The Science Of Conservation

He calls himself a liberal with conservative tendencies. And I had questions. A lot of them. In fact, lets just dive right into the chat with the 51-year-old CEO of Kenya Film & Classification Board, Dr. Ezekiel Mutua, the man who irks KOT and the liberal creative community and a Kenyan or two who want him to drop dead.

- Carol Odero

COUTURE Africa: I was a member of the Riverwood Academy Awards jury in 2018. It was quite an honour. I do wonder though, what is your criteria for listing categories?

Ezekiel Mutua: We work with the Riverwood Ensemble and they are made up of a panel of experts. They select the people and categories. Our role as KFCB is to make sure there is integrity in the entire judging process. Did you have an issue with criteria?

CA: More of a curiosity. I noticed there is a category for Best Production Design but none for Best Costume Design. Fashion plays a critical part in storytelling. Even traditionally, hair, makeup and costumes were a point of pride in any narrative. There is a chasm between film and fashion. What gives?

EM: Luckily we are doing this after the awards. It helps because what we are trying to do is create conversation. I am so glad you are picking up the fashion conversation with the right people. We don’t have all the resources and sometimes along the way it looked very improbable. I believe next year we can incorporate fashion.

CA: Does the red carpet play a role in Kenya?

EM: Could I turn that question over to you? Let me get a sense since you are the expert. What is the essence of a red carpet?

CA: Film and fashion promote each other on the red carpet. Take Lupita’s career. It was very strategically developed on the red carpet. She built her reputation and her brand and in fact ended up with high value endorsements. As a result, she can pick and choose which projects she wants to work on without the rush of getting into the first role that comes her way for money. She gets to be an artist because of fashion.

EM: You know what you have just said, those are my words exactly.