Sudanese-South African documentary wins at Toronto International Film Festival
Beats of the Antonov, a Sudanese-South African documentary, won the People's Choice Documentary Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, beating master filmmakers to claim the prestigious award. (video)
The documentary was directed by Hajooj Kuka and produced by Steven Markovitz and Hajooj Kuka, and is a co-production between Sudanese production company, Refugee Club and South African production company, Big World Cinema. The music producer is Alsarah and the documentary was filmed in the rebel-held areas of the Blue Nile and Nuba mountain regions in Sudan and wrapped up in Cape Town, South Africa.
''This award is for the community who helped make this film and hopefully it will help the Sudanese people see how beautiful we are. It is a film about love, not war,'' says Kuka.
''We are thrilled about this award. The film turns the notion of Africa as a continent of victims on its head. It shows the incredible resilience of Sudanese people at a time of great adversity,'' says Markovitz.
The film is accompanied by a soundtrack of traditional Sudanese music and will begin to screen at festivals worldwide within the next few months.
