The Other Side of the Country
[De l’autre côté du pays]

feature documentary

The population is the battleground in “one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world,” where war continues between rebels and the Ugandan government. As rebels abduct and force children and adults into their ranks, thousands flood into towns searching for security. In response, the government forces 1.7 million people into camps in an attempt to cut off the rebel’s supplies and recruits. Instead of protection, the camps offer disease and death.

Politically crisp and salient, the film captures the realities of war in northern Uganda through the interconnected stories of five people, including: a mother turned activist after her daughter’s abduction; a young girl traveling miles daily looking for a safe place to sleep; a 7 year old boy who moved onto the streets to survive; and an increasingly outspoken and courageous man whose job takes him to the heart of the war.

The film powerfully elucidates what it means for people to live through a war carried out by rebels and played down and drawn out by a complicit government. Shot entirely onsite and told exclusively through the images, voices and perspectives of Ugandans.

Festivals

• Edinburgh International Film Festival 2007
• Festival du Film francophone de Namur 2007
• Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal 2007