Kwame Addae’s film, “In Our Hearts” spotlights Ghanaian Cinema

“In Our Hearts” a film by a young Ghanaian filmmaker, Kwame Addae aims at highlighting the true nature of the African community especially the Ghanaian culture. Kwame Addae is on a quest to change the narrative of the African continent. He is a product of the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI) now University of Media, Arts and Communication (UniMAC). He has been practicing in Ghana for the past 7 years and has worked on several productions, from Commercials, Music Videos to Narrative Filmmaking. His directorial debut film is a short film titled “Mirrors” and his other project as a director is “In Our Hearts”. He has to his credit films such as “Chioma”, “Save Them”, and “Hear Me”, in which he played the roles of an Editor and Cinematographer.

“In Our Hearts” is an experimental drama about an early 20-year-old Young Woman, who has to be given final rights by a Priest. In the process, the Young Woman enquires if accepting his rites would take her to her lost parents, to which the Priest responded negatively due to their beliefs. This makes the Young Woman reject the Priest’s final rites. This follows a struggle journey between the Priest and the Young Woman as she helps him understand her African belief system to which he was cynical about. His opinion about the barbarity and superstitious nature of her beliefs are countered by her explanations on how their belief system helps her people connect to nature through their belief in mother nature and teaches them love for the environment and the people of the world.

“In Our Hearts” is a film that highlights the traditions of the African people using symbolisms of Ghanaian culture and tradition as representation for this discourse. It features conversations about preserving our natural resources, tolerance, love, and our sense of community as African people. The film is an experimental drama that takes a surrealistic approach to narrative storytelling.

The Director, Kwame Addae, intends to create a visual spectacle that would get the audience to look at tradition and culture from a different perspective.
“This is why the story of ‘In Our hearts’ was told. Our beliefs as a people have been distorted by people who have no insider’s perspective. Thus, the goal is to give an outsider an insider’s perspective and hope they understand.”

The production team led by Kwame Addae, the Writer and Director and Producer, Mandy Mensa-Tutuani believes that Ghanaian Cinema can be a beacon for changing the narrative of the African continent, hence the collaboration to make the film a reality since its inception in 2020.

“Film is a powerful tool that has been used to positively and negatively impact the world. There are a lot of misconceptions and prejudices against the African continent from outsiders because we have been unable to document our stories and history. It is about time that we take our future into our own hands and begin to tell our own stories from our own lenses. Hopefully, in the next decade, we shall have a new wave of Ghanaian filmmakers impacting the industry and the world at large to drive the development of the country and continent.”

“In Our Hearts” is Kwame Addae’s sophomore directorial project and one that seems to be the beginning of many to come. It is also one of the few collaborations between creatives in Ghana, witnessing creative contributions from YA’se Otutu Pictures, Timestamp pictures, Aberempon Films and Timeline Creative Studio led by Derrick Ankama.
The screening of “In Our Hearts” written and directed by Kwame Addae will happen on Thursday, October 26, 2023 at the YMCA Campus, Adabraka, Greater Accra, Ghana, at 6:00pm and attendance is FREE.

Watch Official Trailer below;