Africa in Pictures
A sneak peak behind the scenes of Nollywood.
Commentary
Discussing cellphone filmmaking in Africa
Tutorial
Character development with Oladipo Agboluaje
Spotlight Uganda
Kamya on her award wining film, Imani.
'Filming against the Odds' conference
Celebrating 50 years on filming in Africa.
Wanuri on Pumzi
Kenyan director, on her new Sci-Fi.
Democracy in Dakar
Magee McIlvaine on acclaimed documentary film.
The Tunnel by Jenna Bass
Filmmaker, Jenna Bass
The Tunnel by Jenna Bass
I think many films I’ve made, or written, have political elements, even if not on the same level as The Tunnel; I don’t think you can help it if you live in a country, where political decisions are particularly visible. At the same time, I don’t like the idea of profiting off of message-based films.
There’s a place for this, but I don’t think it’s mine. I suppose I am still in the process of finding the balance between entertainment and social consciousness - I don’t pretend to have found it yet.
Which African filmmakers have inspired your filmmaking and are there other African filmmakers whose work you have found to be of interest?
To be honest, I’ve been more inspired by African literature – Ben Okri, Es’kia Mphahlele, Amos Tutuola, Andre Brink, Eben Venter, which I discovered quite late, but when I did, had a huge impact on the way I perceived storytelling.
I think up until that point, I hadn’t realized how dependent I had been on European and Western sources. And so, discovering the work of these writers was a major wakeup call. And not only do we have our own stories to tell here, we also have a definitively African way of telling them.
It might not be very obvious, but reading ‘The Famished Road’ had a huge influence on The Tunnel, even though I never finished the book! I think I was too excited by what it showed me was possible that I had to stop reading and rather acted on it.
Having said that, up until recently I didn’t always have access to African films. Now that I am able to see more, they are definitely inspiring – for example, Abraham Haile Biru’s cinematography on Daratt, how it disproves everything the world thinks African films should look like, without emulating Western trends.
So what other projects do you have your eye on at the moment?
I’m currently developing my feature film, called Tok Tokkie, which we’ll be shooting next year. It is set in Cape Town, about an organization that looks after the city’s ghost population, helping lost souls on their way out of the world.
I am very excited about this; though I’m always juggling a handful of things, what I’d love to do at the drop of a hat is a Western about Afrikaans Jewish farmers in the 1930s, which is vaguely based on my grandmother.
I’d also love to do a film in the DRC.
> PREVIOUS PAGE
Little Elizabeth on her journey to solve the mystery of her father's disapperance.
Interview by Don Omope | Photos courtesy of Jenna Bass
The Massacre of Matabeleland: Filmmaker, Jenna Bass speaks
