Secrets of making an all black
Film director Gina Prince-bythewood on putting together ‘The Womanking’
The race to the box office has begun for South African movie lovers ahead of the release of the highly anticipated Sony Pictures movie The Woman King, which launches today.
It is directed by American screenwriter and director Gina Princebythewood, known for films such as Love & Basketball, Disappearing Acts and The Secret Life of Bees.
It is based on the story of the tactical, skilful and fierce Agojie, an allfemale military unit responsible for protecting the Dahomey Kingdom in West Africa (in what is now Benin) during the 1800s. It follows the journey of General Nanisca, played by Oscar award-winner Viola Davis.
Lashana Lynch plays the role of Izogie, “a strong leader and fighter”. Lynch is best known for making history last year as the first black female 007 in the James Bond movie No Time to Die. South African actress Thuso Mbedu plays Nawi, “a rebellious and eager recruit, ready to prove her worth”.
The Mail & Guardian’s Friday editor spoke to Prince-bythewood about the all-female lead film.
When you went to meet Viola Davis to talk about directing the film, you ended up crying and left wondering if you’d messed it up. How do you deal with vulnerability in relation to being strong?
One of the things I feel like I’ve learned most in this process, and during this film, is that vulnerability can be a strength. It has been seen as a weakness.
Being being a female director, you don’t show vulnerability, yet I knew going into this that I wanted to show the humanity of these women, I wanted to show their absolute strength. But I also wanted to show their vulnerability and that their vulnerability was a strength as well.
Having that meeting, that in the moment horrified me. But Viola says that that was a moment where she knew she could be directed by me, because I had shown she felt like she could trust me.
That really blew me away and started to change my mindset.
The actors talked about that as well; that they wouldn’t trust somebody, a director, who could not be in touch with their vulnerability. So, it certainly opened me up.
Of course, I’m not going to cry all the time. But, in this film, so much of the time we were dealing with really deep stuff and to be able to sit with an actor, and stay in the emotions of what they were going through, made me a better director.
was filmed in South Africa when the Omicron variant of Covid-19 happened and you ended up spending Christmas here with the actors. What was that like for you, spending Christmas away from home and in a country where there’s no snow?
The Woman King
I love the heat. So, the fact that I got to have a year of summer — I had summer in LA and then I left and, when I got to South Africa, what would have been my winter is your summer — I was in heaven.
My family actually came to be with me during the holidays, because we got shut down because of Omnicron.
Something psychological in my head said if I left, we would not be coming back, and so I felt like I needed to stay there. Viola stayed there as well. So, my family came. And it was really good.
Because my husband and I had been to South Africa for our honeymoon (we also went to Ghana and Kenya) we always said we wanted to bring our boys back to be on the continent. So it was exciting to be able to bring them to South Africa, to spend those two weeks together and travel around to just experience it.
You first met Viola when there was a screening party for The Secret Life of Bees. She said that she thought you didn’t like her. Can you tell us about that interaction?