Information
- BFI identifier13154
- Date1953 (Production)
1954-09-01 (Release) - Production countryUnited Kingdom
- Production company
- SynopsisRecords the migration of a Uganda tribe to a foreign region and their relations with the pigmies they find there. (Synopsis) Dramatisation of the Bakiga people's attempt to cultivate the Kigezi district of Uganda, and their encounter with the Pygmies. The camera zooms in on a map to an area marked Kigezi. As crowds gather, 'the soldier' reads an article from the newspaper which explains that tomorrow a first group of settlers are leaving their homes to cultivate new land in Kigezi. An educated African man, Jonathan, announces that he too is leaving. He tells his father and his girlfriend, Violet, before the party depart in front of a waving crowd. The settlers set up camp and divide up the land. During a buffalo stampede, Jonathan is knocked down and attended by pygmies who nurse him back to health. Jonathan is now forced to reassess his opinion of the pygmies - previously noted enemies - and now takes 'their hand in friendship'. Jonathan returns to his land, where his fellow workers are unimpressed by his new friendship ('If you are going to mix with pygmies, you can't expect us to help clear your land'). He vows to 'look after himself' and with the help of the pygmies builds his new house. However, when he invites the pygmies to a party, the rest of his community leave. With the community now established, the women and children arrive. However, the women are unimpressed when the crops are ruined by animals and go 'on strike'. The community is then struck with malaria, which kills Milly, one of the wives, and the wise man (Yokana's father). Jonathan is also struck down and, on recovering, visits 'the soldier' to try and resolve the division within the community. The soldier, stricken with fever, attacks Jonathan. Jonathan manages to help 'the soldier' and at the film's conclusion, the men finally accept the pygmies ('we are not afraid of new ideas they can be our friends too'). Violet and Jonathan are united and celebrate at their wedding party with pygmies and settlers. (Shotlist)
- Work historyOriginally 6,660ft cut to 3,960ft.
- Genre
- Subject
- Credits
- CastGordon Heath (Narrative Spoken by)
Frederick Bijurenda (Jonathan)
Violet Mukabureza (Violet)
view full cast
Title
Man of Africa (Original)
Kigezi (Working)
The Kigezi Story (Alternative)
EIDR identifier
10.5240/3223-93FC-282D-EBF9-915F-6Category
FictionThis work is included in the BFI Filmography.
This work is available to view in the Mediatheque at BFI Southbank.
- Collections
- Film / Video
35mm Colour Positive - Safety - Combined - Viewing
35mm Colour Positive - Safety - Combined - Viewing
Digital Betacam - Video - Viewing
VHS cassette - Video - Viewing
DVD-R - Video - Viewing
view all - Scripts / DocumentsScript - Original story: From a story by Cyril Frankel - SCR-11941
Kigezi Story (formerly Soil Conservation) - Contains documents and correspondence related to the research and production of the film 'Kegezi Story' [Working title 'Soil Conservation', released under the title 'Man of Africa']: Correspondence between Helen de Mouilpied and Cyril Frankel, financial report, draft outline treatments, shooting schedule and draft shooting script. - HFO-5-1
Treatment held.
view all - Posters / Designs
- StillsPhotograph: print - Landscape - Black and White - bfi-00o-5fm
Photograph: print - Landscape - Black and White - bfi-00o-5fn
Photograph: print - Landscape - Black and White - bfi-00o-5fo
Photograph: print - Landscape - Black and White - bfi-00o-5fp
Photograph: print - Landscape - Black and White - bfi-00o-5fq
view all - Articles
- +Man of Africa
Work - 13154 - 1953 (Production)
United Kingdom - Film - Fiction
Hierarchy Display