Queen of Katwe, a film starring Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o and Selma leading actor David Oyelewo is set to premiere next month (October 1) at Century Cinemax in Kampala.
According to Satish Guna, the Century Cinemax Manager, the exclusive red carpet event which also marks the Disney-produced motion picture’s African premiere, will be graced by the entire cast and crew and other big names from the world of cinema production.
Shot on location in Kampala early last year, Queen of Katwe chronicles the story of 20-year-old Phiona Mutesi from a homeless girl growing up in the rough city slum to a world chess champion.
The film is an adaptation of American journalist Tim Crothers’ best-selling book, The Queen of Katwe: A Story of Life, Chess, and One Extraordinary Girl’s Dream of Becoming a Grandmaster, which itself was first published as a magazine article in ESPN.
The two-hour film casts newcomer actress Madina Nalwanga as Mutesi while Nyong’o and Oyelewo play her mother Harriet and Coach Katende, respectively.
Hollywood-based Ugandan actor Ntare Mwine, singer Maurice Kirya and Ugandan actress Esther Tebandeke also feature in supporting roles.
In a related development the biopic film directed by Mira Nair is set to have its world premiere a few days from now at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Canada, after which it will have a limited release across North America on September 23.
Its general worldwide theatrical release is slated for September 30 with the $15m (about Shs 50.7bn) budget feature expected to start showing in other cinemas in African on October 7.
