Meet the brain behind Going Bongo

Ernest Napoleon is a Tanzanian filmmaker, software engineer and architect. He was born in Moscow, Russia but grew up in Dar es salaam, Tanzania.

“I used to be a DJ at Club Billicanas in 2000, a TV presenter at Channel 5/East Africa Television in 2001 and a Bongo Flava recording artist in 2002 under a stage name Mc Napo,” he says.

Napoleon then went to Los Angeles where he learned everything he knows about acting, writing, directing, producing etc. After many years of learning the craft, he wrote, produced and starred in the first Tanzanian film to break the barriers of being in the Cinema, a film called ‘Going Bongo’

Not considering himself to be a ‘member’ of the movie industry, Napoleon believes his entrance in the movie sector happened by default. “I’m not sure if I ever was in the movie industry. It’s one of those things that you always ask yourself if you are in. You don’t actually get a membership card or something to mark that you are now in the movie industry but I guess being noticed and known by your peers and movie fans is being in the movie industry,” he speaks.

The buzz that was created around his movie ‘Going Bongo’ has been boundless. Avid movie lovers in Dar es Salaam flocked to century cinema to watch what was billed to be the ‘best’ Tanzanian movie yet. Napoleon, being the writer, producer and actor of the movie was very pleased with the response and the whole experience. Speaking about his first impression of writing, producing and starring in the hit movie, he said; “It felt at home. I am not very good at a lot of things so it was great to feel great at doing something. Acting is my first love and I only direct sometimes to get my vision across as a writer which is my second love.”

The three different roles Napoleon has played toward ensuring that ‘Going Bongo’ is a success have been applauded by movie critics; its success hasn’t come as a surprise, Napoleon reveals how all that makes him feel: “As a writer it always feels good to see your original idea come to fruition. We all wake up with a lot of ideas all the time, but having an idea that revolutionises the whole industry in East Africa is something quite incredible. As an actor it’s great to see people relate to the character. Watching ‘Going Bongo’ in the Cinema is especially unique because you can hear the live feedback from the audience. People laugh, shout and cry together. It’s simply incredible.”

View on the Tanzanian movie industry

Napoleon’s general view on the Tanzanian movie industry is that it is growing at an incredible pace quantity wise. But with ‘Going Bongo’, he hopes more effort will be put on aspects such as quality as well to bring Tanzanian films to good standards. “This should start with a great story, longer preparation and shooting time. The audience is there, we just need to meet its expectations which are quite high,” he says.

Being a debutant in the Tanzanian movie industry, one would be eager to know who are some of Napoleon’s best Tanzanian actors he wishes to work with; “There are lots of them; I like Jacqueline Wolper, Wema Sepetu, Kajala, Lulu etc. They are all very talented and charismatic. Tanzania has never been short of talent. You can see that in ‘Going Bongo’. Some are known and some are unknown but the quality is clearly still there,” speaks Napoleon. When acting, depending on the role, he likes to exude a glimpse of Dustin Hoffman, Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Michael Cane, Christian Bale and even Angelina Jolie. Some of his favourite international film directors include Christopher Nolan, Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino. “I like many directors but I am always excited about a next project from those guys, their work is always inspiring.”

The success and critical acclaim that ‘Going Bongo’ has garnered wasn’t a pre-existing visualization in Napoleon’s mind as he was making the movie. He didn’t think that it would be as big as it is today. “I usually have very low expectations. I tried to work as hard as I possibly could in order to deliver a decent film. What happened from there came from the audience themselves,” he states.

Further praise of the movie came from a renowned local actor, Ibrahim Bunane aka Mzee Katembo. He said that ‘Going Bongo’ has portrayed a true African story with high technology during its shooting. “In order for Tanzanian films to receive international and local recognition, we have to follow the footsteps of ‘Going Bongo’,” Bunane stated.

One of the movie’s facets that have made it such a great success is the storyline. Napoleon was able to portray a narrative that evoked deep emotions in most people, and this is predominantly due to its realism which has made most people relate to it. Talking about the provenance of the movie’s idea, Napoleon says; “I grew up as a kid in Tanzania and always wondered why foreigners coming from countries that I wanted to desperately go to, came to Tanzania and stayed. After many years of living aboard, I was finally able to explore that subject.”

Making of ‘Going Bongo’ cost around $250,000 (Sh500,000,000), which may seem like a lot of money until you factor in 100+ actors, 100+ crew and shooting in two countries which are not near to each other (Tanzania and United States). With all these factors in mind, there were other challenges that were faced during production. From lack of financing to lack of equipment and production personnel, Napoleon and team had to weather the storm. “We were passionate and driven enough to make a film that would be good enough for the Theaters to compete with foreign films,” a proud Napoleon speaks.

Even though Napoleon is of the opinion that there are certain things that he thinks could’ve been done better in the movie, he also says that sometimes the mistakes, the problems, make the project more unique in its own way. “I think the rough edges of the film here and there worked well and maybe the film would have felt perfect if those mistakes didn’t exist,” he says.

Speaking about his current project, Napoleon is currently finishing a dynamite script that will hopefully take Tanzania to the next level. It is about a football player down on his luck trying to make it in a football world. “I’m in the middle of looking for finance, so if anyone out there has the means to help this film, please get in touch with me on social media,” speaks Napoleon.

‘Going Bongo’ will be showing this whole week at 8pm and 10pm at Century Cinemax in Mlimani City. This is the final week for the audience to see ‘Going Bongo’ in the Cinema.

Social media: Facebook: Going Bongo Twittter: @goingobongo, Instagram: @goingbongo