Kigali a fjlm by Andy Amadi Okoroafor
Synopsis Kigali, Rwanda. For hot-shot expats, there are three things worth doing in the capital city: closing deals, partying, and playing moto polo – the Rwandan-invented version of polo that substitutes motor bikes for horses and safety for thrills. And in every one of these areas, winner takes all. Nigerian banker RAMSEY is used to taking all. He is as good at breaking hearts as he is at breaking ground for his growing bank. Together with his best friend from Lagos, NDU, the two of them play fast, play hard, and play to win : at work, in the nightclubs, and especially at the moto polo. But a spectacular accident on the moto polo fjeld sends Ramsey to the hospital… and turns his life around. Rehabilitating at home under the supervision of Ndu and beautiful, serious Rwandan nurse KUDZAI, Ramsey focuses on work and closing deals. Ndu does a great job at keeping Ramsey’s girlfriends – as well RITA, Ramsey’s fjancée back in Lagos – away, but he can’t stop Ramsey’s growing interest in Kudzai. When Ramsey is declared fjt to return to work and Kudzai disappears back to her own mysterious life, she’s all Ramsey can think about. In typical Ramsey fashion, he pursues Kudzai like a deal. He tracks her to the remote children’s village where she devotes her time to rehabilitating orphans of the genocide, and claims her for his own. But just like anything truly valuable, Kudzai isn’t that easy to win. Ramsey gets 48 hours to prove himself, and Ramsey’s up for the challenge. Meanwhile, back in Kigali, Ndu juggles Ramsey’s clients, Ramsey’s deals, even Ramsey’s fjancée, who turns up in Kigali determined to fjnd her man. And without Ramsey around, it’s Ndu’s chance to shine: he wraps up deals, soothes clients, and forms a bond with Rita that grows a little too close… But for the bank, Ramsey is a rare talent they don’t want to lose. Despite all of Ndu’s hard work, they promote Ramsey to manage one of the newly opened branches… in Uganda. Upset about teaching the kids such a dangerous sport, Kudzai turns sends him back to Kigali. But in the process of trying to win Kudzai’s heart, Ramsey also discovers Rwanda – the beautiful and rich country he has ignored up to now. And now the bank wants to send him away – far from the country he has grown to love, far from the woman he realizes he can’t live without. Ramsey has to make a choice: his career or his heart. Rebufged by the woman he loves, stuck with a job he doesn’t want, Ndu drives the fjnal nail in the coffjn when he confesses to falling for Rita. Ramsey fjnally gets a taste of what it’s like to lose big. Desperate and out of ideas, Ramsey turns to the one place he always wins: moto polo. But this time he doesn’t use it to win. Willing to risk it all, Ramsey purposely gets into another spectacular accident. Rushed to the hospital, broken and bleeding, Kudzai is the only thing Ramsey will live for. Determined to save his friend, Ndu sends for Kudzai. Realizing she does love him, Kudzai races to his side… and Ramsey wins again. Ndu takes the job in Uganda, leaving Ramsey in Kigali with the woman – and the country – that he loves.
Directors Note Tie idea of the fjlm came from a desire to tell a contemproray love story in Africa... To the the outside world africa and love does not really match...Wars, voilence, political strife, poverty and dieseas are the usual footnotes to african life... Tien the magnanimous would say how beautiful the landscapes are and how lovely the wildlife is... if the person is really generous they would say how great the people are... Nothing above is wrong. Tie idea of african contemporay love stories came to me as aseries of 3 fjlms made in difgerent regions of Africa. Tiis will be exploring cinematographical contemporary african lives through love which a universal language and showing the world a whole difgerent image of African... I chose to situate the fjlm in Rwanda, because of its history... also I chose it as place to explore the idea of love itself and what it means... Rwanda has had a terrible genocide in its recent history... and its not the fjrst place that comes to mind as a back drop for romantic story of love coquering all... but when we look closer it should be... its a concrete manifestation of what serious minded africans can achieve in a short time. Tiey have turned around their economy and they have had more progress in the years afuer the genocide than before... so if your are stuck in the genocide story of rwanda, you wont even notice the social and econmic shif that has happpened in that place... How does love play a part in this, how has people moved from the hatered to progress and love...
Secondly the story is anchored around inter african love story... Africa is so divided that the people living in the continents hardly ever get to meet each other but that has changed... and fastly too, this is driven mostly by the economy, african profgesionals are working in difgeent countries far away from their home countries and an african spirit last seen in 60’s is emmerging this time not driven by politics but by business and the economy... and this economic mobility of africans brings difgerent kinds of love stories in its wake and Kigali the fjlm is exploring this... Tie story is set in the banking world, because in reality african banks are intergrating the continent more than any other institution in real terms... nigerian bank Uba has 19 branches in african countries most of them maned by a mixture of pan afriacan stafg, Togo based Ecobank are in about 30 african countries, these are not european or american banks but pan african institutions touching the lives of the average african the workers in these indtutions are creating love stories and ties with themselves... one of which is what the story of kigali the fjlm is all about. Its the fjrst of the 3 part Afriacn love series i intend to make, the next would be Maputo. Myriam Makeba in the later days of her live lamented the demise of african political solidiarity like it used to be in the 60’s... most families in Nigeria especially.. those in the urban enviroment knows of a an uncles, a brother, or sister married to a ghanian, siera leonean etc, from another African country, its just that this aspect of african life is never highlighted as its been margianal to the outside eyes and until recently african stories have been told true outsiders eye! Kigali will show you an africa, that woulds surprise you, facscinate you and one full of promise and life. Ramsey our main character and Ndu his buddy are West African bankers in Kigali, the story is about how life, fate and love is about to change their future, like the futue of kigali and hopefully africa! We wanted this project to also to spin ofg into a television series... so that beyond the fjlm; african audiences can follow the lives of these characters closer to themeselves...
Potential Cast Gideon Okeke (Nigeria) Born July 23rd,'83, television personality, GIDEON ECHE OKEKE, is a breakout talent who launched an on- screen career 6 years back afuer a stint on the Nigerian version of the hit reality series BIG BROTHER (NIGERIA). GIDEON currently plays a leading role on MNET Africa's DAILY glamorous drama series TINSEL, as Philip Ade- Williams, made broadcast to viewers in 48 COUNTRIES in Africa. Having garnered a wide reach of audience on pay TV, GIDEON also fjnds time ofg to engage himself in other challenging frontiers as stage productions and fjlm. Tie 2010 showing of FRACTURES, (an adaptation of Arthur Miller's ''A view from a bridge'') proves this young actor ready to take on the challenge of a global audience. He currently takes on the central role in a new career move,as the host of the hot new game-show, THE MONEY DROP NIGERIA, produced by ENDEMOL SA, for MNET's AFRICA MAGIC. A trained actor in "THE METHOD" with a diploma in screen acting from the LEE STRASBERG THEATRE AND FILM INSTITUTE, New York. An Applied Biochemistry graduate from Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Nigeria, with special skills in music and screen acting, GIDEON is best described as a body of work in progress... His fjlmography which include a debut lead appearance in the fjlm, RELENTLESS, as well as a recently concluded project ''A Place In Tie Stars'' gives further buttressing pointers to this actors intensity. Proving that Nigeria and Africa at large has a lot more to expect from such an exemplary talent. Cleophas Kabasita (Rwanda) Cleophas Kabasita (‘Cleo’) is one of the genuine local actresses Rwandan showbiz has ever known. She fjrst starred as ‘the heroine Josette’ in the movie ‘100 Days’ (2001, Nick Hughes), and later as Valentine in ‘Sometimes in April’ (2004, Raoul Peck). Cleo has worked with several Hollywood stars like seasoned actor Richard Gant in ‘Ezra’ (Newton Aduaka), and Hollywood A-Lister, Idris Elba. Her fourth and latest feature fjlm, ‘Kinyarwanda’ , won the ‘World Cinema Audience Choice Award’ at the ‘Sundance Film Festival’ in the United States. Tiis is her 2nd feature fjlm to go to Sundance afuer ‘Ezra’ .
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