ONE THOUSAND HILLS BETWEEN US
Statement from the director Ornella Mutoni:
When I was 6 months old my family and I had to flee from the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. I’ve always wondered how this touchstone event in our history affected my generation and those who were born after the violence ended.
I’ve been working in documentaries for over 5 years for award-winning production companies on prime-time documentaries for the likes of the BBC and Channel 4. For my directorial debut, I felt drawn to explore the healing landscape of my homelands.
In 2022, I went back to Rwanda wanting to better understand the reconciliation that happened after the genocide and make a short film. I was introduced to Emilienne, a community healer doing inspiring work. Like me, Emilienne had to flee her home to survive. She spent two decades grieving the murder of her family, then felt called to return to the home where she lost everything and rebuild it into a place where survivors, perpetrators, and their children are welcomed for vulnerable conversations and reconciliation. With no external support, Emilienne works tirelessly each day to heal the land she loves. Her work is the starting place for One Thousand Hills Between Us, a short documentary exploring intergenerational healing.
2024 is the 30th anniversary of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, and the issues of justice and healing have only become more pertinent. We will be filming for one week in June at the end of the commemoration period.
We have an incredible and dedicated team in the UK and Rwanda ready to start production, with your support!
You can watch a short video about why I want to make this film if you click here.
Logline: 30 years after the genocide that tore apart his mother's world, a 29-year-old Rwandan confronts family secrets and the wounds his generation is carrying, working with a community healer in a small group to break cycles of trauma together.
Synopsis: In this short documentary a group of young adults in a community healing workshop lean on each other and find the courage to confront family secrets, 30 years after the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. There are thousands of young people who have suffered in silence for so long, they don’t know how to share their pain. We witness what coming together does for one of the participants as he begins his journey to advocate for people conceived from genocidal rape like himself.
The group is led by Emilienne who works daily to open conversations of healing. A complex and layered short documentary that celebrates collective healing whilst acknowledging the complexities and generational consequences of mass violence on the next generation of Rwandans.
How your contribution helps us:
We are aiming to raise £10,000 for production which will be roughly split up in the following ways:
50% – Salaries for local crew
20% - Equipment
30% - Catering, location fees, accommodation, and subsistence for film participants. This includes a follow up therapeutic/wellbeing session with the participants after the filming.
None of the funds raised are for the Director and Producers. Any extra funds raised will go towards post-production.
We appreciate every donation, big and small but wanted to also offer some extra perks if you donate the following:
£100 and over - We will include a thank you in the credits.
£1000 and over - We will give you a Contributing Producer credit.
£5000 and over - We will give you an Executive producer credit.
If we don’t reach our entire goal, we will cut down the shoot days and have a smaller crew but hope we can do this with a full crew and the full amount of days to do the story justice.
Why now?
Filmed 30 years after the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, we believe this subject of healing the next generation is valuable to share. The story centers universal themes of family, identity and reconciliation, and relates to current events concerning cycles of violence globally (Palestine, Ukraine, Ethiopia, the DRC, etc.) and intergenerational trauma (found in all societies).
One Thousand Hills Between Us is a story of hope for a world where political polarisation is on the rise. It offers an example of rebuilding and healing divided communities and society. This story feels relevant with recent news of the UK deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda which has brought into question Rwanda’s general safety due to its past.
Crew and Contributor Wellbeing:
As this story involves sensitive subject matter we are undergoing a thorough development process supported by the OKRE film fund to implement a culturally specific safeguarding and wellbeing framework to make sure the wellbeing of both the crew and participants is prioritised in the production of making this film and for this film to be non-extractive. With the help of your contribution, this will help us give the participants follow-up therapeutic support after the film.
Other ways you can help:
We totally understand and appreciate that financially contributing to this is not viable for everyone. Thank you so much for reading this far and if you feel compelled to share this with anyone in your network, we would be hugely grateful.
This film and campaign is produced by: Clair Maleney and Ornella Mutoni