‘Kati Kati’ gets Oscars nod

Kenyan film Kati Kati has been accepted by The Oscars Selection Committee Kenya in the Best Foreign Language category for the 90th Academy Awards (Oscars) 2018. Following the close of the call for entries, September 14, 2017, the committee had received two entries: Kidnapped and Kati Kati. However, the latter was the only one to be get the go-ahead to the next vetting step, having cleared a lot of what the committee were looking for in a film to qualify for an entry through this category.

ABOUT THE FILM

Kati Kati, a 2016 Kenyan drama film directed by Mbithi Masya, follows the character Kaleche (Nyokabi Gethaiga) who wakes up in the middle of nowhere, and makes her way to a lodge called Kati Kati. The residents at the lodge inform her she is dead, and the only way out of this middle place and into the final after-life is by making peace with your conflicts from the previous life. She takes a liking to Thoma (Elsaphan Njora) and the two grow closer as time goes by. It later turns out that the two were actually married before Thoma’s drunk-driving one night cut short both their lives. They need to find peace to complete their transition.

This film had all the items on the checklist ticked off and satisfied the selection committee on the completeness of the submission. It also had the minimum required theatrical release time and a red-carpet premier event. After viewing this film, the committee noted that the non-English dialogue was just sufficient to enable it qualify as a Best Foreign Language Film entry. Although the main discourse is delivered in English, it has substantial amounts of Swahili, Sheng (Street Language) and splashes of vernacular.

FIRST STEP

This Entry of Kati Kati is only the first step in a series of stages that the movie has to undergo before being nominated. The nominees for the 90th Academy Awards will be announced by the Academy on January 23, 2018. The film, a co-production of One Fine Day Films and Ginger Ink, was produced by Mbithi Masya and also starred Mugambi Nthiga, Paul Ogola, Peter King Mwania (Nzioki), Mary Gacheri and Fidelis Nyambura Maina. During 2016 Toronto International Film Festival, Kati Kati won the prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) for the Discovery programme.

What stopped Kidnapped from making it to the nominations of the most prestigious global film awards was that the technical issue of a minimum 3.1 sound configuration was yet to be completed and delivered together with the submission entry to the Selection Committee. Also, the category requires that the film must be predominantly in a language or languages other than English. Upon viewing, the committee found the film did not meet that threshold as the predominant language used is English.

WOULD LIKE TO SEE MORE ENTRIES

“We would like to see more entries in the running to represent the country at the Academy Awards. The specifications are available on the Kenya Film Commission Website and also on the Academy Website under Academy Special Rules and Regulations – Rule Thirteen on page 16. We further urge filmmakers to script non-English dialogue for main characters. This shall give the films a competitive edge in the Oscar Foreign Language Film race. For future reference, the current acceptable ratio of non-English dialogue to English is above 50 per cent,” Wambui Kairo (Kenya Film and Television Professionals Association (KFTPA), the Chairman of The Oscars Selection Committee Kenya said in the statement that revealed the news.

“In addition, we encourage film makers to market their productions’ theatrical releases and even invite the Selection Committee to the premieres through the Kenya Film Commission. The minimum requirement for foreign language must not be overlooked nor underestimated. The more productions that meet the requirements set by the Academy the better for the Kenyan Film Industry as we compete at global standards.

To all aspiring entrants, consider submitting your Films, Documentaries and Animations to local Film Festivals such as Kalasha and RiverWood and also to international film festivals such as Pan-African Film Festival of Ouagadougou (FESPACO), Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), Zanzibar International Film Festival (ZIFF), Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF), Berlinale, Cannes, Toronto Film Festival, and Sundance. This will expose the world to Kenyan productions and hopefully catch the eye of Academy members who will make the selection of nominees for the various categories in the Academy Awards.

Finally, next year we hope to extend the call to include Best Foreign Language Documentary and Best Foreign Language Animation. Please look out for the call in mid-2018. There will also be periodic communication from the Selection Committee each quarter,” the statement further read.

The committee also comprises of the secretary Caroline Mbindyo (Producers Guild) and thirteen other members representing different stakeholders in the film sector.