"Bobi is probably the most interesting politician to come out of Africa since Mandela, possibly the most significant person because he can make a change not just for Uganda but for Africa..."
5 Questions #18: the directors of the Oscar-nominated doc Bobi Wine: The People's President
Note: If you are receiving this post twice, please accept my apologies. It seems that originally only paid subscribers received it, when I wanted all to get to read about the film, the filmmaking, the filmmakers, and the incredible journey. Please enjoy.
What is that we want from films and particularly non-fiction films? Great characters are probably the first element on the list. Next would come either deep understanding or discovery of something new that you hadn’t experienced, or perhaps for some visceral intensity would be tops on the list. What if you had that, but it was captured over a significant amount of time, long enough that you could see the characters, the people, the country grow and change. What if the filmmakers were so in the midst of it, you had a feeling of being there, in the heart of it? Would there be anything else you could dare ask for from the film? Probably not, but what if you got heart and soul and love and family? Wow, right? What if you saw the highest principles of democracy and commitment and bravery? Incredible. And did I say you also great great music that you want to dance for it? What would you do? You’d make a point of seeing that movie. That movie is Bobi Wine: The People’s President and you should stop waiting and see it now.
The directors Christopher Sharp and Moses Bwayo were kind enough to share some of the making of the film with us.
Bobi has to be one of the most charismatic people to be captured on screen — a performer, a charmer, yet at the same time, he seems so heartfelt and authentic. You capture so many aspects and layers with him. How did you earn trust and confidence along the way? What were the first steps? Were there times it got difficult? And although on one hand it seems as long as there is a camera on him, you'd have a movie, I know that that can't be true; what were the aspects of Bobi Wine the man that surprised you most during filming or the edit?
Chris: When I first met Bobi and Barbie it was their charisma that was so overwhelming and was what drew me to them. When we started filming, it was evident that it was this charisma and charm that enabled Bobi to be so popular in Uganda. From that initial meeting and the inspiration to make a film to realizing their cause was so incredibly noble and the situation in Uganda was so incredibly dire. Uganda has been under dictatorship at that point for 36 years and it had gotten to the point where the country needed someone like Bobi to try and endeavor to lead them out of this situation. What was most impressive about them was the bravery, because Bobi is someone who had everything to lose – an amazing wife, wonderful children, a very successful musician – and he was willing to sacrifice all that for the chance to restore democracy in Uganda.
Moses: As we started filming, we were really focusing on the political coverage – we were given access to the private meetings and rallies but when the situation around him became violent – when the military and police were targeting him, his family and those close to him we were then let into the very close, tight knit family and the access grew at that point. We had figured out the camera became a protection for him and his family. Having a camera close to him was a lifeline for them and they also saw the need for the camera and why that access was needed. Trust and camaraderie was further established when the violence started happening to us and they recognized that we matched their commitment in supporting their fight for freedom.
Witnessing the violence and corruption and the toil it takes on the people and land of Uganda is horrifying but it must have been incredibly hard for you on the ground too. You — the filmmakers —- are observers but the camera always excites the subject too. As not just filmmakers, but people witnessing the oppression, can you speak of how you manage both objectivity and professionalism while being in the midst of such chaos.
Moses: We’ve been on this project since 2017 and Christopher and I wanted to show an honest portrayal of what was happening in Uganda – the corruption and the increasing violence that has been impacting the politicians and their supporters and even the journalists. I was shot in the face, locked up in prison, interrogated…eventually I even fled my home country but ultimately, we kept assessing the situation, Christopher, myself and our producer John Battsek.
As Bobi and Barbie often say, we wanted to capture an unfiltered, uncensored depiction of the events. What you see in the film is what the dictatorship that’s been in power for 38 years has been doing to the Ugandan people for almost 4 decades. And although the brutality and injustice is jarring, we do believe there is so much hope that can be taken from this film. That the people of Uganda will continue to fight for freedom.
You are now in the Oscar race-- pomp & circumstance at its finest. You have a powerful film capturing democracy -- supposedly one of America's core values -- under attack. You are to some degree dependent on Hollywood to elevate your film & hopefully help it lead to change in Uganda. You must be feeling a sort of vertigo where this American system needs your film in its annual highlight wheel, whereas our country has a long history of propping up anti-democratic dictators like Musevani , and yet here you are being celebrated for documenting Bobi Wine's courageous fight against those things. Can you speak about the irony of it all?
Chris: Another great question. I think one of the things that was disappointing after the 2021 Presidential election in Uganda was that Bobi had played by our rules, our Western rules – he’d practiced non violence and kept telling his supporters to be non violent. He’d done everything by our terms, he’d been honest, he’d run a proper campaign, he encouraged the public to go out and vote even though he knew their votes were valueless and they wouldn’t be counted properly. I don’t think Bobi felt this or he might’ve put it aside but it was disappointing for someone who really holds our values and at the end of it Museveni announces himself as president again and wins the vote. You have a handful of western democracies who go on to express that they are troubled and acknowledge that it wasn’t a fair election but very quickly it’s business as usual – the money is flooding in, they're visiting Uganda and Museveni and his ministers are visiting those world leaders. That’s difficult and sad for Bobi and Barbie but the US is a wonderful democracy and even though at times, particularly right now, democratic values are under threat we still have great faith in America. Ultimately we have faith that the American people want to do good and they value democracy. These places under dictatorships will always turn to America for hope because it’s never too late to do the right thing and to stand for people who are living under autocratic regimes. And that’s what Bobi hopes for now – he hopes that the film inspires people – and it’s gotten an amazing response and it’s been incredibly moving to know that it’s touched people.
Moses: We are deeply humbled and immensely grateful for the recognition the film has been receiving. We are so honored and thankful for those who have stood up in support of the film. I must say, our film is not just about Uganda – it reflects upon the need to protect the fragility of democracies all over the world. This is just one example of what could happen if the democratic structure in other countries is not protected and upheld. I believe the American people and those who love democracy around the world can do something about what’s happening in Uganda. It’s said that bad things happen because good people don’t anything when they have an opportunity to do something so I hope good people will do something about what they’ve seen.
What makes something great and elevates it from the commonplace or mediocre? Are there things, processes, attitudes, or ways of working that help elevate things to such a high bar.
Chris: This particular project is a great example of that. It was a matter of firstly being completely in the story and believing it was a worthy cause and then being able to pursue it to its end. When Moses and I first started making this film, we didn’t know if it was going to be a 6 month shoot or a 10 year shoot. We didn’t even know if we’d have a film. We were constantly worried something terrible would happen to Bobi and that would be the end of it. We just felt that even though we didn’t know if we’d ever finish the film or if it’d ever see an audience, it just felt like the right thing to do. We had this incredible opportunity to document this moment in Ugandan history and a moment when this courageous person had come forward – for me, Bobi is probably the most interesting politician to come out of Africa since Mandela, possibly the most significant person because he can make a change not just for Uganda but for Africa and why not make a change for the world by his example. We felt honored and lucky to be there to record what unfolded.
Moses: I think the one thing that really elevates our film to a higher level is that it’s been a major labor of love and collaboration. We are both born in Uganda, Christopher and I and we have a deep connection to the country and we know that things could be better. Because of this, we want to be part of this vehicle of change. Collaboration is key but that spark and our connection to the country, the land, the people, the culture and the music is really what comes through.
In shooting such a longitudinal study of an individual, a movement, and a country, how do you decide what stays in and what doesn’t? More specifically, how did you take into account the events of Bobi’s life prior to the events of the film, namely the criticism he received for the anti-gay rhetoric in his song lyrics from over 12 years ago?
Chris: We were making a film about a particular period of Bobi’s life. It was a time when he had transitioned from being an artist living in the ghetto, to an activist, singing protest songs about the corruption and the shocking misrule of his country. He had just become a member of parliament and was a target of the regime. He had already undergone a remarkable personal journey of understanding and enlightenment. The period of his life which you are referencing – when Bobi had written a song which contained homophobic lyrics – is not at all who Bobi was when we started this journey with him.
Uganda is a deeply religious country whose values and prejudices were taught by evangelical missionaries from the US and Europe. To date, these evangelical views are still actively promoted in Uganda where being gay and the "promotion of homosexuality" are illegal. When one understands the environment and the Uganda that Bobi grew up in, his youthful ignorance is not surprising.
Bobi's position as his country's leading advocate for human rights for all members of Ugandan society has come at great personal danger to Bobi. He has been consistently attacked by President Museveni and in both parliament and in the press for being gay and supporting the LGBTQ community. As shown in the film, he has been threatened with violence by those who fear his values and the danger he is subjected to everyday in Uganda is real.
A different film may have focused on Bobi’s early life, the history of Uganda, or stories of horrific violence, torture and death. During the period we covered -- five years surrounding the 2021 election -- the main omission was the level of violence that was inflicted on Bobi and those around him. This was a conscious decision as the sheer horror of much of the brutality made the film almost unwatchable.
Ultimately the choices made regarding what stays in and what doesn’t are made entirely based on what truly connects with the core story that one is telling and what doesn’t. What really feels part of the narrative versus what confuses or disengages the film’s focus. For instance, there were amazing stories about other often inspirational characters who orbit Bobi’s world, but ultimately they weren’t part of the narrative of Bobi’s journey that we were telling and so they were not included in the final film.
Ours is a story in which a pop star turned politician rallies his fellow Ugandans in their struggle for freedom. We wanted to create a film that is an authentic representation not just of the dramatic events unfolding in Uganda, but also of the raw and genuine spirit of an inspiring group of people.
Christopher Sharp was born in Uganda and has a deep appreciation for the country’s people, culture and extraordinary natural beauty. He spent his early working life as a film editor in London and more recently has revisited the profession as director of ‘Bobi Wine: The People’s President’.
He met Bobi and Barbie in 2017 and was inspired by their courage. Christopher believed in their extraordinary capacity to enact change, and instantly knew that their enormous sacrifice and resilience needed to be documented.
He worked closely with a number of talented individuals, including Editor Paul Carlin, as well as acclaimed Producer John Battsek, Co-Director Moses Bwayo, and other inspirational cinematographers. Collectively they have made a film which he hopes gives courage to all those who struggle under oppressive regimes.
Moses Bwayo (Director | Director of Photography)
Born in the village of Bududa on the slopes of Mount Elgon in eastern Uganda, Moses was introduced to filmmaking by peeking through cracks in the walls of local kibandas, bootleg movie theatres housed in wooden shacks. Wrapt in the exciting camerawork and storytelling of Hollywood’s martial arts films, Moses immediately fell in love with cinema.
After meeting Oscar®-nominated director Mira Nair, who was facilitating a workshop for aspiring filmmakers at her Maisha Film Labs, he was chosen as a boom operator on Nair’s short documentary “A Fork, a Spoon and a Knight” (2014). Subsequently, Nair took Moses under her wing and mentored him for two years, during which he performed sundry jobs for Disney’s “Queen of Katwe” (2016).
In 2016, Moses started his own production company in Kampala, Jajja Productions, where he oversaw production and post-production services on various commercial, documentary, and feature films. Moses’ reputation as a courageous verité cinematographer and local fixer began to grow, shooting for ABC, BBC, and VICE News for their Uganda-based productions.
In late 2017 he began work on the feature documentary “Bobi Wine: The People’s President.” Working closely with co-director and producer Christopher, Moses spent five harrowing years following Bobi Wine, a pop star turned politician who ran for president opposing Yoweri Museveni, a dictator who has been in power since 1986. During the production, Moses was arrested, imprisoned, and shot in the face at close range while filming. Two-time Oscar winner John Battsek also produced the film. With mounting threats to him and his family for making the film, Moses fled Uganda to the United States.
(bios lifted from https://my.scottishdocinstitute.com/in_conversation_with_sharp_bwayo_bobi_wine)