African Independence Premieres this Thursday; A Calling Fulfilled

By Marcus T. Wright, Coordinator to Dr. Tukufu Zuberi

This week, African Independence will premiere at the San Diego Black Film Festival.  It has been a long journey for Dr. Tukufu Zuberi and everyone who has helped with this film.  I have had a chance to preview the film for the festival and it looks amazing.

Documentary film-making is not for the faint of heart.  From what I have seen, it begins with a calling.  Something has to be so important to the filmmaker that he has to tell someone about it.  In this case, Dr. Zuberi has repeatedly shown his passion about what’s going on in Africa, and the history of Africa.  Even further, Dr. Zuberi’s passion is for other people to know about Africa.  We often only hear the story of Africa through the funnel of media outlets.  We don’t hear enough from people who live on the continent itself.  African Independence does this, as it contains a variety of interviews of key individuals whom have lived through the shaping of the continent.

Furthermore, creating a documentary – or any film for that matter – takes a lot of persistence.  When you begin to figure out how to tell the story or message that is burning inside of you, you know it will be a long, hard journey.  It will not be an overnight endeavor.  Somehow, through the long and grueling process of film-making, Dr. Zuberi has not lost focus of the calling.  The end result is African Independence, the fruits of the labor, which will be unveiled this Thursday in San Diego.

We do hope that you continue to follow as African Independence spreads the message of how the world has shaped Africa, and in turn, how Africa has shaped the world.

-Marcus