South-African filmmaker Nicole Schafer received a 5,000$ award for her project “Buddha in Africa”

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

In a Chinese Buddhist orphanage in Africa, we meet Enock Alu, one of 300 orphans from across rural Malawi growing up between the contrasting worlds of traditional village life and the strict discipline of the Confucian, Buddhist value system of the Chinese. Reminiscent of the Christian mission stations during colonial times, here African children with Chinese names speak Mandarin, revere Buddha and go through a gruelling process towards mastering the difficult art of Shaolin Kung Fu.

Once the star performer with dreams of becoming a Kung fu hero like Jet Li, Enock, in his final year at school, has to make some tough decisions about his future and finds himself torn between returning to his relatives in the village or going abroad to study in China. Against the backdrop of China’s expanding influence on the continent, the film evokes some of the tensions and uncertainties surrounding the growing relationship between China and Africa.