Wanuri Kahiu facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Wanuri Kahiu
Kahiu at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival
Born	(1980-06-21) 21 June 1980 (age 45) Nairobi, Kenya
Education	University of Warwick University of California, Los Angeles
Occupation	Filmmaker
Notable work	From a Whisper (2008); Pumzi (2009); Rafiki (2018)

Wanuri Kahiu (born 21 June 1980) is a talented Kenyan film director, producer, and author. Many people see her as one of Africa's most exciting directors. She is part of a new group of artists who show modern African culture.

She has won many awards and nominations. These include awards for Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Picture at the Africa Movie Academy Awards in 2009. These awards were for her drama film From a Whisper. Wanuri Kahiu also helped start AFROBUBBLEGUM. This is a group that supports African art for its own sake.

As of 2023, Kahiu was living in Kenya. In 2025, she was a judge at the Sundance Film Festival. She judged the World Cinema Dramatic competition.

Early Life and Education

Wanuri Kahiu was born in Nairobi, Kenya. She grew up in a big family with many creative people. However, she saw herself as different from her parents. Her father was a businessman, and her mother was a doctor. Her mother was one of the first female children's doctors in Nairobi.

Kahiu first loved filmmaking when she was sixteen. She visited an editing studio and felt a strong connection. She said it brought together her love for TV and books. She realized she could make a career out of it.

Kahiu studied at the University of Warwick in England. She earned a degree in Management science. In 2001, she got a Master of Fine Arts degree. This was in production and directing from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Theatre, Film and Television.

Career in Filmmaking

In 2003, Kahiu started her film career. She worked as an intern for American director F. Gary Gray on the film The Italian Job. Gray taught her to focus on the big picture but also pay attention to small details. In 2006, Kahiu directed her first film. It was a documentary called The Spark that Unites. This film was about how Catch a Fire was made. The director of Catch a Fire, Phillip Noyce, became her friend. He told her to go back to Kenya and tell Kenyan stories.

Her Films

Ras Star

Ras Star (2006) was Kahiu's first short story film. It is about a teenager named Amani. He lives with his aunt and uncle in Nairobi. Amani dreams of becoming a rapper. He secretly practices for a local talent show. But he and his brother get involved in crime instead.

From a Whisper

Her first full-length film, From a Whisper (2008), won many awards. It received 12 nominations and five awards at the 5th Africa Movie Academy Awards in 2009. The film won Best Picture, Best Screenplay, and Best Director.

The movie tells a fictional story about the terrorist attack on the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi in 1998. It follows a young girl named Tamani. She loses her mother in the attack. Her father tells her that her mother is missing, but she has actually died. Tamani searches for her mother. She paints hearts all over the city. She also becomes friends with a policeman named Abu. Abu helps Tamani. We learn that Abu feels bad for not stopping his friend who helped with the attack.

The film shows how the young woman and older man deal with a painful past. It helps them understand what happened. The film also shows strong, equal relationships. It shares messages of peace after a national tragedy.

Kahiu remembers the bombing well, even though she was a young teenager then. She calls it a "horrific and traumatic event from Kenya." She remembers her mother treating many victims of the bombing. Kahiu notes that the event, though sad, brought Kenyans together. They united no matter their background.

Pumzi

Pumzi (2009) is a film that shows a hopeful view of Africa's future. It uses a style called Africanfuturism. This style shows African-led creativity. The story is about a young botanist named Asha. It takes place 35 years after a "water war." Asha finds life outside her underground community. In her community, people take medicine to stop dreams of a better future.

Pumzi was first shown at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. It was part of the New African Cinema program. It won several awards, including Best Short Film at the Cannes Film Festival.

The film shows how women are often most affected by environmental problems. But it also shows them leading the way to make their societies better. Pumzi challenges common ideas about Africa being poor or empty. It shows a different, more hopeful picture.

For Our Land

Kahiu's documentary For Our Land tells the story of Nobel Peace Prize winner Professor Wangari Maathai. This film is part of a series called "The Great Africans." It was made for a South African TV channel, M-Net. The documentary highlights Professor Maathai's work for the environment and politics. The film shows how European colonialism affected the environment. It also shows the struggles over land for new buildings.

Rafiki

Kahiu's 2018 film Rafiki ("Friend") received money from the Netherlands Film Fund. The production company, Big World Cinema, supports young African filmmakers. Kahiu worked with Steven Markovitz, a South African producer, on this film. She believes that having people from different countries makes a project stronger. It also helps the film industry grow in Africa. The rest of the team came from Kenya, France, and the Netherlands.

Rafiki tells the story of two Kenyan girls who fall in love. They struggle to deal with this love while living with their families in a society that does not accept it. Kahiu chose to adapt a short story called "Jambula Tree." She liked its rich details about a forbidden love story. Kahiu hopes the film shows a "normal love story." She wants it to recognize the brave choices people make for a "difficult love." She also says her films are not meant to be political. But they are seen as political because of her race and gender.

Rafiki is the first full-length film from Kenya to show a love story between two girls. The film is about Kena and Ziki. They live in the same neighborhood. Their relationship grows despite the strict environment around them. Kena comes from a working-class family. Her dad owns a store and is running for local elections. Ziki comes from a wealthier family. Her dad is running against Kena's dad.

As Kena and Ziki's relationship grows, we see the conservative world they live in. Their open affection challenges old ideas. But Kahiu shows this against the narrow-mindedness of the people around them. Kahiu wants Rafiki to be seen as a love story first. She believes it should not just be seen as a queer love story.

The film was chosen to be shown at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival. It was the first Kenyan film to be screened there and received a standing ovation. The film was nominated for the Queer Palm Award at Cannes. It was also shown at the 2018 London Film Festival. In total, the film received 17 nominations and 17 awards at different international film festivals.

In 2021, Kahiu said that being a filmmaker in Kenya is "ridiculously difficult." This is because film is not "an appreciated art" there. Even though she is famous worldwide, Kahiu still struggles to get recognition in her own country. This is because her modern ideas go against common beliefs.

When making Rafiki, Kahiu needed a license in Kenya. Her team got one, even with the film's topic. But after filming, the Classification Board wanted Kahiu to change the ending. They wanted it to be "more remorseful" because they felt it was "too hopeful." They wanted to avoid banning the film. Kahiu refused to change the ending, so the film was banned in Kenya.

The Wooden Camel

The Wooden Camel is Wanuri Kahiu's first children's book. It tells the story of a boy named Etabo. He dreams of racing camels. His older siblings tease him. His family sells their camels to survive. With help from his goat friend and his spirits, he keeps dreaming. His sister then carves him a wooden camel. This brings Etabo closer to his family.

Rusties

Kahiu co-wrote a short story called "RUSTIES" with Nnedi Okorafor. This story is set in a futuristic world. It tells about the friendship between a young girl and a robot that directs traffic. Kahiu says that creating images for African children is important. It helps correct the idea of Africans being left out of history. It also helps them hope for a future Africa.

Upcoming Film Projects

In April 2019, Kahiu and Millie Bobby Brown teamed up for a film. It is an adaptation of the young adult novel The Thing About Jellyfish for Universal Studios. Kahiu is set to direct this film.

Wanuri Kahiu is also working on adapting Octavia Butler's novel, Wild Seed, into a film series for Amazon. Wanuri will direct the Wild Seed series. She will also write the script with Nigerian author Nnedi Okorafor.

In July 2020, it was announced that Wanuri Kahiu would direct a film. It is an adaptation of the musical Once on This Island for Walt Disney Pictures. It will be released on Disney+.

Creative Influences

Africanfuturism

Kahiu uses Africanfuturism in her art and as inspiration. She believes African people and cultures have used Afrofuturistic ideas for centuries. This comes from African myths, spiritual beliefs, and nature. She sees Africa as a place that is naturally futuristic. It mixes spirituality and reality in stories and in real life.

Kahiu's film Pumzi celebrates an Afro-centric future. It challenges negative ideas about Africa. In Pumzi, Kahiu shows African creativity. She uses the ideas of Afrofuturism to challenge sad views of African life and futures. Kahiu also likes science fiction because it lets her use metaphors. These metaphors help her talk about difficult political or social topics in Africa.

In her 2014 "No More Labels" TED talk, Kahiu said that growing up in Kenya, she saw few African love stories in films. This also shaped her creative choices.

Challenging Old Ideas About Africa

Kahiu has spoken about how some organizations control how people imagine Africa. She says that to get money for films in Kenya, filmmakers often have to make movies about topics these organizations fund. These films are often about serious issues. Kahiu believes these images make Africa seem "other" or different.

Kahiu sees her work as a filmmaker as a way to fight these images. She says her films are for the next generation. She wants to make sure they get clear messages about their future.

Caring for the Environment

In an interview, Kahiu said: "We have to be careful and sensitive. Like in my film Pumzi, we have to be the mother of mother nature. If we are not, then mother nature will stop mothering us." This shows her belief in protecting the environment.

Filmography

Director

• 2006: The Spark That Unites
• 2006: Ras Star
• 2008: From a Whisper
• 2009: Pumzi
• 2009: For Our Land
• 2014: State House (4 episodes)
• 2018: Who Am I?
• 2018: Rafiki
• 2022: Look Both Ways
• TBA: The Thing About Jelly Fish
• TBA: Once on This Island
• TBA: Wild Seed
• TBA: The Black Kids

Producer

• 2005: 500 Years Later
• 2005: Still Life
• 2013: Homecoming

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Wanuri Kahiu para niños

• Africanfuturism
• Afrofuturism
• List of Afrofuturist films
• List of female film and television directors