The Zanzibar International Film Festival (ZIFF), which runs until 26 July in Stone
Town, will close with a screening of I Shot Bi Kidude, Andy Jones’
follow up to As Old as my Tongue, his biographical documentary on
this legendary Zanzibari artist.
After visiting Zanzibar every year for almost a decade, Jones hadn’t seen Kidude for
almost three years. In August 2012, word reached the UK that East Africa’s most
famous musical icon had been kidnapped. It wasn’t long before Jones was back in
Zanzibar, looking to get to the bottom of the story. He began to untangle a web of
rumours, started by a jealous nephew who had taken Kidude from her home in the
belief that unscrupulous music promoters were making millions from his ageing
aunt. Just weeks after the drama unravelled before the camera, with South African
Natalie Haarhoff behind the lens, the world’s oldest singer died, at a reported age of
over a hundred years old.
“I Shot Bi Kidude, is my account of what happened at the end of Bi
Kidude’s life. As with any story, there are many versions of the truth. There are of
course elements that are hard for an outsider to grasp, but I hope that there is also
an insight which fresh eyes can bring. What emerges for me is a sense of the
celebratory power of music, and the importance of doing those things which bring
us happiness while we still can,’ explains Jones.
Having screened I Shot Bi Kidude as a work in progress to audiences
at the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), Durban FilmMart (DFM) and the
Luthuli Museum in 2014, Jones credits Durban with a crucial role in the development
of his new feature film. “To be able to attend DIFF and DFM with a work in progress
was an invaluable opportunity to reflect on how this story would resonate with
people across the continent. I was worried that the film could come across as
another example of European director exploiting Africa for stories. The consistant
feedback from everyone who saw the film was that this issue should be addressed
directly on screen, so I could express why this story had to be told in such a
personal way. We held on to that tightly throughout the whole process in the edit
room.’
I Shot Bi Kidude screens on 26 July at 19h15 at the Old Fort
Amphitheatre.
