‘Kapana’ Gives Africa Hope

The Namibian film ‘Kapana’, which tells the love story of an insurance broker and a kapana vendor, has won an award for best feature film at the Black Star International Film Festival in Ghana.

The film’s producer, Phillipe Talavera, says this is not only a win for film-makers, but also for the LGBTQI+ community on the continent, and he believes the festival was brave to have selected ‘Kapana’.

Talavera says he is also happy that the movie resonated with Nigerian and Kenyan communities.

“I am thrilled. ‘Kapana’ won many prizes in the United States, Canada and Australia, and this is the first award in Africa. I think it is very significant, because Namibia is not the only country where LGBTQI+ rights are not respected. In many African countries it is a crime to have same-sex relationships. So, the fact that the festival in Ghana is ready to break taboos and tell the story, but also to award those stories, is significant for the moviemaker and LGBTQI+ rights in Africa,” he says.

Talavera says he believes the film is successful because it is a love story and not an unrealistic fairy tale.

According to him, the few African stories that have evolved around the LGBTQI+ community have been quite dramatic.

“I think Kapana is successful because people relate to love stories, and maybe it makes people dream about what a better future would look like. It is a story that gives hope.”

Adriano Visagie, who stars in the film, says this is a big win, not only for the film and cast, but for the entire Namibian film industry.

The Namibian film ‘Hairabeb’, which tells the story of a farmer who marries a young woman in a last attempt save his livestock from a raging drought, has officially been selected to compete at the 2021 Cannes International Pan African Film Festival.

This festival is a platform that exhibits cinema, arts and entrepreneurship, as well as innovation, culture and events.

– unWrap.online