By Tawanda Ngena
New local drama series 'Dancing in the Storm' is set to premiere
on Mnet's Zambezi Magic channel in the brand new year.
According to the Assistant Casting Director, one George Moyo,
a pilot for the drama series is already available and production of its 13-episode
first 'season' will continue into 2017.
"Though the exact date for the premiere on MNET's
Zambezi Magic is yet to be confirmed, we are confident that it will be early on
in the new year.
"It is a Zimbabwean product for Zimbabweans and it
gives us a unique opportunity to share our story with the rest of the world,
that is the reason why it is destined for Zambezi Magic first", he said.
The production is a collaborative effort between Denford Dzingire’s production company, Reality
Motion Production in association with Keaiste’s
Creative Pot Africa.
"This collaboration came together in mid 2016 when I met
Denford in South Africa and he had ideas about doing a production for Zimbabwe
and about Zimbabweans. Our company Creative Pot Africa fell in love with the idea
and agreed to not only produce but do location scouting and casting for the
Drama series as well", said Moyo.
The cast for the drama series itself boasts of local talent that
is surely guaranteed to make this a must watch for film enthusiasts out there, from
Ben Chest (socialite, fashionista), Donna NC (presenter, singer), Arthur C.
Evans (socialite, presenter) to Nombuyiso Mabi(Actress) and Mzoe 7 (artist)
amongst others.
The storyline to 'Dancing in the Storm' centers around the chief
protagonist, Patrick Mushumbe, a mid-40s married businessman whose ill-informed
decisions result in the breakdown of his relationship with his wife and children.
After getting involved with a young attention seeking Melody
Dlala in her late 20s, Patrick inevitably starts alienating himself from his family.
It is after paying a visit to a false prophet that he decides
to divorce and chase his wife and kids away and move in with Melody (decisions that
he is sure to look back on ruefully).
"The story was created by Denford Dzingire after he was
inspired by the challenges faced by many local families in their everyday life.
It is our hope that through this drama series,we can teach and help transform
families for the better.
"We explored quite a number of themes in the drama series,
Dancing in the Storm, chief among them being intra and interpersonal conflict,
marital challenges, love, betrayal, friendship and unemployment, all of which we
felt were a direct reflection on the society that we live in today", said the
Bulawayo based filmmaker.
Though the local film industry took shape and has continued doing
so over the last couple of years, Moyo believes that a lot more is still recquired.
"The Zimbabwean film industry is still in its infancy, the
major reason being that our government and the private sector are not playing any
pivotal role therefore there are no sound budgets to produce quality stuff.
"Our neighbour, South Africa is drawing close to the
Hollywood 'standard' step by step because their government through the
Department of Trade and Industry plays a huge role especially the Corporate and
NGOs. I believe that this is a model which we can draw lessons from and adopt for
our own local film sector if it is to grow", he said.
Besides being the manager for 'Theatre for Everyone' and directing
plays like 'Untikoloshi' with local theatre gurus like Styx Mhlanga, Moyo also helped
in establishing the production company, Creative Pot Africa.
The filmmaker was also part of the production team for local
singing competition, Starbrite early this year as a camera person.
His resume also includes productions such as The Arthur C
Evans show, drama series 'Dlala Ngamla' and 'Vusumuzi', among others.
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