Eric Kabera

Eric Kabera (born in 1970) is a Rwandan filmmaker. He is known for his 2001 film about the 1994 Rwandan genocide, called 100 Days, and as the founder of Rwanda Cinema Centre (RCC) in 2001, which ran the Rwanda Film Festival from 2005 to 2019. In 2011 he founded a film school in Kigali, the Kwetu Film Institute (KFI).

Early life and education Eric Kabera, a Rwandan man, was born in Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

He studied psychology, pedagogy, and law. This led him to found a film production company, Link Media Productions, and to start making films.

In 2001 he made a feature film about the genocide, titled 100 Days, directed by British director Nick Hughes. This was the first film shot in Rwanda after the genocide, as well as being the first feature film about the genocide. No professional actors were used, instead just both Tutsi and Hutu survivors of the genocide, and it was shot on location at the actual scenes where acts of genocide occurred. In the same year, he co-produced, in collaboration with the Rwanda Cinema Centre, Through my Eyes, a documentary showing Rwandan youth reflecting on their past, present, and future.

In 2005, he directed and produced Rowing into the Sunrise, a documentary highlighting Rwandan achievements in development made with the support of the United Nations Development Programme.

Rwanda Cinema Centre and Film Festival In 2001 Kabera founded the Rwanda Cinema Centre (RCC), aiming to train filmmakers and assist with the production of films in Rwanda. Kabera said in 2007 that he would like to make a comedy.

East African Filmmakers Forum Kabera is a founder member of the East African Filmmakers Forum, covering Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, and Rwanda, established in 2003. The forum met mainly at festivals, but owing to the lack of funding, filmmakers were unable to implement the resolutions agreed upon. In 2007, during the 4th East African Film Congress at Amakula Kampala International Film Festival, the forum resolved to form a union. In November 2008, the EAFF formed a union for filmmakers from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Somalia, headed by Patrick Kihara from Kenya. Its aim was "to represent market/economic, legal and regulatory interests which film producers in the region have in common".

Other activities Kabera was responsible for initiating the building of the country's first purpose-built, multiplex, two-screen cinema in 2007, in the "2020 estate", on a hill overlooking Kigali city centre. However, construction was stalled in 2012 for lack of financing. ) in Kigali in 2011, a training institute for all aspects of filmmaking and the performing arts. The institute offers a two-year diploma program in film and digital media studies.

Recognition and awards Kabera has attended many international film festivals where his films have been selected for screening, and garnered acclaim.

Selected filmography

Year Film Credit 2001 100 Days Producer 2004 Keepers of Memory Screenwriter, director, producer 2008 Iseta: Behind the Roadblock Co-producer 2009 Alphonse's Bike Producer, director, writer 2010Africa United Producer 2014 Intore Producer, director, co-writer 2018–2019 Karani Ngufu Executive producer