Motherland UK Première | Rio Hackney Hot

TEST
5 years ago the world was held in awe by the powerful documentary 500 Years Later, it stirred our souls and made us ask those questions, where are we now and where do we want to go and more importantly how do we get there? 5 Years later the team is back with Motherland, which the Sowetan in South Africa is calling “The greatest documentary on Africa”. A bold epic journey, which charts the glory and challenges of Africa with an all-star cast from presidents and prime ministers such as Jacob Zuma and Meles Zenawi; from historians such as Molefi Asante and Ali Mazrui. All this beautiful energy in one documentary directed by Owen Alik Shahadah and made in Africa by African people from funding to filming, from production to design.
We all know the problems; we talk and complain about them every day: The negative image and the consequences of that negative image on our children and ourselves. We always say, “They have done this”, but what is our role in salvaging our image of self and our dignity? Motherland is our voice and it is masterfully pro-active response to re-educated us in the world that has left us invisible. And beyond its cinematic worth it is an industry which creates wealth, opportunity and skills for our young people. Who now also have new models of achievement and excellence beyond MTV base and the plethora of negative ghetto films of Hollywood? Because not only is the film a historical and cultural gem, it is also an aesthetic statement of quality and professionalism.
There is a long history of the missionary, military, the merchant and the media in under developing of the Black man and woman. We have become very accustomed to letting people come into our spaces and act as messiahs and mouthpieces for our issues and history. Why must African lives be perpetually viewed through the eyes of a White race? Why are we so satisfied to watch yet another White Tarzan project investigate and distribute tainted self-serving images of African repeatedly? Motherland breaks with this trend by restoring African history in dignity re-affirming terms. Motherland revisits the nobility and splendor of Aksum and Songhai, to tell us again our rich history in the Nile Valley. And to pose those hard questions this generation must resolve. But Motherland does not only pose hard questions it, like 500 Years Later, delves deep into our intellectual and cultural vault and brings forth the most beautiful cultured solutions to address our global condition.
The filmmakers have done it again, but this work and this burden is not theirs alone. We too have a responsibility to enhance and magnify this work by collectively celebrating our own achievements, purchasing these products, attending the screenings and helping an industry of African agency to grow. It is our burden and our task for healing the wrongs of the past. We have been called and we must answer and love and respect ourselves for no one else will do this for us. We are the ones we have been waiting for, and look no further because our future is dependent on what we do today.