Mira Nair - Mirabai Films
Mirabai Films and Maisha Film Lab
Mira Nair is the creator of Mirabai Films, a production company that has established an annual filmmaker's laboratory, Maisha, based in Uganda. It is dedicated to supporting and educating screenwriters and directors in East Africa and India. The first lab was launched in August 2005, in Kampala, Uganda (g30).
Mission Statement:
"Maisha (which means 'life' in Kiswahili) is a non-profit training initiative for emerging East African filmmakers. We provide hands-on intensives in screenwriting, directing, producing, cinematography, editing, sound recording, and acting" (g64).
"[Queen of Katwe] offers a realistic and harshly honest, for a Disney film, look at Africa."
Mira Nair is an Indian-American filmmaker based in New York City. One of her most recent works include a Disney film, Queen of Katwe, set in Kampala, Uganda (i17).
Queen of Katwe
Set in the slums of Kampala, Uganda, Queen of Katwe (2016) follows a young girl's affinity to chess. After meeting a missionary, Robert Katende (David Oyelowo), who teaches her the game, 10 year old Phiona (Madina Nalwanga) quickly becomes a top player. Her success in competitions brings Phiona and her family an escape from the poverty she has always known (g34).
Queen of Katwe won the Africa Movie Academy Awards for Best Young Actor and for Best Costume Design. Produced by Disney, this film brought an easily digested perspective of Uganda to a primarily American youth. With one review saying, "It offers a realistic and harshly honest, for a Disney film, look at Africa, with prostitution references and poor medical care reoccurring throughout the story" (g11). Featuring a cast of South African and Ugandan youth, the film only had two big name actors: Lupita Nyong'o (Phiona's mother) and David Oyelowo.