The histories of individual African cinema cultures remain largely undocumented, even in written form, often overshadowed by broad “African film history” texts and occasional specialized focus academic studies, which rarely reach general audiences.
This makes Timothy Niwamanya’s “A History of Film in Uganda” especially valuable as a visual record capturing a specific national film history in East Africa.
Niwamanya, a Kampala, Uganda-based writer and filmmaker, examines the evolution of Ugandan cinema in collaboration with the Goethe-Zentrum Kampala/Uganda German Cultural Society (GZK/UGCS).
The 40-minute video essay premiered in Uganda on October 10, 2024, and is now freely available on YouTube.
You’re encouraged to watch this thoughtful work that traces cinema’s journey from an experimental colonial tool to a vibrant contemporary art form, with a specific exploration of how Uganda’s sociopolitical landscape has shaped its relationship with the medium.
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