It is called Nderi Village, but it could be read "Cinecittà" or, if you prefer, "Kollywood", where the K stands for Kenya, like the Nigerian Nollywood.
The village on the outskirts of Nairobi, not far from the suburb of Kikuyu, has in just a few years become the ideal location for filming films and television dramas, and this choice has enabled the population to find work.
Thanks also to the collaboration of the Kenya Film Commission, young people in the area can learn a profession that is not only that of an extra or figure, with the dream of becoming a great actor, but that of assistant set designer, stagehand, painter, painter, electrician and some other kind of professional figure linked to the world of entertainment. In addition, artisans from Nderi and the surrounding area provide the sets for every need and landowners set up corners that can become settings for the proposed scripts.
But that's not all. To shoot scenes, directors also need the elderly, women of all ages and children. Even animals.
"Here, even donkeys can recognise the command "clapperboard! - confirmed one insider to The Standard newspaper - there are dozens of local productions using Nderi at every level.
We are talking about more than 15 crews a week, a real film and television company.
Some TV series productions have built their own villages, but there are also those who rent out their homes for days at a time, happy to earn money and appear on popular shows at the same time. Some series have been a success in past seasons, such as "Tushauriane" and "Waridi".
Usually, young people who play small parts in films are paid 1,000 shillings a day, but those who have gradually carved out an important role for themselves, or who are in demand because they are already a well-known face and their professionalism is known, can earn up to 20,000 shillings. Even a modest house can be rented for sums ranging from 3000 to 10000 shillings a day. Then there are the restaurants that become canteens for the film crews and even the "mama mboga" who prepare snacks from their homes and negotiate forfeits with the production secretaries.
Now groups of young people from Nderi, who have learned the trade, have become producers themselves. As the Standard notes, the Nderi Film Village has so far seen the emergence of 250 film and television producers.
Now even students who want to learn the trades associated with filmmaking, from screenwriter to director, come to Nderi and take part in all sorts of tasks while practising.replica watches
"In this way, an indigenous film industry can be born," they explain in Nderi, "and Kenya will be talked about not only for big foreign productions such as "My Africa" or "The Tenacious Gardener", but also for local films that have already won awards at various foreign festivals, such as "Supa Modo" and "Rafiki".