IFFR Film Special: Rafiki

About the film:

“Good Kenyan girls become good Kenyan wives”, is what Kena and Ziki have heard all their young lives. And that getting a mortgage is the dream of every normal Kenyan. But Kena and Ziki want more. They want adventure and real love, not a dull existence as an obedient wife in the suburbs. It’s not until they fall in love with one another that they find out just how conservative the world around them really is. The relationship between these two young women forms the warm, beating heart of this sparkling, colourful film.

'Afrobubblegum' is what director Wanuri Kahiu calls her style, and the production company of which she is co-founder. In the words of the young maker, this stands for “fun, fierce and frivolous African art”. Like its two protagonists, this film had to overcome considerable resistance after being banned by Kenyan censors. Kahiu contested this decision and finally won in the Kenyan High Court.

Director: Wanuri Kahiu
Language: English, Swahili
Cast: Samantha Mugatsia, Sheila Munyiva, Neville Misati, Jimmy Gathu, Patricia Amira, Muthoni Gathecha, Dennis Musyoka

From January 22 to February 2, Rotterdam will once again be dominated by International Film Festival Rotterdam. Erasmus University Rotterdam is the Official Partner of IFFR for the seventh year already. In collaboration with Studium Generale we will bring knowledge from the university to the festival and the festival to the students. There are films, the Erasmus Film Quiz, a special IFFR edition of talk show Studio Erasmus and the Erasmus Tiger College.