The First Grader Scores at NAACP Image Awards

NAACP Image Awards

Maruge and the children welcome Jane back to school
(Photo : Kerry Brown)The First Grader, received five nominations for the 43rd NAACP Image Awards it was announced in the United States last week. The NAACP Image Awards are presented by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to honor outstanding people of color in film, television, music, and literature. The First Grader received nominations in the following categories: Outstanding Motion Picture, Outstanding Actor (Oliver Litondo), Best Independent Motion Picture, Writing in a Motion Picture (Ann Peacock) and World Music Album (Alex Heffes). The awards ceremony will take place on Friday 17 February in Los Angeles.

The First Grader, shot in Kenya, is directed by Justin Chadwick (The Other Boleyn Girl), stars Naomie Harris and Oliver Litondo, Vusi Kunene, Tony Kgoroge and Israel Makoe, is written by South African born Emmy winner Ann Peacock, produced by Richard Harding, Sam Feuer and David M. Thompson, and executive produced by Anant Singh, Helena Spring, Joe Oppeheimer and Norman Merry.

Commenting on the nominations, producer Richard Harding said, “It is a huge honor for The First Grader to be recognized by an organization as prestigious as the NAACP. The nominations are a testament to the fantastic team we assembled, each of whom have contributed to its success.”

Producer, David Thompson commented, “I am pleased with the accolades that The First Grader continues to receive around the world. The film, which has the simple message that one is never too old to learn, is truly brilliant and we are happy that it has touched audiences internationally.”

Executive Producer, Anant Singh commented, “We are thrilled with the five NAACP Image Award nominations. Justin Chadwick did a fantastic job crafting an excellent film and Oliver’s performance in the film was really powerful and his nomination for the Outstanding Actor is well deserved. We are also delighted with the nomination for the musical talents of Alex Heffes and writer, Ann Peacock, whose South African roots gave the film an air of African authenticity.”

The First Grader, based on a true story, is set in a remote primary school in the Kenyan bush where hundreds of children are jostling for a chance for the free education promised by the new Kenyan government. One new applicant causes astonishment when he knocks on the door of the school. He is Maruge, an old Mau Mau veteran in his eighties, who is desperate to learn to read at this late stage of his life. He fought for the liberation of his country and now feels he must have the chance of an education so long denied - even if it means sitting in a classroom alongside six-year-olds. Moved by his passionate plea, head teacher Jane Obinchu, supports his struggle to gain admission and together they face fierce opposition from parents and officials who don’t want to waste a precious school place on such an old man.

The First Grader is a BBC Films and UK Film Council production in association with Videovision Entertainment, Lipsync and ARTE France. It is a Sixth Sense / Origin Pictures production directed by Justin Chadwick and stars Naomie Harris, Oliver Litondo, Vusi Kunene, Tony Kgoroge and Israel Makoe. It is written by Ann Peacock, produced by Richard Harding, Sam Feuer and David M. Thompson and executive produced by Anant Singh, Helena Spring, Joe Oppeheimer and Norman Merry.

Awards Boost for Videovision Entertainment's "The First Grader"

Oliver Litondo - Best Actor
Black Film Critics Circle

Oliver Litondo (Maruge)
(Photo : Kerry Brown)Oliver Litondo who plays the tenacious, 83-year-old Maruge in the award-winning movie, The First Grader, which is co-produced by Videovision Entertainment, won the Best Actor Award from the Black Film Critics Circle it was announced last night. Founded in 2010, the Black Film Critics Circle is comprised of film critics of colour who write for daily newspapers, weekly newspapers, magazines, radio, television and qualifying on-line publications in the United States.

The film has also received recognition last night with the song “Keep On Walking” from The First Grader being short-listed by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences for the Original Song category of the 84th Academy Awards. Nominations will be announced on Tuesday, 24 January 2012. The song was composed by Alex Heffes who won the Discovery of the Year prize for his work on The First Grader at the 2011 World Soundtrack Awards at the 38th Ghent International Film Festival in October.

Executive Producer, Anant Singh commented, “Oliver’s performance in The First Grader was really powerful and the Best Actor Award from the Black Film Critics Circle is well deserved. Music Composer, Alex Heffes is an amazing musical talent whose work in the film was outstanding. We are thrilled with the accolades that The First Grader continues to receive and we hope that the film continues this success at the Oscars.”

The First Grader, based on a true story, is set in a remote primary school in the Kenyan bush where hundreds of children are jostling for a chance for the free education promised by the new Kenyan government. One new applicant causes astonishment when he knocks on the door of the school. He is Maruge, an old Mau Mau veteran in his eighties, who is desperate to learn to read at this late stage of his life. He fought for the liberation of his country and now feels he must have the chance of an education so long denied - even if it means sitting in a classroom alongside six-year-olds. Moved by his passionate plea, head teacher Jane Obinchu, supports his struggle to gain admission and together they face fierce opposition from parents and officials who don’t want to waste a precious school place on such an old man.

The First Grader is a BBC Films and UK Film Council production in association with Videovision Entertainment, Lipsync and ARTE France. It is a Sixth Sense / Origin Pictures production directed by Justin Chadwick and stars Naomie Harris, Oliver Litondo, Vusi Kunene, Tony Kgoroge and Israel Makoe. It is written by Ann Peacock, produced by David M. Thompson, Sam Feuer and Richard Harding and executive produced by Anant Singh, Helena Spring, Joe Oppeheimer and Norman Merry.

"First Grader" wins at World Soundtrack Academy Awards

38th Ghent International Film Festival

Jean-Paul Wall, Alex Heffes and Adam Norden
World Soundtrack AwardsMusic Composer, Alex Heffes, won the Discovery of the Year prize for his work on The First Grader at the 2011 World Soundtrack Awards which were announced at the closing event of the 38th Ghent International Film Festival on Saturday, 22 October 2011. The Awards is an initiative of the World Soundtrack Academy which was launched in 2001 by the Ghent Film Festival, is aimed at organizing and overseeing the educational, cultural and professional aspects of the art of film music, including the preservation of the history of the soundtrack and its worldwide promotion.

The Awards event was attended by leading international composers among whom were Gabriel Yared (The Talented Mr. Ripley), Hans Zimmer (Inception), Elliot Goldenthal (Batman Forever), Giorgio Moroder (Scarface), Walter Murch (Apocalypse Now), Alexandre Desplat (The King’s Speech), Abel Korzeniowski (A Single Man) and Alex Heffes (The First Grader and The Rite).

The Film Composer of the Year award went to Alexandre Desplat (A Better Life, The Burma Conspiracy, The King’s Speech, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2); Hans Zimmer won Best Original Film Score for Inception, Randy Newman won Best Original Song Written for Film for We Belong Together from Toy Story 3 and India’s A.R. Rahman won The Public Choice Award for 127 Hours.

Director of The First Grader, Justin Chadwick said, “This is such brilliant news. Well done to Alex Heffes who created a most superb soundtrack. Winning this prestigious award is well deserved.”

The First Grader, based on a true story, is set in a remote primary school in the Kenyan bush where hundreds of children are jostling for a chance for the free education promised by the new Kenyan government. One new applicant causes astonishment when he knocks on the door of the school. He is Maruge, an old Mau Mau veteran in his eighties, who is desperate to learn to read at this late stage of his life. He fought for the liberation of his country and now feels he must have the chance of an education so long denied - even if it means sitting in a classroom alongside six-year-olds. Moved by his passionate plea, head teacher Jane Obinchu, supports his struggle to gain admission and together they face fierce opposition from parents and officials who don’t want to waste a precious school place on such an old man.

The First Grader is currently on release in South Africa.

The First Grader is a BBC Films and UK Film Council production in association with Videovision Entertainment, Lipsync and ARTE France. It is a Sixth Sense / Origin Pictures production directed by Justin Chadwick and stars Naomie Harris, Oliver Litondo, Vusi Kunene, Tony Kgoroge and Israel Makoe. It is written by Ann Peacock, produced by David M. Thompson, Sam Feuer and Richard Harding and executive produced by Anant Singh, Helena Spring, Joe Oppeheimer and Norman Merry.

The First Grader - Film Review

Telluride Film Festival

By Stephen Farber - The Hollywood Reporter

TELLURIDE, Colo. Stories about inspiring teachers have tantalized moviemakers and movie audiences since the era of Mr. Chips and Miss Dove. The latest incarnation, “The First Grader,” proved to be one of the biggest crowd-pleasers at this year’s Telluride Film Festival. Although the arc of the story might be familiar, the setting and characters are fresh. Art house audiences are likely to discover and embrace the film.

“The First Grader” is set in Kenya and recounts the true story of an 84-year-old farmer and former Mau Mau tribesman who decided to go to school when the country introduced universal education. Screenwriter Ann Peacock introduces Maruge (Oliver Litondo), an old man with a walking stick, as he approaches the new school in his village and asks to enroll. The school authorities are reluctant to admit an octogenarian alongside 6-year-olds, and we gradually learn there are tribal rivalries that also contribute to their suspicion of Maruge. Teacher Jane Obinchu (Naomie Harris) is equally skeptical, but when she observes Maruge’s unyielding determination to learn to read, she becomes his ally, even as she alienates her husband and government authorities who are just as bureaucratically rigid in Kenya as in so many other societies.

The film paints a vivid picture of rural and urban Kenya - Maruge eventually travels to Nairobi to plead his case - and it also sketches some of the forgotten history of the country.

Flashbacks reveal that Maruge suffered in a British prison camp and even lost his family at the hands of the British occupying forces. His past makes it painfully ironic that he faces so much discrimination at the hands of his own countrymen.

Director Justin Chadwick - best known for his superb BBC miniseries adapted from Dickens’ “Bleak House” - insisted on filming on location, and he enlisted locals for most of the roles in the film. Working with cinematographer Rob Hardy, he brings the countryside alive and also provides fascinating insights into a forgotten chapter of British colonial history.

Scenes in the classroom are entertainingly vital, aided by the natural performances of the Kenyan children. But the film shares the failing of many other films about inspiring teachers: It asserts that Jane is a marvelous influence on her students but doesn’t succeed in dramatizing revelatory moments in the classroom that might change the course of a young person’s life.

Because the writing falls down in some of these scenes, it helps that Harris - a veteran of small British movies as well as the gargantuan “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise - brings so much passion to her performance. She conveys Jane’s utter dedication while always leavening her performance with convincing moments of doubt and vulnerability. Litondo’s innate dignity is another major asset to the production. Chadwick strikes a perfect balance between humor and tragic gravity, and the result is that an unknown story seems certain to stir the hearts of audiences worldwide.

Venue : Telluride Film Festival

Cast : Naomie Harris, Oliver Litondo, Tony Kgoroge, Shoki Mokgapa, Alfred Munyua, Vusi Kunene
Director : Justin Chadwick
Screenwriter : Ann Peacock
Producers : Sam Feuer, Richard Harding, David M. Thompson
Executive producers : Norman Merry, Joe Oppenheimer, Anant Singh, Helena Spring
Director of photography : Rob Hardy
Production designer : Vittoria Sogno
Music : Alex Heffes
Costume designer: Sophie Oprisano
Editor : Paul Knight

No rating, 105 minutes