Machérie Ekwa Bahango (born 1993) is a

filmmaker Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...

from the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

. Her first feature film '' Maki’la'' premiered at the

Berlinale The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

2018. Her movie ''Sema'' advocated for

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

and thematised the issue of

sexual violence Sexual violence is any sexual act or attempt to obtain a sexual act by violence or coercion, act to traffic a person, or act directed against a person's sexuality, regardless of the relationship to the victim.World Health Organization., World re ...

. It won an award as "Best International Film" at the

DC Independent Film Festival The DC Independent Film Festival (DCIFF) is a film festival in Washington, D.C. Launched in 1999, DCIFF exhibits features, animation, shorts and documentaries from around the world, focusing on cutting-edge ideas, new visions and advances in the c ...

2020 in Washington.

Life

Machérie Ekwa Bahango was born in

Kisangani Kisangani (formerly Stanleyville or Stanleystad) is the capital of Tshopo province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the fifth most populous urban area in the country, with an estimated population of 1,312,000 in 2021, and the larg ...

. After school she went to university and received a degree in law at the Protestant University in the Congo. As a student she participated in workshops for

screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, fe ...

and

film production Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, casti ...

Career

In 2014 Congolese film production company Labson Bizizi Ciné-Kongo hired Machérie Ekwa Bahango as a production manager and as an interviewer. In 2016 she was a

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

for the French language TV series ''Ndakisa''. Produced by the NGO

Search for Common Ground Searching or search may refer to: Computing technology * Search algorithm, including keyword search ** :Search algorithms * Search and optimization for problem solving in artificial intelligence * Search engine technology, software for findi ...

, ''Ndakisa'' was aired on Congolese national television. In 2017 she translated for

Alain Gomis Alain Gomis (born 6 March 1972) is a French-Senegalese film director and screenwriter. His 2017 film '' Félicité'' was selected as the Senegalese entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards, making the December shortlis ...

his script for his 2017 film '' Félicité'' into her native language

Lingala Lingala (Ngala) (Lingala: ''Lingála'') is a Bantu language spoken in the northwest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the northern half of the Republic of the Congo, in their capitals, Kinshasa and Brazzaville, and to a lesser degree in ...

. Also in 2017 she was invited to the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

for a round table under the helm of the OIF and the

Institut Français The Institut Français (French capitalization, Institut français; "French institute") is a French public industrial and commercial organization (EPIC). Started in 1907 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for promoting French, francophone as ...

. At the end of 2017 she received invitations from the

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

for the

Berlinale Talents Berlinale Talents, formerly Berlinale Talent Campus, is the talent development programme of the Berlin International Film Festival (also called Berlinale). An annual summit and networking platform for 200 outstanding creatives from the fields of f ...

. Her first feature film ''Mak’ila'' as was about an orphan forced to fend for herself on the streets of

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...

. It was stalled in post-production for lack of funds until Alain Modot, of the International Distribution of Films and Fiction from Africa (DIFFA), gained backing from Orange Studio in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. ''Mak’ila'' won her the Golden Screen award at the 2018

Ecrans Noirs Ecrans Noirs Festival is a film festival in Yaoundé, Cameroon. It has been characterized as "Central Africa's largest cinema event". The Ecrans Noirs Festival, run by an organization of the same name, was established in 1997 by the filmmaker Bass ...

film festival. Her second feature film told the story of a family during the

Second Congo War The Second Congo War,, group=lower-alpha also known as the Great War of Africa or the Great African War and sometimes referred to as the African World War, began in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in August 1998, little more than a year a ...

. It was announced under the title'' Zaïria'' in 2019. Yet due to the worldwide

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

all her projects came then to a halt and contacts to some production partners faded away. In 2020 the 48-minute film ''Sema'' was released. It was based on an idea by

Denis Mukwege Denis Mukwege (; born 1 March 1955) is a Congolese gynecologist and Pentecostal pastor. He founded and works in Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, where he specializes in the treatment of women who have been raped by armed rebels. In 2018, Mukwege and Ir ...

, winner of the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Chemi ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

. In 2022 she was among the 20 shortlisted candidates selected by

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

and

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

to take part in the

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

competition ‘African Folktales, Reimagined’.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bahango, Macherie Ekwa 1993 births Living people Democratic Republic of the Congo film directors Democratic Republic of the Congo screenwriters Democratic Republic of the Congo women writers Democratic Republic of the Congo women's rights activists 21st-century Democratic Republic of the Congo people

Life

Career

Filmography

See also

References

External links