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Tonderai Zvimba , Showbiz Reporter
Australia-based Zimbabwean photographer and filmmaker Albertina Thabisani Ncube (20) has said her hour-long documentary film, Abantu: People of Art, seeks to highlight the challenges that local artistes face.

The production, released last year, also showcases how the young Zimbabweans are defining the creative scene in Zimbabwe and can be found on video sharing site, YouTube.

Ncube was born in Gweru and at the age of four in 2003 moved with her family to New Zealand. That is where she did her primary school. In 2010 she moved to Perth, Australia which is where she now resides.

The filmmaker visited Zimbabwe in 2017/18 and she was inspired to create a documentary film called “Abantu: People of Art”.

“The purpose behind the ‘Abantu’ project is to highlight the lives of young creatives located across Zimbabwe. They discussed their artistry and the struggle of being a young artist in Zimbabwe’s creative scene.

“Despite the doubt from their community which creates self-doubt and the economic instability, they never lose sight of their vision. This is what Afro-futurism is all about; young Africans not allowing their current situation to dis-empower them, instead they use it as a reason to fight harder and build something of their own,” said Ncube.

The documentary which was shot in Bulawayo and Harare features award winning visual artist George Masarira, hip-hop artist Indigo Saint, street photographer Tinashe Charleson and many other fashion designers, models and TV presenters.

The filmmaker spoke about some of the challenges she faced when she was making the documentary.

“I feared that the film was not going to get attention or to be received by many. Knowing it was my first big project I had a lot of pressure, I didn’t see it having the ability to go as far as it did. However, with the help of other creative groups/teams, my fear was taken away as I was able to screen the film in three states throughout Australia: Perth, Sydney and Melbourne.”

At just 20 years Ncube owns her own photography business ATN Photography that specialises in portrait and event photography focused on highlighting people of colour in the arts.

“I ventured into this industry because of my passion for storytelling through visual imagery. As a woman of colour, I tend to focus on people of melanin skin as I was influenced by the lack of representation of ‘Black’ people in Australia.

“From media to the creative industry, there is rarely any content that highlights people of colour. As a photographer and creative, my ambition is to shine a light on what was once dim and provide a platform for people of colour to recognise that they are beautiful and we are one,” she said.

Ncube said her career flourished because her parents let her pursue her passion.

“In terms of my creative side, my parents have always been supportive since day one. I got my first camera at the age of 15 which my parents gave to me as a gift. Since then, they can see how far I’ve come with what I do and where I can go in the future. But on the other hand with the African mentality of ‘success’ they were raised up to believe, my parents can sometimes be hesitant or not 100 percent sure if this industry and its income rate will sustain me for the future.”