Kenyan Doc Wins Global Pitch 2023

Sunny Side of the Doc has awarded the Kenyan documentary Fight for Food as the winner of Global Pitch 2023.

Fight for Food, directed by Maia von Lekow, Christopher King and Zippy Kimundu, takes a close look at the farmers, scientists and cultural activists who are fighting to preserve Kenya’s agriculture and food cultures.

The documentary, produced by Jim Chuchu and Benjamin Muasya (Rada Studios), was chosen as the winner out of the 12 projects presented. The 2023 edition gathered over 220 industry professionals and more than 190 companies from 40-plus countries. The online pitching event was sponsored by AJB Doc, Al Jazeera Documentary Channel and WaterBear Network.

The jury consisted of Khadidja Banouataf (Impact Social Club), Keisha Knight (IDA), Cleo Veger (Dogwoof) and Julian Etienne (Doc Society).

“We were impressed by the breadth of the pitches this year and were particularly moved by projects that center the experiences of those in the Global South from their own perspective,” the jury said. “We are very happy to award Fight for Food the prize of €3,000 in this year’s Global Pitch. We were impressed by the team and their approach shown through the materials. With the consequences of climate change and privatization affecting day to day Global South communities, Fight for Food shows how Kenyan farmers are adapting to extreme weather, unpredictable climate patterns and extractive foreign influence. We believe that the film can be an inspiration for other community-based approaches for climate justice.”

“We are delighted that the jury picked an ambitious topical project from Kenya,” said Mathieu Béjot, director of strategy and development at Sunny Side of the Doc. “It is important to hear stories coming from the Global South, which is particularly affected by climate change. The award also comforts our proactive approach to including new voices and new talents in the international documentary community, particularly those from under-represented groups and countries. Awarding a series is also an illustration of the diversity of formats and storytelling of the documentary genre.”

The jury added, “We also want to mention Their Present is our Future: Saleem and Climate Adaptation as a project we think deserves highlighting for its attention to climate adaptations made possible by grassroots social innovations and the moral urgency of establishing a loss and damages fund.”