The Venice Lion winner will present his new film about resilience and memory at the 27th Encounters Documentary Festival this June.
Kachi Benson Brings “Mothers of Chibok” to South Africa
Award-winning documentary filmmaker Kachi Benson is set to bring his latest work, “Mothers of Chibok,” to South Africa as part of the 27th Encounters South African International Documentary Festival.
Benson, who won the Venice Lion for Best Immersive Story, will screen his new film on June 21 in Cape Town and June 28 in Johannesburg. “Mothers of Chibok” explores the quiet aftermath of the 2014 Chibok abductions, focusing on the mothers left behind—a decade after their daughters were taken by Boko Haram.
The acclaimed director will also feature on a panel titled Feminist Stories of Defiance and Empowerment, alongside filmmaker and writer Shanelle Jewnarain and global consultant Joy Watson. Part of the Encounters InFocus Industry Programme, the session will explore how African films challenge systems that marginalize women and use cinema to inspire agency, healing, and transformative change.
Earlier in 2025, Benson earned two Emmy nominations for his Disney+ documentary “Madu,” recognized for Outstanding Direction and Outstanding Arts & Culture Documentary.
The documentary served as the opening film at the 2025 iRep International Documentary Film Festival in Lagos before its inclusion at Encounters.
Running from June 19–29, the 27th edition of Encounters—widely regarded as Africa’s leading documentary film event features over 50 films from across the continent and beyond. This year’s theme centers on rising with stories of memory, trauma, resistance, education, and art, positioning documentary cinema as both a mirror and a tool for understanding and change.
Other notable titles in this year’s lineup include Jessie Ayles’s “Never Come Fetch Me,” “Womxn: Working,” “Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk,” “Intercepted,” “Blue Road,” and “The Shadow Scholars.”