Hajooj Kuka
| Hajooj Kuka | |
|---|---|
 Hajooj Kuka in Mombasa Jan 2015 | |
| Born |
May 8, 1976 Sudan |
| Nationality | Sudanese-American |
| Other names | Hisham Hajomar |
| Occupation | Director, Reporter |
| Years active | 2014–present |
| Notable work | Beats of the Antonov |
Hajooj Kuka, the founder of Refugee Club and the director Beats of the Antonov[1] is Sudanese from Mahas ethnic group. Kuka was born in Sudan and relocated with his family to the United Arab Emirates. Kuka travels frequently between Nuba Mountains and the Blue Niles for his creative works. He resides in both Sudan and Kenya and he is also an American citizen. Kuka previously worked at Middle East Broadcast Network in Virginia and Shilo Incorporation in New York City as a video editor and post production tech/ editor. He is currently creative director at 3ayin, a Sudanese Arabic reports of violent conflict occurrence in Sudan.
Education
Kuka studied engineering at American University of Beirut (AUB) and Electrical Engineering at San Jose State University, California, USA.
Career
In 2014 his documentary Beats of the Antonov on war, music, and identity won the People's Choice Award at 2014 Toronto International Film Festival. Kuka worked on this documentary for two years with the aim of telling a story that worth sharing with the world; a story of resilience and resistance in the face of adversity through music was made over a period of two years with Director Hajooj Kuka residing among the People of the Nuba Mountains in Sudan.[2] Through his efforts, Kuka was listed in the Foreign Policy Magazine as one of the Leading Global Thinkers (Chroniclers category) of 2014.[3]
Aside from the Beats of the Antonov, Kuka's other documentary, Darfur Skeleton under his other names (Hisham Hajomar), was based on the agonising reality of the displaced Sudanese in the aftermath of the ruination of the Kondowa forest.[4] Kuka through his work shows his non-violent resistance ideology by depicting through creative visualisation, the struggle and resistance of the people of Sudan caught in the web of intractable conflicts.
Activism
Kuka is an active member of GIRIFNA, a non-violent resistance movement in Sudan. Kuka works with various activists in Sudan and in the diaspora for a transformed state of affairs in the country. Despite the non-violence stance, the Sudanese government hunts, tortures and jails Sudanese activists at will and Kuka who has been detained himself, protests their releases.[5]
Kuka is optimistic that Sudanese resilience and resistance to oppression and injustice will yield a positive outcome in the long run. He envisions a secular country that promotes its various dynamism most especially on culture and identity.[6]
Other Work
Kuka is also a War Correspondent (Reporter) in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan.[7]
References
- ↑ Music of resistance in Sudan's rebel regionsThe Guardian, Retrieved 14, 2015.
- ↑ TIFF: Beats Bags The Big Prize, Strictly Docs, September 15, 2014.
- ↑ A World Disrupted: The Leading Global Thinkers of 2014 FP, Retrieved March 1, 2015.
- ↑ Darfur's Skeleton Refugee Club, Retrieved March 1, 2015.
- ↑ #FreeHassanIshaq: a journalist tortured in detention Girifna, June 22, 2014.
- ↑ Beats of the Antonov UP February 25, 2015.
- ↑ Beats of Antonov tiff., Retrieved February 22, 2015.