The Tanzanian director and producer of the first Swahili language film made for worldwide release will appear at the University of Colorado at Boulder Jan. 29 to show the film and answer questions.
Professor Martin Mhando will visit CU-Boulder to screen his award-winning feature film, "Maangamizi - The Ancient One," at the International Film Series. The 7 p.m. screening in the auditorium of the Muenzinger Psychology building is free and open to the public.
Mhando is chairman of media studies at Murdoch University in Perth, western Australia, and has produced and directed a substantial body of work. As the general manager of the Tanzanian Film Co., Mhando oversaw the majority of Tanzanian productions and is well known in Tanzanian cinema as a producer and director.
"Maangamizi - The Ancient One" is set in Tanzania, East Africa, with locations extending from the Indian Ocean to the heights of Mount Kilimanjaro. The film captures the essence of Tanzania's beauty while telling a contemporary story that taps into the spiritual foundations on which many indigenous cultures were based.
Kiswahili is the official language of Tanzania and Kenya and is spoken in Uganda and several East African nations.
The film was the official selection at the 74th Academy Awards in the foreign language film category representing the United Republic of Tanzania. Among the film's executive producers is Oscar-winning producer-director Jonathan Demme of "Silence of the Lambs" and "Philadelphia." The score was composed by Grammy Award-winner Cyril Neville, the youngest of the Neville brothers.
CU-Boulder has an exchange student agreement with Murdoch University. Mhando's tour in support of his film and to promote study abroad also includes stops at Penn State University, Georgetown University and Boston College.
For more information about the free screening call (303) 492-1531.