Kalasha Awards: Strength of a Woman hoping for beginner's luck

A scene from Strength of a Woman, the film that has received nine nominations in this year’s Kalasha Awards. PHOTO/ZUQKA

What you need to know:

  • Manasseh Chege, who is the film’s scriptwriter, told Nation.co.ke on Friday that the recognition the production brought to the crew was unbelievable as it was a first for most of them.
  • “We have three strong categories that we are hoping to be awarded in; Best Editing for the creativity that we put in, Best actress for the great acting skills portrayed by a first timer and Best Original Score for the soundtrack that took us long to develop,” said Manasseh.

Being a novice does not necessarily translate to a mediocre production.

This is a maxim that rings true for the producers of Strength of a Woman, the film that has received nine nominations in this year’s Kalasha Awards.

Manasseh Chege, who is the film’s scriptwriter, told Nation.co.ke on Friday that the recognition the production brought to the crew was unbelievable as it was a first for most of them.

“The lead actress, Rose Njoroge was featured in Strength of a Woman as her first film and it was amazing to have won her a first nomination,” said Manasseh.

Produced by Pickpoint production, the film had a team of five most of who were first time members in a large production.

“The editor for instance, Francis Kuria, did this as his first big project and it is amazing the quality he put in it to have been accorded a nomination in the Best Editing category,” he added.

OWNERS OF THE INDUSTRY

Strength of a Woman is a one and a half feature film that tells the story of a 16 year old girl who is raised by an emotionally and financially traumatised mother and a physically abusive father.

Manasseh did the project with beginners as part of his mentorship program, For Us By Us (Fubu), that trains and mentors young professionals in the film industry.

“I started this program after seeing how first timers were being left out in the industry. I myself was at one time left out, did jobs for producers and never got paid and even kept in the dark on activities such as auditions,” he said.

The industry has for a long time had camps of pioneers and big names who often do not engage in productions with the upcoming producers.

“In Fubu we have realised the need for mentorship and so we develop projects as a group and source for sponsors,” he added.

The crew is hoping to bag several awards from this year’s Kalasha as an encouragement to upcoming producers in the industry.

“We have three strong categories that we are hoping to be awarded in; Best Editing for the creativity that we put in, Best actress for the great acting skills portrayed by a first timer and Best Original Score for the soundtrack that took us long to develop,” said Manasseh.

This year’s Kalasha awards attracted a record 713 entries that the Kenya Film Commission screened and came up with 145 nominees in the 30 categories.