BEHIND THE SCENES
The cast and crew of the film "Bako" on the day they left Mashava to head back to Harare
After what seemed like forever in pre-production (truthfully it was actually 6 months), and a blistering 2 week shooting schedule, Zimbabwe's second indie horror film is in post production. Bako/Cavern's festival run began in July 2023 with a screening at the Lift-Off Filmmaker Sessions, then in October, the Bantu Film Festival in Botswana and in November, the Zimbabwe International Film Festival, the flagship festival of Zimbabwe.
The spirit of DIY filmmaking permeated the entire production, especially when it came to set construction. Armed with a few YouTube tutorials and a can-do attitude, the crew (and sometimes the cast) did their best and built a cave set in the production offices of InHouse Media.
MORE INFO
Bako is nothing if not a triumph of true independent filmmaking. Tafadzwa Ranganai, the director, fancies himself a student of the Gorge Romero, Roger Corman, John Carpenter and Robert Rodriguez school of indie filmmaking. Everything is DIY, from props, sets, wardrobe, to camera rigs, website design, marketing and even distribution.
- Built a set in March 2023
- Filmed majority of the movie in 2023
- Did the festival circuit in 2023
- Did re-shoots for 30% of the film in March 2024
- Built this website in 2024
- Edited a "Making of" documentary in 2024
