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Here’s what looks like a rather intriguing project – at least to me; A Namibian/British/South African feature film from writer/director Perivi John Katjavivi, which is in need of your financial support, via an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign.

The goal is to raise $20,000 by September 08, 2014; Thus far, close to $1,100 has been raised with about 3 weeks left, so obviously still a long way to go for the campaign to be successful. But you can help make it happen by chipping in if you can.

I’ll skip the breakdown and instead just *hand the mic* over to the filmmaker to talk about the project, as you’ll see why my interest has been piqued, and maybe yours will be as well. You’ll also find a promo for the film at the bottom of this post:

Our feature film is a contemporary African take on the ancient Greek myth.

We follow a boy in an African village who dreams of flying. A decade later his ambition has steered him to the big city, where he finds himself descending into the underworld. With flight school proving to be a lofty conquest and survival an everyday struggle. A lucrative heist presents itself and offers the potential to help him soar upward or fall even deeper.

Namibian film is at a crossroads. With a small population, but with a wealth of stories and rich a rich turbulent history, the time has come to push these stories onto the international scene.

I have extensive experience in the Namibian film industry, both as a short filmmaker and as the head of Old Location Films, were we have been servicing and producing commercials for the top corporate clients in the country. My short films have played at Cannes, Durban and other international film festivals. In 2010 I was awarded the Best Director award at the Namibia Film & Theatre awards.

What we intend with this project is to show that we can create multifaceted stories about the African continent, with commercial appeal, that do not necessarily play to old colonial stereotypes.

There’s not a ‘township aflame with racial tension’ or a ‘continent ravaged by AIDS’ subplot in sight. Instead this film presents a side of African life that doesn’t make the international news headlines, namely its young people, getting on with lives characterized by the kinds of things that vex twenty-somethings the world over – the stresses and pleasures of city-life, relationships, and struggling to make an honest living.

Our Icarus lives in a place where identity and home are unclear. Caught between impossible dreams, a crime ridden city, the village and the world — our protagonist dances on the periphery of these conflicting realms. This intersection is his home.

With a shared English and Namibian ancestry I appreciate what it feels like to be caught between spaces – culturally, racially, geographically. I think many of us around the world understand that feeling and in a globalized world we need film and language that is able to speak to both sides of the divide.

What We Need & What You Get

This is YOUR film. We cannot make it without you.

We have raised some money, but as part of our financial plan it is essential for us to raise a large part of the production costs through the community.

All funds raised will go into the actual production of the film. No overheads, no kickbacks, no post or pre-production. So what you spend is what you will see on the screen!

The Impact

We all have dreams and our protagonist, Dantago, is no different. Think of that child we all have inside us. The ambition and naivety that comes with youth and which led young Icarus to soar higher and higher and closer to the sun. So many young African boys and girls grow up in marginalized communities, yet difficult circumstance does not prevent them from having high hopes for their futures.

We intend to show that our hero in our film, takes those hopes and aspirations of an entire continent and acts out his dreams. And flys. Of course our film is riddled with obstacles and arrogance that echo the perils warned of in the original Greek myth.

Our hero will have to confront his own character flaws and contend with a dangerous underworld he has fallen into that may represent the last viable means to an end or the very thing that could threaten his dream.

And here’s the promo video (underneath you’ll find the Indiegogo campaign widget):

And here’s the Indiegogo widget for the campaign:

Perivi John Katjavivi

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