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WIZARD OF ZIM

By Samora SEKHUKHUNE

NATIONAL FILM & VIDEO FOUNDATION OF SOUTH AFRICA (NFVF) - as FIN

Documentary - Production 2015

A woman, desperate to win her father’s approval, drives him thousands of kilometers to make his 70th birthday wish come true: to meet his lifelong hero, the controversial President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe. On the journey they come face to face with truths about politics, media and each other

- Year of production
- 2015
- Genres
- Documentary
- Countries
- SOUTH AFRICA, ZIMBABWE
- Languages
- ENGLISH, SHONA
- Duration
- 52 mn
- Director(s)
- Samora SEKHUKHUNE
- Writer(s)
- Samora SEKHUKHUNE
- Cast
- Samora SEKHUKHUNE, Segopotje SEKHUKHUNE
- Producer(s)
- Samora SEKHUKHUNE , Carolyn CAREW, Edward CHOMBE
- Synopsis
- Wizard of Zim is a feature length documentary born from my father’s 70th birthday wish to meet his hero, President Robert Mugabe. What follows is a road trip adventure that takes place over ten days, two countries and thousands of kilometers. Over the course of the journey we engage with each other, the impact media has had on how we view our world and ultimately, ourselves.
  
  On the road has always been a sanctuary for Dad and I, a fitting center stage for our story to unfold. It is set along the highways and byways between Limpopo, South Africa and Harare, Zimbabwe. It unfolds on these roads, at rest stops, tourist attractions, farms, guest‐houses and in our memories. We interact with farmers, fellow travelers, hitchhikers and media archive along the way – sometimes in search of truth and at other times to hide from the truth. The truth that guides the narrative is ‘Will they really get to meet the President?’ and just beneath that ‘Can this relationship survive yet another disappointment?’
  
  Dad and I find ourselves at existential crossroads in our lives: he, in his sunset years, questions what his legacy will be after almost 50 years being father, husband and farmer. He believes the trip will strengthen and invigorate him out of his riches to rags depression. On the other hand I value the journey more than the destination seeing in it a chance to better understand my place
  in my father’s life, find out the truth about my deceased mother which will hopefully help me find
  the significance of my own life.
  
  The film raises strong issues about information and truth with a mirror emerging between the political and the personal. The film explores seemingly disparate themes of family ideals with hard political standpoints. It can because it is at once: personal and political, intimate and global, serious and quirky. Essentially a story that emanates from a search for truth, it eventually reveals that truth is plural serving as a gentle caution to seek the truth only when one is ready for the worst possible revelations