Four South Sudanese films from the Juba Film Festival (JFF) 2023 which was supported by the German Embassy were nominated to the Zanzibar International Film Festival.
The directors of the nominated films traveled with the co-founder of the JFF, Mama Joice Thomas, to Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania in August where their films received praise from critics and audiences.
Lukas Dürrnagel, First Secretary of the German Embassy, received Mama Joice Thomas at the Embassy and welcomed the well-deserved recognition for the South Sudanese filmmakers.
“We are extremely happy that four films that premiered at the Germany-supported Juba Film Festival have received international attention and praise,” he stated. “We are delighted that the bright movie stars of South Sudan are putting South Sudanese filmmaking on the international map.”
On her part, Mama Joice Thomas said the participation of South Sudanese film productions in the Zanzibar International Film Festival was the first of its kind and gave the filmmakers an excellent opportunity for networking with regional and international professionals.
“Additionally, the well-known production ‘Goodbye Julia’ was shown at the Festival in the name of South Sudan and was awarded best film of the year,” she remarked. “This is a well-deserved recognition for director Mohamed Kordofani and the South Sudanese film scene as a whole.”
The four films from Juba Film Festival nominated to Zanzibar International Film Festival are “Village Beauty” (Best Film of Juba Film Festival 2023, script by Betty Baraka, directed by Harrison Phillip Osfeldu), “It’s really happen” (script and directed by Anthony Bidal), “Plight Nomad Story” (script by Clement Alison Tongun, directed by Harrison Phillip Osfeldu) and “Waja Ta Jena” (script by John Owudada, directed by Leviticus Levi).
Zanzibar Film Festival received about 3000 cinematic works from around the world, with more than 350 coming from East Africa. After rigorous selection, sixty films have been chosen for competition including the four films from Juba Film Festival.