recent years also include Lukyamuzi Bashir's Bala Bala Sese (2016), Rehema Nanfuka's Veronica's Wish (2018) or Kizito Samuel Saviour's The Forbidden (2018)
International
Several international works have passed through Ugandan lands for filming purposes. Black Panther (Ryan Coogler, 2018), for example, shoots in the farmlands of Wakanda, the Rwenzori Mountains and Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, while part of Joel Karekezi's Jungle Mercy (2018) is shot in the Virunga Mountains. In addition, two works are of particular note as they deal with prominent Ugandans. In 2006, Scottish director Kevin Macdonald directed The Last King of Scotland, a feature film mixing biography and fiction, which deals with the reign of Idi Amin Dada. The film is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Giles Folden. In the role of the Ugandan dictator, Forest Whitaker, who received three of the most prestigious awards for his performance: the Oscar, the Golden Globe and the Bafta for best actor. Ten years later, Disney produced The Lady from Katwe, directed by Indian-American Mira Nair, a biographical work based on the life of Phiona Mutesi, a young Ugandan chess player. The film is shot mainly in the slums of Katwe, Kampala and Johannesburg, South Africa. A hundred Ugandans were able to participate in the film as extras, joining the cast that includes the young Madina Nalwanga, Lupita Nyong'o and David Oyelowo
