Sunday evening I attended my first film festival, Human Rights Watch Festival. My heart was beating a million beats per second because of my excitement. I was honored to watch the US premiere of the incredible documentary In The Shadow of The Sun directed by the lovely Harry Freeland. There was even a Q &A that followed afterwards and we got to learn more about how the film came to be. The model Shaun Ross was in attendance and I was a little star struck.
In The Shadow of The Sun was filmed over the course of six years in Tanzania. It documents the lives of two men( Josephat Torner and Vedastus) living with albinism who are trying to pursue their dreams despite prejudice. This topic matter is something that is very dear to my heart. I grew up in Africa and it was not uncommon for me to see people with albinism. I was never aware about the discrimination they faced until it was reported a few years ago about the killings taking place in East Africa. There is a belief that if you kill someone with albinism good fortune will come to you. This belief is perpetuated by a few witch doctors. This film was an eye opening experience and should be watched by all. It was one of the best films I have ever seen. It was a powerful and beautifully filmed documentary. I loved that it showed how Tanzanians were working to educate their population about this human rights issue. Usually documentaries of this nature come from an outsider perspective and never show Africans trying to help themselves. It is always an excuse to throw money without giving you much awareness about the real issue at hand. I have to give a huge congratulations to the team behind the film for this accomplishment.
I believe that it will be airing on PBS in August. To learn more about the film make sure to check out their Website and follow them on Twitter and Facebook for more up to date information. To learn more about the Human Rights Watch Festival make sure to click this link. They have more incredible films on their roster. The film production have created an organization to promote social inclusion and to stop human rights violations against marginalized groups. It is called Standing Voice make sure to check out the website here.
In The Shadow of The Sun was filmed over the course of six years in Tanzania. It documents the lives of two men( Josephat Torner and Vedastus) living with albinism who are trying to pursue their dreams despite prejudice. This topic matter is something that is very dear to my heart. I grew up in Africa and it was not uncommon for me to see people with albinism. I was never aware about the discrimination they faced until it was reported a few years ago about the killings taking place in East Africa. There is a belief that if you kill someone with albinism good fortune will come to you. This belief is perpetuated by a few witch doctors. This film was an eye opening experience and should be watched by all. It was one of the best films I have ever seen. It was a powerful and beautifully filmed documentary. I loved that it showed how Tanzanians were working to educate their population about this human rights issue. Usually documentaries of this nature come from an outsider perspective and never show Africans trying to help themselves. It is always an excuse to throw money without giving you much awareness about the real issue at hand. I have to give a huge congratulations to the team behind the film for this accomplishment.
I believe that it will be airing on PBS in August. To learn more about the film make sure to check out their Website and follow them on Twitter and Facebook for more up to date information. To learn more about the Human Rights Watch Festival make sure to click this link. They have more incredible films on their roster. The film production have created an organization to promote social inclusion and to stop human rights violations against marginalized groups. It is called Standing Voice make sure to check out the website here.
In The Shadow Of The Sun Trailer - Harry Freeland from Hunter Gather on Vimeo.
