Thinking about film this week. A lot of African content especially offered by streaming services remains essentially Western films with African cast members – especially coming out of Nigeria and South Africa. This means that a lot of ground remains to grow and shape content that explores more original storylines around which Africa can emerge is own narrative universe. The business of film however remains a practical matter.
Below is a letter I wrote to one of my mentors – then Prime Minister of Uganda Rt. Hon Ruhakana Rugunda as part of a series of engagements on the Uganda film sector and what it can offer the country and the continent. At the time of the writing the production of Queen of Katwe was facing tax issues.
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2015, Palo Alto California
Dear Dr. Rugunda,
Thank you in advance for your kind consideration of the matters raised below. Let me take this opportunity to congratulate you on your elevation as Leader of Government Business and Prime Minister of Uganda. As I mentioned on the phone I want to bring to your direct attention, and the attention of the government efforts undertaken by members of Uganda’s emerging film industry to promote the country as a destination for film production.
Uganda has been “lucky” in some respects. There are liberal references to Uganda in many films, soap operas, action series and other productions often as a by-word for anything from corruption to gross human rights abuses- part of the legacy of conflicts and the larger than life story of late Idi Amin Dada. The creative license of Hollywood’s film writers aside, the 2012 short film on Joseph Kony all but permanently stamped Uganda within the cultural conversation about the African conflict and its global reputation. As you can see these are not positive portraitures. Nonetheless they operate as a permanent calling card about this central African country.
In the past decade the film “ The Last King of Scotland” delivered the same message but its production in Uganda opened up another opportunity. It provided the local industry a chance to collaborate and grow on the back of a bigger production. This year one of the worlds biggest film houses Walt Disney chose a Ugandan story and the Indian-Ugandan director Mira Nair for the production of “The Queen of Katwe” set for release globally during the Christmas season. It stars the award winning Kenyan actress Lupita Nyongo, East Africa’s most famous acting personality right now. The visibility of Uganda has, like I said, been about luck for the most part. But prominence as a storyline is not the same as being a preferred destination for film production.
(the writer and cast members Martin Kabanza and Madina Nalwanga at the wrap up party to conclude filming of Queen of Katwe in Kampala)
The latter provides a unique set of opportunities sought after by many countries.
In our past conversations I may have referenced just how attractive Uganda is not just for trade and business or conventional tourism but also as a film production alternative to the larger market in the south of the continent. Infrastructure is connecting Uganda’s large water bodies, mountains and rivers, its deep forests, emerging towns and cities thereby offering filmmakers incredible reach. Uganda is broadly speaking a visual canvass ready to tell the story of our times, the rising of Africa.
Fantastic views from savannahs to arid landscapes, tropical forests to modern cities make this destination and its largely English speaking multi-cultural society a potential leader in the world of film production. Queen of Katwe will likely make this case strongly when it premieres later this year. It is crucial that Uganda seizes and promotes this opportunity aggressively. The argument here is not just about how future film production will provide income for local crews and support for businesses such as catering, hotels, car services and vehicle rentals, equipment for offices etc that boost the local economy. It is also about investing in an industry that is crucial to the ability of future Ugandans to own and tell their own stories. One cannot emphasize enough this power to construct one’s own narrative. As I said earlier many references to Uganda are in fact negative. There is an establishment bias about African stories that needs no further elaboration. Even if the rise in Internet and social media is relieving some of that pressure from the African stereotype, the cultural landscape will entail sharing Uganda and Africa’s story through film.
(above Derrick Kibisi of the Production House Talking Film, myself and crew at the premier of Queen of Katwe in Kampala).
This brings me to the request for your government. Many countries that promote themselves as destinations for film production have established Film Councils that manage tax incentives for prospective productions. In South Africa for example the use of a tax rebate has been a powerful boost for the local film sector, which contributes over 3.5 billion rand to its economy annually. In the case of Queen of Katwe, the absence of a rebate caused the producers to locate over 60% of the 18 million dollar production in South Africa- mostly because of the rebate (they were entitled to a 1.8 million dollar rebate). This is even if the story was Ugandan and set here in Kampala.
This was a major lost opportunity for the economy no less under the present economic conditions.
While the issue has been brought to the attention of some government officials – it is time that government policy addressed it directly. I am hoping future legislation can provide for tax incentives to the industry but also that the government provides for a Film Council to deal with promotion of the sector. As a matter of fact I am almost certain that the entertainment industry, the film sector and the artistic community will be reassured if your party consulted on making these promises in your upcoming elections manifesto.
It would send a message that the government is keen on future jobs from this growing sector and committed to giving young Ugandans of the future the tools and opportunity to proudly tell their story in the cultural product of their time- the film.
In the case of Queen of Katwe sadly even now officials of URA are continuing to find new ways to finagle new taxes – with no guidance on the importance of the production and the film, when it is released later this year.
I hope sincerely that you can take an interest in this matter. I am happy to remain engaged with you and the rest of the government on advancing this in the public interest.
Yours sincerely
Angelo Izama
P.S Following this engagement some changes initiated by Hon R. Rugunda have been made to the tax regime to make it easier and more profitable for film production to take place in country but not at the scale that can meet Uganda’s potential or the ambition of its content creators.
