AWARD-WINNING filmmaker Lenni Mdawini-Sibanda of Yasibo? Media is set to release a feature film titled Thunqa detailing Bulawayo’s criminal underworld.
BY FARAI SHAWN MATIASHE
The film, written and directed by Sibanda, will premiere in Bulawayo next month.
Sibanda told NewsDay Life & Style that the 1 hour 30-minute-long film tackles drug abuse, which was rampant among Bulawayo’s youths influenced by Hollywood gangster films.
“The film is about a church girl who turns rogue when she falls in love with a criminal. The lovers, who are also the film’s lead characters, Ndumo and Candice, carry out criminal activities under the influence of drugs. Their eventual downfall is a lesson to the young generation on the dangers of crime and drugs,” said Sibanda.
He said they decided to produce the film to debunk myths about drugs and show the evils associated with drug abuse.
Sibanda said he was hopeful the film, which is his second feature after Qiniso (2015), will ignite conversations on the dangers of drugs and crime among youths.
“The use of house music for the onscreen soundtrack, youthful slang and entertaining acting style will relate well with the youthful target audience and get them talking about the anti-drugs lessons learnt from watching the film,” he said.
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Yasibo? Media producer Tatenda Daisy Gapare said live screenings of Thunqa would begin next month.
“We will be doing physical screenings with our mobile cinema equipment in the suburbs. We will begin with Bulawayo city centre then move to high, medium and low-density suburbs. For our diaspora viewers, the film will be released on various platforms online,” she said.
Gapare said the making of Thunqa used a budget higher than that of their previous films and they raised funds through their videography services. “We want the film industry to grow and prove to the world that Zimbabwean film industry can make it without being a begging bowl,”she said.
The film’s sound track which was done by Eightnine Muzique, features successful and famous actors and media personalities such as TV presenter Nyasha Diva Mtamangira, stand-up comedians Ntando Van Moyo and Sikhanyiso Mlambo and musician Palmer Mharadze.
