Memory of Princess Mumbi
In this futuristic sci-fi mockumentary, a filmmaker repurposes footage shot in the African nation of Umata as a love letter to the life of Princess Mumbi.
Description
With Memory of Princess Mumbi, Swiss-Kenyan filmmaker Damien Hauser delivers a dazzling film set in the future but pertinent to today. A war fought over addictive technology leads to its outlawing in many parts of the world by 2093. Despite this, AI remains in use to create worlds and alter actors’ facial expressions. Aspiring filmmaker Kuve travels to the African nation of Umata to make a documentary about the lingering effects of the war where he meets aspiring actress Mumbi. As they delve into their thoughts on cinema and the place of AI in it, the two develop a relationship destined to fail—an arranged marriage to a prince awaits Mumbi on her 21st birthday. Against an Afrofuturistic backdrop, this visually esoteric, luscious, and layered sci-fi mockumentary both celebrates and critiques AI while adding a dollop of romance in its depiction of the love triangle between two artists and a prince. —Amber Love
Biographies
A native of Zurich, Switzerland, Damien Hauser is a cinematographer, writer, and director who began making short films when he was seven. While still in film school at SAE Institute Zurich, he worked as a director and cinematographer for Filme von draussen, an advertising production company. He made his feature debut with Blind Love (2021), followed by Theo: Eine Konversation Mit Der Ehrlichkeit (2022) and After the Long Rains (2024).
