The Cinema of Burundi is the filmmaking and film industry in Burundi.[1]
History
Prior to the Burundi Civil War, Burundi's cinematic history was vastly undocumented.
The first recording of film in Burundi occured in 1980 when Burundian Jean-Michel Hussi Nyamusimba produced the first Burundi film, a French coproduction called Ni-Ni.[2] In 1992 Burundi’s first feature film, Gito l’Ingrat was released, a Swiss-French Burundi co-production directed by Leonce Ngabo.[1]
Burundi film in the 1990s was also pioneered by women, most notably by Sham-Jeanne Hakizimana, who headed television programs at National Radio and Television of Burundi. She produced the documentary film, Une Burundaise aujourd'hui in 1991.[3]
After the civil war, the Burundi film industry was revived in 2007, when Canadian filmmaker Christopher Redmond and Raymond Kalisa, a videographer from Rwanda, co-founded the Burundi Film Centre[4] as a training ground for aspiring filmmakers. They recruited 36 young Burundians for a two-month training in film theory and production.[5]
Festivals
References