Everyone's Child

Everyone's Child
Directed by	Tsitsi Dangarembga
Produced by	Jonny Persey, John Riber, Ben Zulu
Starring	Elijah Madzikatire; Nomsa Mlambo; Walter Muparutsa; Killness Nyati; Chunky Phiri; Thulani Sandhla; Simon Shumba;
Music by	Keith Farquharson
Cinematography	Patrick Lindsell
Edited by	Louise Riber
Release date	1995
Country	Zimbabwe
Language	English, Shona, Ndebele

Everyone's Child is a 1995 film centered around the story of, Tamari, an orphan girl. The film was directed by writer, Tsitsi Dangarembga.

Background

Everyone’s Child is one of the few films that have been produced to raise awareness of the problems related to HIV/AIDS, particularly the worsening orphan problem. The feature film was produced by Media for Development Trust, an organisation involved in the production and distribution of educational feature films in Africa. The idea of Everyone’s Child was mooted in the early 1990s and was followed by formative research with some communities and experts working in the area of HIV/AIDS. The idea of the research was to understand something of the problems communities face as a result of HIV/AIDS, and to come up with specific issues that would be captured in a feature film, for distribution in various African countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa which is worst affected by the epidemic.

This process came up with the idea of a film to impart the following messages:

That the problem of orphans is real and immediate
Everyone has responsibility to care and respond to the problem
The needs of a child are paramount, and
All needs are potentially better met in the community.

The feature film was produced and launched at the country’s major cinemas in 1996. The film won three awards at the Southern African Film Festival and a further two at the international film festival in Ouagadougou. MFD has successfully negotiated distribution contracts with the local Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation and MNET who have broadcast it several times. Millions of viewers in urban and rural Africa have seen the film.

Summary

Two teenagers struggle with superstition and ignorance as they attempt to make ends meet after the death of their parents from AIDS. Left destitute after their uncle gives their cattle and plow in payment of their father's debts, Tamari and Itai must somehow care for their younger siblings. In an attempt to find work in the city, Itai leaves the village. He soon discovers that there are no jobs, and his life quickly becomes one of crime, gangs, drugs, and jail. Tamari, with no means to feed her family, sells her body to the local shopkeeper for food and clothing. When Tamari and Itai's younger brother is killed in a fire, the villagers realize that it does "take a village to raise a child".^[1]