GP: Zimbabwean Filmmaker at Oscars

Guest Post: Alexia from Zimbabwe

Tatenda Mbudzi always had a passion for film making and the media. Currently a student at UCLA’s competitive Producer’s program, he was inspired to change Zimbabwe's media industry because of how much he missed cartoons when his family moved back after having lived 10 years in the U.K. He is currently on a scholarship for young people who want to work in children’s media. His big idea is to bring cartoon folktales to TV screens in Zimbabwe. The cartoon he is working on is called Tsuro naGudo and is about Tsura, a witty rabbit, who outsmarts the other character named Gudo. Mbudzi grew up listening to these tales from his grandmother and wants to take them to the next level by making them visual in film media.

Tatenda Mbudzi

Tatenda Mbudzi was afforded the chance to present an Academy Award by submitting a video in which he detailed how he was going to contribute to the future of the film industry, as well as an essay. He is one of the six fortunate winners of the competition and thus was able to rub shoulders with the elite of the film making world, including actors and producers, for a week. The competition came about when the organisers of the Oscars found that the idea of having the usual female models bring in the awards was sexist and could be better utilised by awarding young filmmakers the chance to be part of the industry they are working towards.

Random Alexia thoughts: I am so proud of this young man for wanting to tackle Zimbabwe’s current entertainment issue, as, growing up there, I watched it deteriorate to the point where there are hardly any cartoons shown, and the few that are available are re-runs from the past decade or so. It is going to be a hard task for him though, as the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation is mainly government run and is largely a propaganda tool. The good news is Zimbabweans are likely to be ecstatic about the changes he wants to bring and may welcome him with open arms because they are tired of the way public television is run. It was inspiring to read his story and to relate to elements such as Tsuro naGudo, which are stories the average Zimbabwean child grows up with, and seeing how he draws creativity from them, as I had never actually thought of them in that way before. I can’t wait to see what Tatenda Mbudzi is going to contribute to Zimbabwe, but I bet his is going to be an interesting and worthy journey to watch.