MIFT Fort Portal Edition

On Friday, June 28th, 2024, we embarked on the final leg of the Moving Identities Film Tour (MIFT), heading to Fort Portal in Kabarole district. We arrived around 2:00 pm at Reinah Tourist Hotel, our accommodation and workshop venue. After settling in, we meticulously planned for the workshops to ensure a smooth flow the following day.

The workshops began at 9:00 am with our participants settled in. Alex Ireeta, award winning cinematographer, led the first session. He broke down storytelling into its basic elements, focusing on visual techniques for mobile phone video and film production. He highlighted how composition, framing, lighting, colour, and other visual elements can craft compelling narratives, evoke emotions, and engage audiences effectively.

The second session, led by sound recordist Joseph Ssozi, emphasized the importance of sound in storytelling. He introduced basic sound recording kits, stressed using available resources to bring stories to life, and discussed defining a story’s identity through music. Participants also learned about microphones and booming techniques.

Our final session was conducted by award-winning writer and filmmaker Angie Emurwon, who focused on building character and character motivations from interesting points of view (story of an idea, story of an object) as an entryway into writing and visual storytelling.

Before breaking for lunch, participants were divided into groups and tasked with making short scenes based on what they had learned from the three sessions. After lunch, we reconvened in the conference room to watch their creations. After each film, facilitators provided feedback and suggestions, which participants noted for future use.

We then proceeded to Balya Road for the evening screening. At 7:00 pm, we began screening five films, including Ttula by Benjamin Mwesigwa, Keycard by Angela Emurwon, A Void Life by Ian Nnyanzi, and Mawe! by That Malcolm Guy. 

We were joined by That Malcolm Guy who hails from Fort Portal, he answered questions from the audience about the making of his film Mawe!, a crowd favourite. He was praised for producing a film in Rutooro, the mother tongue of Kabarole District. 

We extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who has been an integral part of MIFT: our funders, the Franco-German Cultural Fund; our partners, Alliance Française de Kampala; our curator, Ntale Bahana; the experienced filmmakers; and all the participants who joined us to learn about filmmaking.