For Oscar award winning actress- Lupita Nyongo, The Queen of Katwe movie might as well simply pass as just another African-based movie she features in. Not that the Kenyan actress didn’t make money from playing a leading role in the movie, but it’s not a killing because at $15m, it was a low budget movie. That figure is sometimes the fee for a lead actor in a big budget blockbuster.
The same is likely to be the case with Nigerian born actor David Oyelowo. He surely nailed his role in the movie; but he doesn’t count it as his biggest catch in terms of earnings.
But for the Ugandan key actress and actor; Madina Nalwanga and Martin Kabanza, their participation in the movie is a complete life changer; one that has cast them from simple ghetto children with a passion for dancing to Hollywood limelight.
Madina and Martin might not have won any accolades as yet, nor are they driving cars with personalised registration plates (of course they are under age), but at least they have flown to their dream destination; USA! Yet, the actress and actor didn’t fly to Uncle Sam’s land as average travellers, but rather as key characters in a highly anticipated Hollywood production! They actually started off their North American journey at the Toronto Film Festival in Canada.
A big role in a Hollywood movie is something many Ugandan actors don’t even dream about, but for the youngsters it happened out of the blue. Now that they are stars, their guardian, one Mark Mugwanya is also cashing in on their international fame as several international news crews have been to the country to pick the child stars’ authentic stories.
Shs500,000 for an interview
Mugwanya, aka VJ Mark who got the name when he was still a translator of movies into Luganda, before screening them at his Kibanda (video shack) in the Kikubamutwe slum, in Kibuli has been the childrens’guardian for over a decade and has rights to them, even if he is not their biological parent.
When we got to Mark, he was clear that interviewing each child costs Shs500,000. At first Mark told us that the fee was set by ‘people behind the movie!’ However, after a few more questions about where we should pay the money, the movie translator told us that it was “personal income for the children!” Mark advised us to carry the money and go meet him; “that way you will be able to ask all the questions you want and also take all pictures that you want,” he told us in a phone interview.
But why pay? Mark defended his stand saying that the kids retained their image rights hence they have to make money out of their appearances- even in the media.
Changed lifestyles
Mark was clear that he wouldn’t divulge details such as the kids’ parents, where both the parents and children live and where they go to school and how much they earned from their respective roles in Queen of Katwe. However he told us that both and Madina were shifted from local schools to an international school.
Another very reliable source told us that Madina and Martin are now in middle grade at Heritage International School in Kansanga, thanks to sponsors they got after their stellar performances in Queen of Katwe.
Mark told us that they signed NDAs (Non-Disclosure Agreements) with the school that the two kids attend; “they are not allowed to divulge any information about the children, neither can they anybody to see them minus authorisation from the indicated authorities,” Mark said.
Dancing is their first love
Mark Mugwanya owns the Undugu Sosolya Dance Academy, that the children belong to. Madina whose story is just like Phiona Mutesi whom she portrays in the movie was born in the Kikubamutwe ghetto.
“Chess changed Phiona’s life and dancing changed my life,” she says. 14-year-old Nalwanga met her guardian Mark Mugwanya 10 years ago. Her mother used to sell maize in the evenings so she would leave the young Madina at VJ Mark’s video shack because other parents also used to leave their children in his care. Some children had no parents and Mark was their guardian, so they used to stay with him. Madina’s mother also started leaving her to stay with him.
She joined his dance group and has been one of the excellent dancers who first hit the stage at the tender age of eight. She now knows more than 25 ethnic dances from Uganda and other cultural groups on the continent.
In fact, Madina stumbled into the Phiona Mutesi role because it was not meant for her. The film’s casting director Dinaz Stafford and music supervisor Zohran Mamdani went to Undugu Family looking for dancers for some of the movie scenes and Madina who was practicing struck them.
“They called me to the girls’ room and asked me to deliver one line which I did. The next morning Zohran picked me and took me for auditions at Speke Hotel. I found many other girls but at the end of the day we were only two left. They took us through workshops and asked us to deliver more lines,” Madina recalls.
When she was called back to Speke Hotel, she thought it was more auditions, only to be congratulated upon winning the role. Even Mark her guardian was surprised because he had earlier tried to get his children to attend the initial auditions at National Theatre but he was disappointed because they had wanted girls from good schools who could speak perfect English and knew how to play chess.
Madina is now a world star and she had moved to big cities with her onscreen brother Martin Kabanza. They have not forgotten where it all began and they still dance actively.
“They are still very active dancers and they already resumed rehearsals,” Mark their guardian told us. Mark was however tight-lipped about how much they earn as dancers and whether they are paid more than other dancers since they are now Hollywood stars.
Back to school
While Lupita and Oyelowo turned up for the 60th BFI London Film Festival during which the movie Queen of Katwe was officially premiered in the UK recently, none of the Ugandans on the cast turned up.
According to Mark, the kids were stopped from attending the UK Premiere out of respect for their education calendar. “We were all initially meant to attend the UK premiere, but it conflicted with their school schedule, so we all agreed it was best for them to concentrate on their academics,” he said.
Phoina Mutesi became a millionaire right from the novel
During our chat, VJ Mark told us that Phiona Mutesi- the chess prodigy who inspired both the Queen of Katwe novel and movie, is a millionaire. “She made a lot of money right from the person who contacted her to write a book about her story,” Mark said.
Queen of Katwe- the novel was authored by celebrated Sports journalist- Tim Crothers. Global giant sports broadcaster- ESPN had a hand in the Queen of Katwe novel. Mark said that Phiona was paid several thousands of dollars for her story to be put into a book.
Repeated efforts for Mark to reveal how much Mutesi received from the movie makers proved futile; however a reliable source told us that she was paid about $20,000 (about Shss64m).
For the child stars, this could be the launch pad to international stardom that was never in their wildest dreams.