Review: Watu Wote

20th November 2017

By Marti Dols Roca.

If you check its Facebook page you’ll lose count on the amount of awards it has won. Don’t let the cover photo fool you, those are just a few. Amongst the many prizes collected, surely the most remarkable is the Best Film at the Student Academy Awards; considering it only started its festival run on March this year, things are looking pretty good for WATU WOTE (All Of Us), Katja Benrath short film set on the Kenya and Somalia border and based on a true story of solidarity and love despite religious conflict.

Watu Wote follows the bus journey of a Christian Kenyan woman who has recently lost her husband and child in a Muslim extremist terrorist attack. The tension between Christians and Muslims is constant and often deadly in the border region of the mentioned countries; and so this character needs to make it through on a bus populated by people of both religions. Her initial belligerence and suspicion towards a young Muslim teacher will soon become eternal gratitude. When a terrorist group stops the bus and threats to kill everyone if the Muslim passengers don’t point out the Christians, the former stand their ground and remain silent. The arrival of the police doesn’t avoid the bus driver getting killed and the teacher, who courageously confronted the terrorists, seriously wounded.

He will die weeks after the incident, leaving five kids behind; she will make it to her destination safe and sound. Watu Wote’s story is as simple and as old as it gets.

That doesn’t make it one ounce worse than any other super-original-full-of-surprising-twists’ short film. In the humble opinion of the writer of this article, it makes it better; for the simple reason that it tells a story about individuals who, under the most extreme circumstances, think as a race (the human race) and not as whatever identity-bias-denomination convenient at the time. Not to mention the superb filmmaking, sound design and success in creating the oppressive and gripping atmosphere this movie calls for.

I surely won’t miss the director feature debut should she keep on with her already promising career.

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