bullet boy

[bonddonraj]

This year’s European Film Festival in Malawi was only the second of its kind and gave us the rare opportunity to engage with young people across the country, and create debate with the screening of the UK film, Bullet Boy.

Attracting a young audience
To create interest in the Festival, we talked to student unions across the country, getting them to find suitable venues for screenings and display promotional materials across campus. This, along with a national radio campaign, lead to thousands of young people attending the screenings and debates.

What makes this festival different?
Film festivals are a familar part of many countries' culture. In Malawi, however, they are a new kind of event. With its theme of youth in Africa and Europe, the festival was able to represent the dreams and aspirations of both continents, and reach a whole new audience. And with the UK film, Bullet Boy, the festival also helped us to break down cultural stereotypes and create debate.

Why the debate about Bullet Boy?
Our contribution to the festival was, perhaps, one of the most talked-about films of the festival. Critically-acclaimed, Bullet Boy is the story of a young black boy’s admiration for an elder brother who is caught in London's gun culture. Its clear anti-gun message caused some debate. More than this, one brief scene caused controversy among Malawi's conservative audiences because of its sexual content. Some branded the entire film as pornographic, while one student was amazed by the strong reaction of his peers: 'Such unwillingness to be open, honest and frank about sex is why Malawians are dying heavily from HIV/AIDS'. He went on to say 'it is hypocritical as well as dangerous’.

Why we chose Bullet Boy
We believe that the showing of Bullet Boy was a move towards inter-cultural learning. And that the film's messages where important enough to accept the potential reaction's of a more conservative audience. The film's dramatic final scene sees the younger brother reject his chance for revenge, which our audiences saw as representative of new choices for future generations. One college lecturer summed up the Festival as 'an effective medium for learning and reflection’.