'Democrats' Documentary Takes Us Inside Zimbabwe's Politics [Exclusive Clip]
Watch an exclusive clip from Democrats, a new documentary about Zimbabwean politics in the wake of Mugabe’s contentious 2008 presidential win
Paul Mangwana and Douglas Mwonzora, subjects of Camilla Nielsson’s 'Democrats'. Photo courtesy of Upfront Films.
<p>Danish filmmaker <strong><a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1600828/" target="_blank">Camilla Nielsson</a></strong>'s <em><a href="https://www.facebook.com/democratsthefilm/" target="_blank">Democrats</a></em> takes viewers inside Zimbabwe’s political game, following two rival party cadres tasked with working together to write Zimbabwe’s first constitution.</p><p>Shot over the course of three years, the film begins in the wake of <strong>Robert Mugabe</strong>’s contentious 2008 presidential win—itself the focus of a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HZfDKTdJto" target="_blank">documentary</a> by British-Ghanaian filmmaker <strong>Roy Agyemang</strong>—when a power sharing deal led to Zimbabwe convening a bipartisan constitutional committee. To draft Zimbabwe’s first constitution, the committee appointed two men from rival political parties: there’s <strong>Paul Mangwana</strong> from Mugabe’s ruling <strong>ZANU-PF</strong> party, and <strong>Douglas Mwonzora</strong>, a human rights lawyer from the opposition <strong>Movement for Democratic Change</strong>. Nielsson followed the two opponents as their deadline to deliver a draft for a new constitution approached.</p><p><div class="preroll-video"></div><ora-player></ora-player></p><p>"DEMOCRATS is about two men who, after 30 years with one of the world's most autocratic dictators President Robert Mugabe in power, try to establish a democracy from the ground up–all while anti-democratic forces still have control of the country," Nielsson says in a Director's Statement. "It is the story of a relationship, of two men who have been sent out on an impossible."</p><p>In April, the film picked up the award for Best Documentary at <strong><a href="http://www.okayafrica.com/news/tribeca-film-festival-2015-africa-diaspora/4/" target="_blank">Tribeca</a></strong>. Tonight, <em>Democrats</em> will have its U.S. theatrical premiere at New York City’s <strong><a href="http://filmforum.org/film/democrats-film" target="_blank">Film Forum</a></strong>, where it will screen for the next two weeks.</p><p>In the lead-up to tonight’s opening, we’re excited to share an exclusive clip from the film. In it, we see Mangwana and Mwonzora as they prepare for a press conference.</p><p><div class="dfp_atf-slot" data-not-loaded="true"></div><script type="text/javascript">
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</p><p><em>'Democrats' begins a <a href="http://filmforum.org/film/democrats-film" target="_blank">two-week engagement</a> at New York City’s Film Forum (209 W. Houston Street) tonight. The film will screen daily at 12:30, 2:40, 4:50, 7:10 and 9:20 through December 1. </em></p>
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