Unfortunately,
the original concept for the film has become far more complex.
Six weeks after the competition, Kenya held national elections.
The voting was peaceful and the turnout historic, but then things
went sour. International observers complained of fraud, the
opposition accused the ruling party of stealing the election,
and within days Kenya saw the worst ethnic violence since gaining
independence 45 years ago. Within a month, 1000 Kenyans died
and more than 300,000 were displaced. Nairobi has been plagued
with high crime rates, but no one ever expected to see atrocities
bordering on ethnic cleansing in one of Africa's most peaceful
nations.
For
the film, it is now the classic structure of boy-meets-girl,
boy-loses-girl, boy-fights-to-get-girl-back, only it is entrepreneur
finds success, loses success, and now must fight to get that
success back. The importance of Kenya getting back to business
is crucial. Business has the greatest multiplier effect on development.
Experts estimate that for every one person working in Africa,
10 others have food, clothing, shelter, school fees and other
necessities. I have no doubt that given some degree of political
stability, the six people featured in the film, and in fact
many of the 100 finalists, will be able to realize their dreams,
and with that, their stories will be even more inspiring. We
look forward to filming that part of the story.
Normally,
clips from a film-in-progress would not be released at such
an early stage. But as we watch news reports from Kenya with
the alarming violence and civil unrest, it is hard not to take
action. My hope is these clips will show the world what Kenya
has to lose and will move people to connect with these extraordinary
Kenyans. We hope you will repeatedly come back to this site
to see the progress they are making. We'll be putting up video
clips, photos, and updates. Kenya is a nation in trauma, but
we can all engage with these people to let them know they are
not alone.
This
project still has a long way to go before becoming a full film,
yet I have already been blessed to work with a wonderful group
of people. Cinematographer Erin Harvey, who has shot extensively
for National Geographic and Discovery, had such compassion and
enthusiasm for the story. Sound engineer John Kagu of Camerapix
in Nairobi had just gone through another business plan competition
and offered great insight. My Production Coordinator, Ashley
Smith, and Cameraman Tom Sampson, got wonderful footage during
an earlier phase of the competition. On the ground, we were
helped by Technoserve, the well-known American NGO that was
managing the competition. Toby Hayman, a Washington-based editor
who lived in Somalia and Kenya, brought the clips to life in
a way that made the people shine. The music in the preview comes
from original compositions by talented composer Nkeng Alemanji
of Songs
From Above and Niko Plaitakis of Visual
Mercenary Group created this wonderful website.
There
is one person above all who deserves credit, from his original
vision to his constant support throughout - Bill Stevenson of
Lenovo. Not only am I truly grateful for his support and that
of Lenovo, but I very much appreciate his insistence that the
early release of these clips and website must directly benefit
the entrepreneurs in Kenya. Getting exposure is nice, but concrete
engagement is what these people need. My deepest thanks go to
Bill and Lenovo for all their support and for making this film
and website a reality. Bill's blog could not be more aptly named:
Heart
of Business. He truly does bring compassion to business.
The
original title for this film was Pitching for a Future. Today,
it could be called Kenya Interrupted. My hope is the final title
will be more along the lines of Back from the Brink. In the
meantime, it shall remain Kenya Stories.
Carol
Pineau
February 2008
Carol
Pineau is a journalist who has specialized in Africa for more
than 10 years. She is a frequent contributor for CNN and the
producer/director of the award-winning documentary, Africa Open
for Business, which was voted BBC Documentary of the Year, and
of Africa Investment Horizons.
