25 Jun 2023

 Following years of intense course work in film production, Awil College completing students on Friday shared with the audience their productions during the sixth annual AWIL College Film Festival at Capitol Cinema in Riverwalk, Gaborone.

This year’s festival showcased three films; Downfall, #Botspunk and What if the sun dies, illustrating how the students have been able to translate their creative visions to the screen.

One of the films, Downfall written and directed by Obakeng Molebatsi, Resegofhetse Rathedi and Aron Kedisitswe was inspired by abductions and ritual killings. The storyline is about a 14-year-old girl whose parents, particularly her father was responsible for her abduction due to the circumstances of the family.

Shot on location in Mogobane, Downfall also touches on religion, as it takes the viewer to spiritual options which society often resort to when dealing with issues of missing children in their midst.

In an interview with the producers, they indicated that the film is a research documentary film with relevant issues in the country. 

“We wrote the storyline when the Tlotso Karema story was still popular and Batswana wanted to know the details of the case,” said Kedisitswe. He said they were looking to develop the story into a series, funds permitting, as they want to probe society further for answers using film, regarding such cases.

The film festival gave the audience a chance to assess the student’s work through the audience response forms. The festival also provides collaboration among students and fosters work opportunities for graduating students. 

This year’s film festival had the lowest number of films, and film and television course coordinator at AWIL College Kaone Mosenyi had previously noted that the number of films showcased at their festivals is determined by the student population during that final year.ENDS