The Kenyan-Nigerian film project 1 Woman, 1 Bra, produced by Nigerian filmmaker Josh Olaoluwa (GRIND) and directed by Kenyan filmmaker Vincho Nchogu, has been selected as one of twelve projects to participate in the 13th edition of Biennale College Cinema 2024/25. Announced during the 81st Venice International Film Festival, this marks the only African project in the program.
The Biennale College Cinema, an advanced training lab for filmmakers, provides an opportunity for directors and producers to develop and refine their low-budget film projects. From October 8 to 17, 2024, the 1 Woman, 1 Bra team will participate in a 10-day workshop in Venice, where they will be mentored by international experts. At the end of the workshop, four of the twelve projects will be selected to receive production funding of up to 200,000 euros and the opportunity to premiere at the 82nd Venice Film Festival.
For Josh Olaoluwa, this selection represents a further significant career milestone. The Nigerian producer has previously participated in the Red Sea Lodge (alongside Nchogu) and Torino Film Lab. His year-long participation at the Project Involve Fellowship, as the first international fellow, is also expected to wrap up this month.
While very little is known about the project, the title 1 Woman, 1 Bra teases an exploration of gender, possibly with an African perspective.
The inclusion of 1 Woman, 1 Bra in the Biennale College Cinema highlights the growing visibility of Nigerian filmmakers on the world stage of training and equipping themselves at film labs and workshops. As the only project from the continent, it underscores the potential of rarely seen collaboration between Nigerian and Kenyan filmmakers and more to come between these frequent collaborators.
With its unique title and cross-continental collaboration, 1 Woman, 1 Bra could be a significant contender for one of the four production slots and an eventual premiere at the prestigious Venice festival. Other participating filmmakers are from Italy, Canada, France, India, Vietnam and Iran.
African projects that have previously participated in the programme are Lesotho’s This is not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection, and more recently Ghana’s The Fisherman.
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