Rachel Mwanza
Rachel Mwanza is an actress from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, best known for her performance as Komona in the 2012 film Rebelle (War Witch).[1]
Born in 1997 and abandoned by her parents as a child, Mwanza spent several years living as a street child in Kinshasa before being cast in Rebelle.[1] She was cast in the film after director Kim Nguyen and producers Pierre Even and Marie-Claude Poulin saw her in a documentary film on the street kids of Kinshasa.[2] Due to her lack of education, she did not know how to read or write when she was first cast in the film; the filmmakers have since made arrangements to pay for her education and housing until she turns 18.[2] In February 2013 she was granted a visa to allow her to attend the Academy Awards.[3]
Her performance in Rebelle garnered her awards for Best Actress from the Berlin Film Festival,[1] the Tribeca Film Festival[4] and the Vancouver Film Critics Circle in 2012, as well as the award for Best Actress at the 1st Canadian Screen Awards.[5]
In 2012, she appeared in her second film role, in Marc-Henri Wajnberg's Kinshasa Kids.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Rachel Mwanza, the incredible destiny of a street child". Jambo News, February 29, 2012.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Oscars 2013: Rebelle’s African teen star trying to get visa to attend awards". Toronto Star, January 30, 2013.
- ↑ "Oscars 2013: Congolese War Witch hopeful gets US visa". BBC News. Retrieved 2013-02-21.
- ↑ "Montreal director Kim Nguyen’s Rebelle wins two awards at Tribeca Film Festival in New York". The Gazett, April 27, 2012.
- ↑ "Canadian Screen Awards raises the star wattage". Toronto Star, March 3, 2013.
External links
| ||||||