Ugandans from different disciplines keep on raising the prestigious black yellow red piece of cloth higher and higher every single day.
From Joshua Cheptegei to Halimah Nakaayi winning Gold in Commonwealth games to Eddy Kenzo scooping the Best African Entertainer award a few weeks ago, Uganda has registered several international wins this year.
The latest addition is our very own Shakirah Kibirige, a film makeup artist and costume designer who won two accolades at the prestigious African Movie Academy Awards (AMAAs) held in the Nigerian capital Lagos on Tuesday night early this week.
Familiar with The Oscars? The Academy Awards in the U.S.? The AMAAs are the Oscars of Africa and winning such an award means your work was up, up there on top of the entire continent.
There are usually thousands of submissions and hundreds of nominations from the crème de la crème in the African cinema industry so competition is always stiff. Shakirah’s work was just so exceptional that it managed to fend off all competition in the categories she was nominated in.
Shakirah has exceptionally worked on several films like the famous Queen of Katwe as a costume designer and makeup artist but it is her work on the Joel Karekezi-directed “The Mercy Of The Jungle” that made her the first Ugandan to win two awards at the Awards ceremony.
“The Mercy Of The Jungle,” which stars Ugandan seasoned actors like Abbey Mukiibi, Prynce Okuyo Joel Atiku and Mathew Nabwiso among others scooped the Best Actor and Best Feature film awards on the night.