''Cook Off'' is a 2017 Zimbabwean

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typic ...

film written and directed by

Tomas Brickhill Tomas Lutuli Brickhill (born 25 March 1978) is a filmmaker, writer, and musician in Zimbabwe . He directed the critically acclaimed 2017 film ''Cook Off''. Personal life He was born on 25 March 1978 in London, England. His father, Paul Brickhi ...

. Set in contemporary middle class society of

Harare Harare (; formerly Salisbury ) is the Capital city, capital and most populous city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of 940 km2 (371 mi2) and a population of 2.12 million in the 2012 census and an estimated 3.12 million in its ...

, the film stars

Tendaiishe Chitima Tendaiishe Chitima (born ) is a Zimbabwean actress. Biography Chitima described herself as shy growing up in Zimbabwe, and did not consider acting as a career. She attended the University of Cape Town, studying media and journalism. Chitima took ...

, Fungai Majaya and

Tehn Diamond Tendai Ryan Nguni (born 17 January 1985), better known by his stage name Tehn Diamond now Tehn is a Zimbabwean hip hop rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor from Harare, Zimbabwe. He is a member of the hip-hop collective Few Kings, with whom he ...

. Production of the film was constantly hit with power failures, budget constraints, anti-government protests and riots which erupted during the final stages of the Presidency of

Robert Mugabe Robert Gabriel Mugabe (; ; 21 February 1924 – 6 September 2019) was a Zimbabwean revolutionary and politician who served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe from 1980 to 1987 and then as President from 1987 to 2017. He served as Leader of th ...

. It became the first film to be released after the Zimbabwe Mugabe era which lasted for nearly 40 years. The film also became the first Zimbabwean film to be streamed on

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...

. It received international media attention since its release on the Netflix platform in June 2020. It is only the second Zimbabwean film to receive international attention after ''

Neria ''Neria'' is a Zimbabwean film made in 1991, written by the novelist Tsitsi Dangarembga. It is directed by Godwin Mawuru and the screenplay was written by Louise Riber. It is the highest-grossing film in Zimbabwean history. The film concerns ...

''. The film is hailed as one of the finest ever films in the

Cinema of Zimbabwe Zimbabwe has an active film culture that includes films made in Zimbabwe during its pre- and post-colonial periods. Economic crisis and political crisis have been features of the industry. A publication from the 1980s counted 14 cinemas in Zimbabwe ...

after ''Neria'' and ''

Yellow Card Yellow card may refer to: * Yellow card (sport), shown in many sports after a rules infraction or, by analogy, a serious warning in other areas * Yellowcard, an American alternative rock band * Yellow Card Scheme, a United Kingdom initiative conc ...

'' and opened to extremely positive response from Zimbabweans. The film is credited with shattering stereotypes of the Zimbabwean film industry which had been crippled by economic crisis and hyperinflation in the country.

Synopsis

When single mother Anesu (

) is secretly entered into a reality television cooking competition by her son, she must overcome the disapproval of her mother and the rivalry of professional chefs. She also finds love during the competition.

Cast

as Anesu *

Fungai Majaya Bernardino Fungai (1460– c. 1516) was an Italian painter whose work marks the transition from late Gothic painting to the early Renaissance in the Sienese school.

as Milly Ann *

as Prince *

as JJ * Jesese Mungoshi as Anesu's grandmother *

Shingai Shoniwa Shingai Elizabeth Maria Shoniwa ( ; born 1 September 1981), known professionally as Shingai is a Zimbabwean-British singer, songwriter and musician, best known as the vocalist and bassist for the English indie rock band Noisettes. In 2017, she l ...

(cameo appearance) * Sylent Nqo

Production

The

principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...

of the film commenced in 2017 when Robert Mugabe was still the president of Zimbabwe. The initial days of the shooting procedure of the film was disrupted by regular power cuts and the production team was forced to hire power generator for the shooting. The film budget was limited to only food and bottled water for the cast and crew members. The daily budget limit was estimated around $20 equivalent to 18

euros The euro (symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . Th ...

which was not even sufficient enough to meet the expenditure on bottled mineral water. The film cast and crew consisted mostly of young artistes and film producer Njagu reportedly made deferred contracts with the cast and crew members instead of making an agreement for an immediate payment due to financial tussles. According to the lead actress of the film Chitima, none of the cast members had not received the payment for their work and efforts in the film. By December 2020 all cast and crew had received payment in full. The film was completed with a low initial budget of only $8000. The portions of the film were predominantly shot on the sets of

ZBC TV ZBC TV, also known as ZTV, is Zimbabwe's public broadcasting, public free to air television network that is fully owned and operated by the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation, state broadcaster. History In the country, television was introduced on ...

's reality show '' Battle of the Chefs: Harare'', a Zimbabwean version of the popular American reality television show ''

Top Chef ''Top Chef'' is an American reality competition television series which premiered on Bravo on March 8, 2006. The show features chefs competing against each other in culinary challenges. The contestants are judged by a panel of professional che ...

''. The film shooting proceeded in the sets of the ''Battle of the Chefs'' at a time when the show went off-air. The film director Brickhill in an interview with ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'' revealed that the film wouldn't have materialized without the support of ''Battle of the Chefs'' sets and financial support from voluntary donors. The cast members also used the costumes, props and cooking pots from the sets of the ''Battle of the Chefs''. Popular UK indie rock band

Noisettes Noisettes are an English indie rock band from London, currently composed of singer and bassist Shingai Shoniwa and guitarist Dan Smith. The band first achieved commercial success and nationwide recognition with the second single of their sec ...

was roped into feature in the soundtrack of the film.

of the Noisettes band was also roped into play the cameo appearance in the film. The shooting was also delayed on few occasions as few of the cast members were unable to commit to the schedule allocated to them due to the tear gas and riots in Harare which erupted against Robert Mugabe's administration. Despite the odds and obstacles, the film production regained momentum after the infamous successful ousting of Robert Mugabe on 17 November 2017.

Release and reception

The film had its debut release in a homemade cinema at the

rooftop A roof ( : roofs or rooves) is the top covering of a building, including all materials and constructions necessary to support it on the walls of the building or on uprights, providing protection against rain, snow, sunlight, extremes of tempe ...

of the New Ambassador Hotel in Harare on 31 December 2017 and was later released at the

Reps Theatre Reps Theatre (also known as The Repertory Players or simply Reps) is a Zimbabwe theatre and theatrical company based in the capital city of Harare. It is one of Zimbabwe's oldest amateur theatrical companies. The first performance (February 1 ...

. Soon after its theatrical release, the film was screened at various international film festivals held in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, US,

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kal ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Swaziland Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its no ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

. The film was officially selected for premiere at the Nairobi Film Festival (June 2019), Cambria Film Festival,

Rotterdam International Film Festival The International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) is an annual film festival held at the end of January in various locations in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Since its foundation in 1972, it has maintained a focus on independent and experimental fi ...

(January 2020),

Seattle International Film Festival The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees. The SIFF runs for more th ...

(May–June 2018), Afrika Film Festival (May 2019), Bushfire Festival (May 2019), Auckland New Zealand African Film Festival (February 2019),

Zimbabwe International Film Festival The Zimbabwe International Film Festival (abbreviated as ZIFF) is an annual ten-day film festival held in Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi ...

Pan African Film Festival Pan African Film Festival (PAFF) is a non-profit corporation in Los Angeles, California, that states its goal is to promote "cultural understanding among peoples of African descent" through exhibiting art and film. It hosts a film festival and an a ...

, Silicon Valley African Film Festival (July 2018), Cannes Festival International du Film Pan-Africain (April 2019) and at the

Durban International Film Festival The Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) is an annual film festival that takes place in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa. Founded in 1979 by Teddy Sarkin and Ros Sarkin, it is the oldest and largest film festival in Africa and ...

(July 2018). It also became the first Zimbabwean film in 22 years after ''Neria'' to have officially selected at the Rotterdam International Film Festival. The film was opened to generally mixed reviews from critics. The film had its

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

premiere at the Mayfair Hotel on 27 July 2019 and also featured in

BBC World Service The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...

. It was reported that the American streaming platform Netflix during mid March 2020 sealed a deal with the filmmakers in order to obtain the streaming rights of the film for an undisclosed record price. The director also refused to disclose the amount regarding the Netflix deal. In May 2020, the filmmakers confirmed that the film would be released in Netflix platform in an official announcement in

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

. It also marked the first instance where Netflix acquired a Zimbabwean film. The film made its debut in Netflix on 1 June 2020 after two and a half years since its theatrical release in Zimbabwe. It also became Zimbabwe's first feature film to be released via Netflix. The film was deemed as relatively unknown by most of the Zimbabwean people until its release in Netflix. The television rights of the film was bought by the state channel ZBC Television and the film made its television debut on 11 August 2020.

Awards and nominations

The film received few awards and nominations at film festivals. It bagged a total of four awards at the film festivals, including two each at the 2020 Cambria Film Festival. and Zimbabwe International Film Festival. The film also received two

National Arts Merit Awards The National Arts Merit Awards (NAMA Awards) is a set of annual awards granted by the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe (NACZ) in recognition of outstanding achievements in the arts and culture. The categories have differed over the years. In 202 ...

presented by the

National Arts Council of Zimbabwe The National Arts Council of Zimbabwe (NACZ) is the official arts council for Zimbabwe. They award the annual National Arts Merit Awards The National Arts Merit Awards (NAMA Awards) is a set of annual awards granted by the National Arts Council ...

in 2019.

References

External links

* * {{Netflix title * http://cookoffthemovie.com/colibri-wp/ 2017 films Zimbabwean comedy films 2017 romantic comedy films 2010s English-language films English-language Zimbabwean films