On the shores of the Ugandan side of Lake Victoria, there is a fisherman's town named Kasensero. Throughout Uganda, it is known for its prosperous fishing as well as infamous for being related to curses and tragedies. It was there that the first cases of HIV/AIDS in Uganda were reported back in 1982 and the scars of those days are still visible as today nearly 40% of its population is HIV positive. In 1994 they were affected by the Rwanda Genocide in a very unique way.
Today, when many of those who witnessed the harshest times have passed away or left the town, the history, past and memories of the town are in the minds of the few people who still live there. Kasensero and its inhabitants have traveled similar paths; their lives have been shaped by all the experiences the town has been through.
The images of their memories, the spoken words and newspapers headlines will comprise this documentary where it seems that the history of Kasensero can bring ways to understand the complexity of its present and the future to come.
Ernesto is Cuban and a film director. After 5 years living abroad, he reflects on the reality and expectations of him as an immigrant through images filmed in that same period of time.
During this process of reflection, many images that he himself filmed by chance, acquire meaning and help to understand what his life has been like throughout those 5 years.
Kampala, Uganda. Skin color, race and beauty are indeed important topics in many sectors of Uganda's society. Light skin is a sign of wealth in a country where dark skinned people are the majority. Consequently it has become a trend to do skin lightening to look beautiful, to feel accepted in society, to find a man, among other reasons.
Three filmmakers shot all their research trying to understand the phenomenon in an unknown country for them.
