World Premier of MADE IN ETHIOPIA – Truly Compelling, Will Have Some Audience Members Mesmerized …

… Nevertheless, Caveat Lector: Audiences Should Be Prepared for a Bittersweet If Not Melancholy That Can’t Be Denied

This reviewer-writer felt an unanticipated visceral sensation when he read 2024 Tribeca Fest Staffer Debroah Rudolph’s synoptic description of MADE IN ETHOPIA. The sensation as mild as it was set him off ruminating on the numerous “breaking” and “headline” news accounts he read about the pugilistic posturing and military swaggering for influence in Africa by the United States (think Biden) and The People’s Republic of China (think Xi Jinping).

So, he reviewed this film because he suspected that “news” of its premiering at the 2024 Tribeca Festiva plus the Biden – Xi Jinping plethora of breaking news reports plus the visceral purring sensation could mean that some unperceptive real world dynamic was in the works and could capture attention – not necessarily volcanic but an item of  significant awareness.  {Right now, China exerts the most influence.}

MADE IN ETHIOPIA resonates because of its superb storytelling. There are panoramic vistas, sweeping wide screen and kaleidoscopic aerial views with segues to scenes of intimate details and conversations, to say the least, in a cinematography that just won’t quit and it has a cinéma-vérité style that can cause audiences to feel that they are flies on the wall rather than an audience residing in front of a screen no matter its size.

Thus the review.

In truth, for reasons this reviewer-writer doesn’t want to confess, he had to see a screening twice. In the first he stumbled, overlooked what he shouldn’t have been overlooking. In the second, fortunately for him, he most definitely was a fly; and, now, he’s ready to “fly” a few more times, anticipating that each new time reveals him to another layer of what Tribeca Staffer Rudolph described as a “nuanced tale.” It’s a documentary that has the feel of a sterling narrative movie.

Tribeca Festival Screenings for This World Premiering Documentary Competition Selection

Pre-Fest P&I: Thurs, May 30, 10:00 am – Tribeca Screening Room
Thurs, June 6, 8:15 pm – Village East Cinema-2
P&I: Fri, June 7, 3:30 pm – AMC 19th St.-6
Sun, June 9, 3:30 pm – AMC 19th St.-6
Fri, June 14, 5:45 pm – AMC 19th St.-3
*P&I screenings are for Tribeca-accredited press & industry only

Attending: Directors Xinyan Yu, Max Duncan

MADE IN ETHIOPIA will also be shown at Sheffield DocFest and DC/DOX in mid-June.

 

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MADE IN ETHIOPIA tells the story about the Ethiopian farming town of Dukemk, a struggling but ancestrally proud, hardworking community where, in 2019, it was revealed by Dukemk Powers That Be that the commencement of the initial phase of a plan for an economic strategy for prosperous economic development – unlike any ever anticipated – had begun. The announcement and all its subsequent drumbeat reiterations fueled anticipations and dreams and aspirations of prosperity that Dukemik farmers, residents could benefit by simply opening their minds, drawing on their native industriousness that included preparing to make sacrifices and endure the hard work ahead of them.

The savvy storytelling focuses on three women: 1) Motto Ma, the Chinese factory director, the CEO-ish leader. The buck stops with her regarding the promise of expansion of 30,000 jobs in the first phase of the business plan. It was to be followed by more. 2) Beti, drawn to Dukem to sew jeans after leaving her family to assert her independence. Wants to be self-sufficient and has little interest in marrying.3)  Workinesh Chala, a local farmer, also a full-time mom. These three personified the native industrious and determined spirit of Dukemk.

“This is a nuanced tale, exploring the lives built on a vanishing countryside and the contrasting industrial megaplex that represents progress and profit. It’s an examination of the relationship between tradition and modernity, what progress means for the well-being of a country and its people, and an intimate look at its effect on individual lives. – Deborah Rudolph, Tribeca.

In other words, potential audiences should be aware of the bittersweet realities of phase 2 and 3 of the globalization.

MADE IN ETHOPIA was filmed over four years and this reviewer was amazed at the considerable access the filmmakers had with interviewees and their families and the community. That kind of access was subtle beyond belief for this reviewer-writer, hinting at a incredible filmmaking finesses of filmmakers for dealing with people to tell incredible stories.

 

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Director Xinyan Yu is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker based in Washington, D.C. She has directed, produced, filmed and edited stories for the BBC, CNBC, PBS NOVA, PBS Frontline and NHK. Born and raised in China, she has been working for top-tier international newsrooms in Asia and the US for over a decade. MADE IN ETHIOPIA is her feature documentary debut. Director Max Duncan is a UK-based filmmaker, cinematographer and journalist. His award-winning documentary and reportage has appeared on media including the BBC, PBS, VICE, The Guardian, The New York Times and Al Jazeera. He previously lived and worked in China for a decade. MADE IN ETHIOPIA is his feature documentary debut.

Directors’ Statement – Xinyan Yu and Max Duncan
We worked as journalists in China for more than a decade each, immersed in the myriad stories of people navigating a rapidly changing society. Having witnessed how industrialization profoundly impacted the lives of hundreds of millions of people, we wanted to explore how China’s growing presence in Africa was contributing to a similar transformation at a pivotal moment in the continent’s history.”

When we started the project in 2019, Ethiopia – a vibrant, ancient culture with millions still in grinding poverty – had adopted a developmental model strikingly similar to China’s and was brimming with eye-popping expressions of this fateful new partnership. The Eastern Industry Park, and the extraordinary women we met there, offered a perfect microcosm to see how it all played out.”

Growing up in Wuhan, a big industrial Chinese city, Dirextor Xinyan experienced China’s upheaval first hand: Much of her hometown, a state-owned steel factory community, was uprooted to make way for massive real estate projects. A lot of what China went through in the ‘80s and ‘90s – industrialization, urbanization and privatization of the economy – is now taking place in Ethiopia. These shared experiences help her understand the perspectives of both Chinese and Ethiopian characters.

Director Max has focused on the promise and pain of development in his earlier short films. A fluent Mandarin speaker, he is driven by a belief in the power of human-centered storytelling to unlock subjects that may at first feel “remote” to some audiences.

We set out to make a film that explored the layered tensions not just between Chinese and Ethiopians, but between rural and urban communities, men and women, and different generations with competing values and aspirations. We took a longitudinal approach – following our characters over four years through a global pandemic and a civil war – to see what changed, and what didn’t, for them and for Ethiopia.

Above all, we wanted to show all the shades of gray, allowing audiences to make their own judgments: who are the real winners and losers; what is a fair approach to development in the 21st century; and ultimately, what should we be prepared to give up in the pursuit of “progress”?

 

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Producer’s Statement – Tamara Dawit
I am honored to co-produce MADE IN ETHIOPIA, a project that uses observational storytelling to shape a deeply personal and cinematic narrative. Directors Xinyan Yu and Max Duncan artfully weave together the story of present-day Ethiopia, exploring the impact of Chinese investment on a small town through the experiences of three women.

At Gobez Media, our mission is unequivocal: to amplify Ethiopian narratives and creatives globally and foster dialogues that transcend geographical boundaries. Made in Ethiopia exemplifies this mission. The directors’ decision to diverge from a singular focus on the Chinese perspective by engaging equally with Ethiopian subjects provides audiences with a comprehensive, 360-degree perspective. The participation of Ethiopian and Chinese creatives in the film, along with the directors’ journalistic backgrounds, highlights how their narrative positionality and topical expertise combine to shape the story.

MADE IN ETHIOPIA encourages introspection and fosters empathy. I eagerly anticipate the thought-provoking conversations surrounding development, economic growth, and prosperity that this film will undoubtedly spark as we reflect on many nations’ futures through the lens of China’s involvement in Ethiopia.

Additional Information

– Director/Producer Xinyan Yu is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker based in Washington, D.C. Xinyan started her journalism career in 2012 working as a producer for BBC News in Beijing. She has covered major breaking news across Asia and North America for a decade. Now an independent filmmaker, Xinyan has directed and produced content for international broadcasters including BBC, NHK, PBS NOVA, PBS Frontline and Channel News Asia She is a New America National Fellow, a Firelight Media Doc Lab fellow, a Brown Girls Doc Mafia Sustainable Artist fellow and an alumnus of the Yaddo Residency. MADE IN ETHIOPIA is her feature documentary debut.

– Max Duncan is an award-winning filmmaker, cinematographer and journalist whose work has appeared on platforms including the BBC, PBS, The Guardian, The New York Times and Al Jazeera. He worked for a decade in China, first as a video journalist for Reuters news agency in Beijing and then independently, exploring the country’s meteoric rise from many angles. He has since reported widely across Asia (including multiple trips to North Korea), Africa, Europe and Latin America. Max has won a World Press Photo Award, been supported by organizations including Pulitzer, and is an alumnus of Yaddo and Logan Nonfiction programs. MADE IN ETHIOPIA is his feature documentary debut.Tamara Dawit, an

– Ethiopian-Canadian filmmaker and alumna of Berlinale Talents and European Audiovisual Entrepreneurs (EAVE), has produced notable films such as Girls of Latitude (2008), Grandma Knows Best (2014), Finding Sally (2020) and Alazar (2024) through her company Gobez Media. Currently, she’s actively involved in producing a diverse range of dramatic and documentary projects. In 2021, Tamara was a TIFF Producer Fellow and won the Doc Institute Vanguard Award and the Gordon Parks Award for Black Excellence in Filmmaking. She’s also a Chalmers Arts Fellow (2023) and a MacDowell Fellow (2024).

– Biel Andrés is a film editor originally from Barcelona and now based in Copenhagen. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Audiovisual Communication from University Pompeu Fabra (Barcelona). He has worked with the internationally acclaimed director Bille August and the Danish film editor Janus Billeskov Jansen on The Kiss (2020), Ehrengard (2022) and The Count of Monte Cristo (2024). Biel has edited documentary films such as Balomania (2024), Attacked – The Copenhagen Shootings (2020), The Reformist – A Female Imam (second editor and TV editor, 2019), Oliver’s Will (2018) and War Dance (2017). He also has a background as an editor for TV docuseries and other TV productions in Denmark. Biel is a member of the Danish Film Academy and the Society of Danish Film Editors.

– Jeppe Bødskov is a Copenhagen-based film editor, educated at the National Film School of Denmark. His documentary credits include Democrats (Best Documentary Feature, Tribeca Film Festival 2015) and President (World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award: Vérité filmmaking, Sundance 2021), both directed by Camilla Nielson, and the documentary series Cash, directed by Eva Mulvad. He has worked on many fiction series, including Follow the Money (Best TV Series, Danish Film Awards 2019). Jeppe is currently editing a documentary series on 30 years of Danish military history for national broadcaster DR.

– Siyi Chen is a documentary filmmaker based in New York City. She holds a dual degree in World History and Chinese Literature from Peking University (Beijing) and an MA in News and Documentary from New York University. Siyi’s feature documentary debut Dear Mother, I Meant to Write about Death premiered at the Busan International Film Festival in 2022 and was also selected for IDFA 2022. Siyi is the winner of the SFFILM’s 2019 New American Fellowship and, in 2023, she was selected as a part of the first cohort of PBS’s Ignite Mentorship for Diverse Voices Initiatives. Inspired by her cross-cultural background, Siyi’s work explores migration, identity and family dynamics, with a special focus on creating lyrical and poetic portraits of women in the diaspora.

– Ali Helnwein is a Los Angeles-based composer who has worked on multiple Emmy and Grammy winning projects. Films he has scored have gone to festivals ranging from Sundance, SXSW, Tribeca, TIFF, and more, including projects for Netflix, HBO and other platforms. Several projects he composed for Netflix made it to the streamer’s Top 10. In 2010 his “Rain” Violin Concerto was commissioned by Kat Von D and premiered in downtown LA’s historic Million Dollar Theater. In his earlier days he founded the Traction Avenue Chamber Orchestra, premiering new works and playing to new audiences, and his work has also been performed by orchestras around the world.

– Gobez Media is a Canadian and Ethiopian production company run by EAVE graduate Tamara Mariam Dawit. The company’s films include Forgotten Children (2007), Grandma Knows Best (2014), Girls of Latitude (2008), Finding Sally (2020), Made in Ethiopia (2024) and Alazar (2024). The company is currently producing the dramatic films The Last Tears of the Deceased and Mehal Sefari and the creative documentary The Plot.

Dogwoof is a London-based documentary film company integrating production, sales, and theatrical distribution. Dogwoof has so far released 34 Oscar-nominated documentaries, with six wins and an additional five BAFTA winners. Notable titles include 2024 Oscar-winning and BAFTA-winning 20 Days In Mariupol, 2023 Oscar-winning and BAFTA-winning Navalny,

 

Gregg W. Morris can be reached at gregghc@comcast.net, profgreggwmorris@gmail.com