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Transcript/ScriptSLUG: TV Somali Short Films - Zubeyr
HEADLINE: A Somali Search for Stardom
BYLINE: Abdulkadir Zubeyr
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATE: 6/2/2022 at 9:40am
DATELINE: Mogadishu, Somalia
VIDEOGRAPHER: Abdulkadir Zubeyr
PRODUCER: Abdulkadir Zubeyr
SCRIPT EDITOR: KE; MPage
VIDEO EDITOR: Betty Ayoub
VIDEO SOURCES: VOA, YouTube
PLATFORM: TV
TRT: 4:25
VID APPROVED BY: KE
EDITOR NOTES:
((INTRO))
[[In Mogadishu, a group of young filmmakers are hoping to take their vision to the world. VOA’s Abdulkadir Zubeyr reports.]]
((Courtesy: Somali United))
((NATS))
((A young Somali guy walks along a Mogadishu road, clutching a satchel. He spots his contact on a side street, where he hands off the satchel— then the guy continues down a narrow passageway. Another man sneaks up from behind and swings a metal pipe at his head.
((Narrator))
There’s suspense in the streets of Somalia’s capital – and sometimes it’s manufactured by aspiring young filmmakers.
((Courtesy: Somali United))
The blood is fake. But the ambition is real when it comes to short-action videos like “Qiyaano” – the Somali word for “Deception.”
((Sahid Ibrahim, Actor)) (in Somali)
“Our films are watched by many Somalis. I would like our films to reach all of the continents – including Europe, Africa, Asia and America – and also compare our films to those in Hollywood.”
((Narrator))
That’s Sahid Ibrahim, who forms Somali United with his brothers Hamza and Hanad and cousin Mohamed Abdirahman. The amateur film team in Mogadishu churns out as many as three short-action or comedic videos a month. Their YouTube channel has
more than 22,000 subscribers. Some of their videos, also posted to Facebook, have had up to 300- thousand views.
Most of their fans are other young men
[Radio add: like Mustaf Nageye].
((Mustaf Nageye, Fan of Somali United))
“I admire most of their short films, including comedy and action. But especially, I like the action ones. You can’t believe their acting!”
((Narrator))
Somali United’s members have no acting experience beyond their own videos, which they began making in 2017. They’re now in their teens and early 20s.
The four guys come up with a plot for each video but don’t write scripts, preferring to improvise. They take the main roles but also assign parts to other relatives and friends.
Mohamed Abdirahman, the cousin, often appears before the camera, but his main role is that of a videographer. Forget high-end equipment: He works with just a smartphone camera or two.
((Mohamed Abdirahman, Videographer))
“It’s kind of difficult, considering we record using a mobile camera. Sometimes we use two to record. … The problem we face is repeating the scene constantly.”
((Narrator))
A five-minute video can take up to eight hours of production, given the need to constantly review scenes for quality control. It also takes time to clean up and re-apply the fake blood, actually the soft drink nimto or to reset their props or change locations around Mogadishu. Production is done on the cheap, but they can earn up to $300 a month through their YouTube videos.
None has a regular job, not surprising in a place where, the World Bank says, roughly a third of teens and young adults are unemployed. All four have at least high school degrees. Two have university degrees: Mohamed, age 22, studied information technology. Hamza, 20, studied public administration. He wants to study film production but can’t afford tuition right now.
Somali United gets moral and acting support from Ibrahim Haji, the father of three members and uncle of the fourth. He sometimes plays a bad guy in their films.
((Ibrahim Haji, Relative and Patron)) (in Somali)
“I am delighted to be part of the project and put effort into their progress, since the unemployment rate is high in the city. Some of them finished their university education and others want to join soon it is possible if they get support from the film industry.”
((Narrator))
Despite its rich storytelling tradition, Somalia doesn’t have a film school or filmmaking hub like Hollywood, Nollywood or – the team’s biggest inspiration – Bollywood. The Somali militant group al-Shabab, whose violent insurgency includes sporadic bombings and killings, has threatened public entertainment.
But in September 2021, Mogadishu’s elegant National Theater screened its first film feature in three decades. Now, the guys in Somali United hope THEIR work will find its way to the theater’s big screen sometime.
((For Abdulkadir Zubeyr in Mogadi
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline) Mogadishu, Somalia
Embargo DateJune 2, 2022 17:12 EDT
Byline((For Abdulkadir Zubeyr in Mogadishu, Somalia
I'm Carol Guensburg VOA News))
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
