Lies That Bind leads Kenyan nominees at AMVCA

LIES-THAT-BIND

Kenya has received ten nominations for the inaugural Africa Magic Viewer’s Choice Awards, which take place in Lagos on the second week of March.

Of the 28 awards up for grabs, Kenyan TV series Lies That Bind, The XYZ Show and Makutano Junction were picked by a line-up of esteemed judges from across the continent.

Animation Yellow Fever by Ng’endo Mukii was also slotted for a chance at the Best Short Film award.

As expected Nigeria and South Africa filled up most of the nomination slots thanks to more dominant film industries in those countries that are miles ahead of their East African counterparts.

The Kenyan nominees include:

Maureen Koech – Best Supporting Actress in Lies That Bind
Reg Chuhi & Kevin Ireri – Best Picture Editor for Lies That Bind
Quentin Hughes & Alex Konstantaras – Best Local Language Movie (Swahili) for Zeinabu Rudi Nyumbani
Godffrey Mwampembwa/Marie Lora-Mungai for The XYZ Show and Patricia Gichinga/David Campbell for Makutano Junction – Best TV Series

Ng’endo told Capital Lifestyle that she was excited by the news of the nomination.

“I’m so excited! I have watched the other films in the category and they are both socially conscious films, advocating for things concerning women, and I think it’s an honour to be part of that category,” she said on telephone.

The youthful Koech, who acts and sings, has been feted despite being a relative newcomer in the film industry.

“There are very few actors that are focused and she is one of them,” says co-star Maqbul Mohammed.

“She has focus and discipline. And because of that I think that she will go very far.”

The list of nominees was crafted by a team of nine, including Kenya’s Njoki Muhoho and Bongiwe Selane from South Africa, who is a board member of the Independent Producer’s Organisation.

Bongiwe said that though there was a flood of entries from Nigeria and South Africa, a good number of submissions were made by Kenyan film-makers.

“There was a reasonable amount of movies from Kenya, and East Africa, mainly on the Local Language Swahili category,” she told Capital Lifestyle, adding that the submissions were a new breed of movies.

“It’s a pity that there weren’t that many independent movies, but the kind of stories that came up was fascinating. The story lines are no longer rooted in culture, but in modern day Africa and the challenges that Africa goes through now. It’s the Africa we live in now and not the romantic view of the continent, but a new voice; a great voice!”

The awards will be held in Lagos, Nigeria on March 8 and 9, sponsored by Multichoice and Amstel Malta.

“The initiative was designed to recognize and reward African excellence and creativity, and in addition to having professionally-judged categories, will also include some categories in which viewers themselves will vote for winners,” said Multichoice.

Sponsored