President

Production year: 2021
Country: Zimbabwe
Director: Camilla Nielsson
Producers: Signe Byrge Sørensen, Joslyn Barnes, Anita Rehoff Larsen & Anne Köhncke

With the country in economic crisis, long-time Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe is ousted in a 2017 coup by then-Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa. Prior to the ensuing and bitter election, 40-year-old lawyer Nelson Chamisa steps in as opposition leader. There are death threats against the charismatic but relatively inexperienced Chamisa, and he’s forced into hiding. Election foul play is suspected, results are delayed and activists hit the streets.

Nielsson’s documentary won a Sundance Special Jury Award for Verité Filmmaking – just weeks after the storming of the US Capitol. The disgraceful response to America’s 2020 election reverberates throughout President. A timely reminder of what democracy means and how hard it is to reclaim once lost.