TORONTO—Cinema continues to bring light to the subject of genocide. In this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, we get a glimpse of the Rwanda genocide of 1994 in Philippe van Leeuw’s first feature film The Day God Walked Away.
Van Leeuw says he was moved to make the film by the plight of his Belgian friends, who were evacuated from Rwanda in the first days of the genocide and had to leave there Rwandan nanny behind.
“They told me the story—the only thing they could do for the nanny of their children was to hide her in the attic of their house they had there, and then they had to leave and abandon her. And they were completely devastated by it. … I just never could find relief from that testimony that was given to me.”
And it is while climbing into the attic, when we first meet the main character of the film, Jacqueline, a young Tutsi woman. We then follow her through the heart-wrenching experience of terror and violence.
Per official data, within 3 months back in 1994, between 800 thousand to 1 million people were killed in Rwanda—mostly ethnic Tutsi and some moderate Hutu. The whole country’s government and media were used to defame, isolate, and physically exterminate the ethnic group.
The director says that in the film the mostly silent Jacqueline nevertheless becomes the voice for the survivors.
“There were people in the audience the other night, that are survivors and they understood. They said I had given them a voice to express their suffering,” said Van Leeuw.
The film was shot in Rwanda, and the visuals are spectacular. The cinematography is very discrete, and when casting a real genocide survivor to play the main character, Van Leeuw wanted her to find the necessary emotions within herself to portray the suffering. A recording artist, well known in Africa, Ruth Nirere was picked to play the part.
“She is very famous in Rwanda. When they have the commemorations, she comes and sings songs that are dedicated to the commemoration and the genocide, and two thousand people start crying when she sings. It’s absolutely incredible,” adds Van Leeuw.
Philippe says he has happily taken on the task of honoring the victims and has already seen the impact his film has on the audience.
“Two days ago there was a public screening for the film. And I realized how painful it was for the public to watch it, but they all stood there. No one left.”
