Summary

In Uganda, millions of innocent children have been denied their basic rights to life and human security. It’s estimated that 30,000 children were captured and enslaved by Joseph Kony’s Lords Resistance Army. In a country of 36 million, 1.2 million children are orphaned from AIDS-related diseases. Desperate parents living in extreme poverty abandon their children daily.

One very determined woman has made it her mission to rescue them, giving them hope, a stable home and an education. She opened her home and heart to over 100 children. Without her, 95% of these children would have faced death. For many of them, she is the only mother they know.

Shot on location in Uganda, this film documents her remarkable life. It’s a journey from her humble beginnings as a poor fisherman’s daughter and reveals how, through the power of education, she became a journalist, a politician and scout leader, and Founder and Director of Bright Kids Uganda. Her passionate work has been captured on film to show the world there’s hope for these children.

The film portrays the traumatic stories of several children and how Victoria transformed their lives. It depicts her challenge to maintain a home of 90 plus children and how she puts sustainability into practice. She’s their last hope for survival; sacrificing to feed, clothe, shelter, and educate these children. The story of Victoria and Bright Kids Uganda is one of inspiration, hope and Love.

Summary

Facing the Future is a short film about an emerging and increasing form of gender based violence that leads to disability of many victims in Uganda. In Uganda, gender violence is a serious, hidden problem as a means of solving domestic disputes, jealousy feuds, business, and political differences. Knives, guns, and physical attacks are the most commonly used weapons, but the most horrific weapon is acid.

A hired killer purchases acid for less than $1.00 and will throw a bottle of acid onto a person’s face and body with the intent of disfiguring and disabling the victim forever. Reported acid attack victims in Uganda number at around five hundred, though thousands are undocumented and remain hidden in their villages outside of public view.

Twelve acid attack survivors refused to remain hidden and isolated. Through the encouragement of Hanifa and Ritah, both acid attack survivors, they all met for the first time on June 25, 2014, in a small village in Uganda.  This was the first time they removed their scarves, veils, and masks in public and shared their stories of survival and hopes for the future.

The film “Facing the Future” captured this momentous day as each survivor bravely faced the camera to tell their story. They talked about their former lives, recalled their brutal attacks, and how they survived the painful journey back to recovery. They also spoke about the reasons behind such brutal attacks. Most of all, the film captures the survivors’ dreams and hopes for their future, and shows their strength and desire to regain their dignity and human rights. The film features the story of Hanifa Nakiryowa, an acid violence survivor, and her profound work as advocate and peer support leader for CERESAV. (Centre for Rehabilitation of Survivors of Acid and burns Violence). This was the second film produced collaboratively by Louis A. Picard, Pauline Greenlick and Leonard A. Lies

Summary

For over thirty years, The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) led by the rebel leader Joseph Kony, wreaked untold havoc for tens of thousands who lived in northern Uganda during the 80’s, 90’s and early 2000’s. Army rebels would attack and kill all who lived in the small villages and then burn their homes. They would find and capture young boys and force them to become child soldiers and young girls to be enslaved as child brides.  Those who hid from the rebels and miraculously survived,  would run through the northern Uganda bush for days in search of safety in the Internal Displaced Peoples Camps (IDPC).

 “The Most Important Number is One” documents the real life story of Ronald Abong who was one of many who was able to escape the rebel’s sword. The film traces his life as a small child, who at six years old escaped the murderous rebels and fled for days with his aunt and uncle to find refuge in the IDPC Starch Factory camp in Lira, Uganda. It follows his journey of being rescued by Victoria Nalongo Namusisi, who found Ronald naked, severely malnourished and near death in the camp and how she brought him to her children’s home near Kampala and slowly brought him back to life.

Now twelve years later the camera captures Ronald’s return to Lira to confront the ghosts of his horrific childhood.  During his return journey Ronald visits Lira, Uganda remembering the horrors of his mother’s murder by the rebels and of his time in the IDPC camp. He finally meets his extended family who warmly welcomes him back to his village. His family accompanies him on this final journey to his mother’s grave, and at last he is able to shed tears for the mother he remembered and loved so long ago.