The Sunday Mail
Tinashe Kusema The Big & Small Screen
Time was Epworth, a settlement on Harare’s outskirts, was an enigma of sorts. And perhaps it still is. Located roughly 12km east of the capital’sCBD, the mere mention of Epworth gives rise to images of the balancing rocks, local celebrities like Buju Bruce, comedian-cum-musician Freddie “Kapfupi” Manjalima and Harare City midfielder Ronald Chitiyo. Obversely, it also evokes images of squalor, crime, prostitution and other vices.
Historically, crime figures pointed to Mufakose, Mbare and Highfield as Harare’s seamy underbelly, but Epowrth is fast being recognised as the new hideout for criminal elements. Two young men want to capture the intriguing story of the two worlds of Epworth on film.
Kudakwashe Bwititi (not our chief reporter here at The Sunday Mail, a man whom I think writes a good story but would suck at film-making) and Brian Kugara will start production of “Overspill” early October. The name derives from a section of Epworth called Overspill.
Making a film ain’t easy, and the pair has been trying to get the project for “roughly two years”, but writer and producer Bwititi says “we are finally in a place where we have everything in place and we are ready to go into production”.
“The film is actually inspired by an article we read in The Sunday Mail about crime, decadence and child prostitution in Epworth. Once we read the article, way back in 2014, we decided to visit the place, stayed there for about three weeks and conducted our own research. We made a documentary and then decided to turn all the knowledge we had acquired into a full 90-minute feature film,” he adds.
(The Sunday Mail article in question was not written by his namesake, our chief reporter, which is sad as that would have cemented the poetry of it all.) “Overspill” will try to bring to national attention issues like child prostitution and labour, and teenage pregnancy, among others, as dramatised through the lives of the main characters William Ndawana, Elizabeth Chari and Mr Banda.
Chari, the protagonist, is a teenager forced into prostitution by circumstances at home. Ndawana is a young man whose life is turned upside down when he starts a relationship with an older, married woman. Mr Banda is the man who brings all the story lines together.
Ordinarily, these are the usual clichés, but what stands out is how Bwititi and Kugara bring a breath of fresh air to a typical story of beating the odds in the ghetto.
“It’s a low budget film and sponsorship is really hard to come by. We are currently working on a budget of roughly US$8 000 and that is for the hiring of equipment and day-to-day shoots. What we have done is talk to a few companies and offer them mileage in exchange for the use of basic stuff we will using during shoots.
“This strategy has been surprisingly effective and has allowed us to trim our budget, which was very high. We have also come up with payment plans with the bulk of our main cast. As for marketing, we have a strategic plan in place .
“Our target audience is between 16 and 35 and churches . . . We have secured the services of some up and coming and top artistes to do the soundtrack, which will be launched prior to the official première. Proceeds from the album will then be channelled towards the movie,” says Bwititi.
Filming is expected to begin October 1, 2016. Extras and supporting cast auditions will be held early September in Chitungwiza, Harare and Bulawayo. Final casting will on September 23, after which filming begins.
The launch of the yet to be titled soundtrack album is slated for December 3, after which two trailers will be released on December 17 and January 7, 2017. The movie comes out on February 18 next year.
“We have secured the services of some up and coming and top artistes to do the soundtrack, which will be launched prior to the official première. Proceeds from the album will then be channelled towards the movie.”
