14 Jun 2023

A Botswana film, Partly Cloudy and Hot (PCH), has bagged four nominations for the International Black and Diversity Film Festival (IBDFF) awards slated for Toronto, Canada on July 9.

The film has received nominations for Best Short Film by a Black Filmmaker, Best Short Film by a Black Filmmaker International, Best Actress International and Best Actor International. 

The lead cast of Kaone Kario and South Africa’s Zenzo Ngqobe, also got the Best Actress International and Best Actor International nominations, respectively.

PCH is a Cattle Post Films production, whose narrative revolves around a married Christian couple living in Gaborone.

Through te couple’s is inability  to conceive due to the husband’s infertility, the film highlights stereotypes surrounding couples struggling to conceive in that the fault is always placed on the woman. When KB’s (played by Ngqobe) manhood and faith are tested after his wife Sara (played by Kario) handed him a male fertility test, he drives to the cattle post where he can think more clearly. It is assumed in Botswana, that a trip to the cattle post is always good for one’s mental health through seeing their cattle and inhaling the fresh air away from the city’s polluted atmosphere.

“This film is an opportunity for Batswana to learn more about male infertility in our communities, as Batswana tend to readily blame the woman when a couple cannot have children,” PCH executive director, Donald Molosi said in an interview.

Inspired by increasing cases of male infertility in Botswana, PCH’s message is simply to sensitise Batswana and the society that when a couple struggles to conceive, it could be a health issue on both parties. Molosi, whose career has been on stage and has dedicated two decades on Broadway. PCH comes as his first film since he retired from Broadway. The nominations for the film have generated nothing but happiness for him and his entire team, representing Botswana as they tour the world. “As a film producer, to be doubly nominated is humbling and inspiring,” he said.

Molosi said the value of the IBDFF awards created a fantastic relevance in the global film industry, while at home it was an indication that Batswana were ready to compete with international talent and even surpass it.

“This is a good message for our children to know that they can be winners anywhere in the world, the global stage is theirs to own and play on,” he said. He added that PCH also indicates that Batswana filmmakers can hold their own against the best and ‘need no help from outside when it comes to filmmaking’.

On casting Ngqobe, Molosi said The River star did an excellent job as KB, leading to him scoring the best actor international nomination for the film. “Zenzo himself is a Motswana from Mafikeng and has shared a lot of background for his character KB who has been written as a Morolong,” Molosi explained.

Shot on location in Botswana by local filmmakers and citizen-owned companies, PCH is due for premiering in the US on June 25 at the Roxybury International Film Festival. Details regarding the Botswana premiere are still being finalised, as it would be the film’s homecoming.

Ngqobe and Kario are not new to the screen, they have both done well in their careers. Kario, besides her Nokia Face of Africa win in 2005, was also cast in the Vuzu Amp drama series aYeYe that showed on DSTV as Leano in addition to her modelling career. Among his many accolades, Ngqobe featured in South Africa’s Gavin Hood's 2005 Oscar-winning film Tsotsi, as Butcher.

He also portrayed Atang in the 2013 film, The Forgotten Kingdom, and currently he features on 1Magic drama series, The River, on DStv as Percival. IBDFF is an independent film festival founded to provide a platform for black filmmakers while promoting cultural diversity and inclusiveness.

The festival, which is open to projects from all races, focuses on films produced by blacks and international films featuring black performers in significant roles. ends