Akasha (2018 film)

Akasha (stylized as aKasha; transl. The round-up) is a 2018 Sudanese comedic film written and directed by Hajooj Kuka about a Sundanese soldier caught between his love for his girlfriend and his AK-47. Kuka previously directed several documentaries. Akasha is his first narrative film and premiered at the Venice Film Festival on August 31, 2018.

aKasha
Directed byHajooj Kuka
Produced by
  • Hajooj Kuka
  • Steven Markovitz
Written byHajooj Kuka
Starring
  • Ekram Marcus
  • Kamal Ramadan
  • Mohamed Chakado
Music by
  • Nancy Mounir
  • alsarah
Cinematography
  • Giovanni P. Autran
  • Hajooj Kuka
Edited byHajooj Kuka
Production
company
  • Big World Cinema
  • Refugee Club
  • Komplizen Film
Release date
  • August 31, 2018 (TIFF)
Running time
78 min
Country
  • Sudan
  • South African
  • Qatar
  • Germany
LanguageArabic

Plot

Adnan has earned time off from his duty as a revolutionary soldier for shooting down a MiG fighter plane, and now professes his love to the AK-47 responsible for the shot, naming the gun Nancy. His girlfriend Lina is not happy about this other love, so she kicks him out. Over the next 24 hours, his commander tries to round up all the deserters, and Adnan concocts a series of plans to retrieve Nancy, which he accidentally left in Lina's house. Along the way he's aided by another deserter, Absi, who believes in pacifism.[1][2]


Cast
  • Kamal Ramadan as Adnan
  • Ekram Marcus as Lina
  • Mohamed Chakado as Absi
  • Abdallah Alnur as Blues

Production

Kuka met two of the lead actors, Mohamed Chakado and Kamal Ramadan, while teaching drama at a local youth centre, and decided to cast them in the film.[3] He cast Ekram Marcus to play Lina because she is so similar to the character: choosing to pursue education rather than get married.[4]

Release

The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival on August 31, 2018, and screened at the Toronto International Film Festival. Two of the actors, Kamal Ramadan and Mohamed Chakado, could not attend the festivals because Uganda refused to allow their departure while awaiting their refugee status papers.[3] The film also screened at the Africa in Motion festival in Edinburgh.[5]

Reception

aKasha received mixed reviews. Alvise Mainardi of Non Solo Cinema wrote that even though the low budget is evident, it's hard not to like it.[6] Martina Barone of Cinematographe felt that while the actors' performances often drag down the quality of the film, this debut shows that the director has a talent for film-making.[7]

gollark: Numbers, I mean.
gollark: They're too long, really.
gollark: ALSO NEVER!
gollark: See my list of formats above.
gollark: Yep!

References
  1. Shiri, Keith (11 October 2018). "Don't miss! Four films for Thursday 11 October". British Film Institute. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
  2. Agarwal, Manish (8 October 2018). "Three to see at LFF if you like... African films". British Film Institute. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
  3. Vourlias, Christopher (29 August 2018). "Venice: Two Refugee Sudanese Actors Unable to Attend Film Premiere". Variety. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  4. Stephens, Danielle (producer) (21 November 2018). 'Suddenly you have to run for your life': a film-maker's take on life in Sudan (podcast). The Guardian. Event occurs at 14:54. Retrieved 1 September 2019.
  5. Stephen, Phyllis (25 September 2018). "Africa in Motion Film Festival 26 October to 4 November 2018". The Edinburgh Reporter. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  6. Mainardi, Alvise (31 August 2018). ""aKasha" di Hajooj Kuka". NonSoloCinema (in Italian). Retrieved 1 October 2018. Il budget rimane risicato, e talvolta nell’opera ben si nota questa caratteristica, ma il lavoro che riesce a imbastire pur con tutti i suoi difetti è difficile da disprezzare, vuoi per lo sguardo ironico con cui affronta un tema complesso, vuoi per l’assoluta mancanza di retorica.
  7. Barone, Martina (2 September 2018). "Venezia 75 – aKasha (The Roundup): recensione". Cinematographe (in Italian). FilmIsNow. Retrieved 1 October 2018. Un film decisamente semplice in cui purtroppo gli attori non contribuiscono ad alzare il livello della prestazione generale dell’opera e anzi, a volte, sembrano addirittura abbassare ancora di più il livello qualitativo del tutto. Di certo un tentativo di cinema contemporaneo che mostra la conoscenza delle dinamiche della narrazione, non sapendole però utilizzare al loro meglio, creando un film ingenuo, ma che presenta le abilità di questo aspirante regista.
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