Top filmmakers battle for Kalasha Awards
The stage is set for the Kalasha Film Awards as the producers with the most nominations remain hopeful of a bumper harvest on Friday night at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre.
NTV’s Aunty Boss drama series is expected to be among winners in television productions having been nominated in three different categories of the annual awards that has gone international.
The Moonlight Production television series airs every Tuesday and has a storyline around house helps and their bosses.
In the film categories, the productions with the most nominations include Letters Home and Sibini each with seven nominations as well as Before and After that has five nominations.
The producer of Letters Home and Before and After, Brian Munene, also anticipates to win several categories due to the work the crew and cast put into the two productions.
“We hope to win in all the categories that we have been nominated in. Though it is really hard to tell what will go down tonight (Friday night), I hope Before and After wins a Best Director of Photography Award as its cinematography was the best,” Munene told Nairobi News.
Mr Munene, a seasoned producer currently working for Kibanda Pictures, will be the man to watch as his productions collectively have 13 nominations.
VERNACULAR FILMS
“As for Letters Home I will be a bit biased because I attach a lot of sentimental value to it. I hope it bags the Best Original Screen Play award,” he added.
Sibini’s producer Bramwel Iro will also be hoping for a win in the seven categories that the film has been nominated in.
“I think both Jack Ogola and Jacob Otieno did a great job for best lead actor and best supporting actor categories that they have been nominated in and we are highly confident of a win in both categories,” said Mr Iro.
The Lightbox producer added that his specialisation in vernacular films and having Sibini (Dholuo) and Ririkana (Kikuyu) being nominated shows that people are beginning to appreciate productions done in mother tongue.
“Sibini was inspired by five young people with different sexual orientations that the society does not quite understand while Ririkana was set during the post-election violence. Both topics are of interest to the respective communities,” said Mr Iro.
According to the seasoned producer, actors perform best in scripts written in their mother tongue and the audience reach is better as more people understand.
Veve, Switch, Fundimentals, Bodaboda and Nightrunners will battle it out for the Best Feature category’s award.
The 6th edition of the Kalasha International Film and TV Awards Gala will be aired live on NTV with The Trend show broadcasting the red carpet and later on streaming the winners’ announcements.
