Interview by Adham Youssef
The Film Verdict: In some of the scenes in Le spectre de Boko Haram, which just won the top Tiger Award at Rotterdam, the children are talking about the Boko Haram attacks while they talk about a football match; how did you manage to create this ease? And how do you emotionally distance yourself while having empathy for the characters?
Cyrielle Raingou: I grew up in a village [in Cameroon] in the Far North Region, and working with NGOs since 2015 I was inspired by the village’s life and the beauty of the space. I wanted to make a film about resisting Boko Haram. In 2018, I returned and started diving into the village’s life, and that is when I met the two kids, Ibrahim and Mohamed. I was struck by this pure innocence, despite their trauma from their encounter with terrorists, and I wanted to tell the story from their perspective.
Africans, for me, are a source of wonder. Having to live with what they are going through and still have a smile on their face. They are so beautiful and have dignity. It’s not that I changed the reality in the film and made them happy. They have problems. They can cry, they can laugh, they have dreams, and they have expectations about life. I was there to capture this.
TFV: Was it challenging to make a film in a village that is both controlled by the Cameroonian military and had patriarchal structures?
CR: It was challenging, but I was prepared for it. For example, the dress code. When I am in the village, I wear long, modest clothes. My suitcase completely changed, containing African fabric and traditional garments, and I had to cover my hair. I knew I had to be very respectful of the people. Also, the way I encountered the village elders. It is still a very patriarchal society. There are ways of addressing things; you have to be patient and make them feel you are not changing the way they live and that you know your place as a woman [laughs]. However, when I bring out the camera, I have a particular set of skills and a certain level of knowledge, and from this, I gained respect and appreciation.
In terms of security, I studied law before cinema. I am peculiar when it comes to paperwork and admin stuff. I had my authorization to film from the Cameroonian government in Yaoundé. Before we ever arrived at the village to shoot, the governorate sent a correspondence every time we went there to film, so they knew that a team was coming from Yaoundé to film. It was also a way to tell them, ‘Hey! We come in peace. We are not there to disturb anything.’ We were honest, and that was very helpful.
TFV: Most films which tackle militancy and radicalization in Africa are graphic and melodramatic as well as explicit in showing the suffering of the victims. Was it a conscious decision for Le spectre de Boko Haram to show mundane daily life despite ongoing threats?
I am a filmmaker because I want to change the narrative of how my people, Africa, have been portrayed since cinema was invented. We are more than this traditional portrayal. Africa is a challenging place. Why do you have to put people down just to please the entities that are funding you every time a camera is taken to Africa?
TFV: Did this cause you some trouble of not meeting the standards expected from a film about Africa and terrorism?
We struggled with funding this project, mainly with the Francophone funding organizations. They seemed disconnected from the project. Also, importantly, I hate the fact that every filmmaker from a developing country must be a political filmmaker. That knocks you into a box that prevents you from being innovative if you are forced to talk about politics.
My film is a statement. It is already a political statement. But I tried to do it artistically, and I don’t want to be locked in this box where every time you make a film, you have to yell, ‘This is Africa. This is how life is. This is how miserable people are. This is how the government is corrupt. This is how the killing is.’
TFV: You work in war zones, and most people might be traumatized by what they see. How did you manage to do your work and not bring back their trauma and bad memories?
CR: One of the characters, the mother of Falta, witnessed the murder of her husband before her eyes. I knew it would be a very delicate moment when we asked her to talk about it. I spent more time with her, doing nothing, just trying to learn more about her, and then we had a light conversation before arriving at this part. When the daughter asked her what happened, she [the mother] started talking and said, ‘what has passed has passed’. At that moment, I knew that was like saying, ‘I don’t want to talk about it’. She was saying this to her kid and I felt she also answered me, and I never went back to that topic again.
When I see these people — Oh wait! my people — I feel we need to look inside our humanity. I will not be pushy; I didn’t want them to have memories that leave them with more trauma after the filming.
TFV: The film was shot in Cameroon, developed in Germany and France, and was screened in the Netherlands. What is the next step?
CR: The film will be screened in the Pan-African Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (Fespaco), and later I hope it will be screened in other countries. Currently, I am working on my new feature, I’m Coming for You, where I follow the story of a woman who collaborates with Boko Haram terrorists and trades with them to support herself. When she is exposed, she gets banished from her village. The film will follow her journey.
