Film / Documentaries
Filmmaker returns with documentary on ancestry and shared heritage
Bristol-based filmmaker Louise Ndibwirende is continuing her personal storytelling journey with her latest project, Rice At Home – a documentary on memory, migration and the meaning of cultural inheritance.
Louise’s debut documentary, Speak Little One (2024), explored the experiences of adoptees.
In her second documentary, she creates a space for elders’ voices, lived experience and intergenerational reflection.
At a time when the political discourse sharply tilted towards identity, she pointed out that “reclaiming your culture is not only an act of resistance but also of survival”.
Bristol-based filmmaker Louise Ndibwirende is continuing her personal storytelling journey with her latest project, Rice At Home
The CultureBiz Connect mentee draws on the African saying “There is rice at home” as a metaphor for cultural wealth, heritage and the wisdom carried within families and communities.
Speaking to Bristol24/7, Louise said: “Filmmaking has become a creative avenue for me to express chapters of my lived experience. I feel lucky that I get to project those stories onto the screen and hope others connect with the narrative too.
“I started my director and producer journey by attending a weekend development programme hosted by Dr Mena Fombo for Black queer and non-binary women.
“At the time, I didn’t think much of it — and I could have never anticipated that four years later I would have made a second documentary, changed my whole career and be completely in love with the industry.”
Rice At Home explores the stories of three women from Bangladesh, India and Rwanda as they reflect on their experiences of culture, ancestry and heritage.
According to Louise, it is a “powerful invitation to reclaim pride in where you are from and to understand how this has shaped who you are today”.
She added: “This conversation touches upon my own journey of coming home to my heritage of Rwanda and understanding how so many elements influence my path to today.”
Produced by Martha Redfern, the film brings together raw, intimate conversations, devoid of simplified narratives.
Louise with the cast of Rice At Home
The CultureBiz Connect incubator’s mentoring and peer support has been “quite transformational”, Louise said.
The pilot programme supported 15 artists and cultural producers from global majority backgrounds, selected for a six-week incubator designed to help them develop both their creative practice and entrepreneurial skills.
The programme was developed under Culture West and delivered by creative entrepreneur Bobbi-Jo O’Gilvie and Derek Tanner, enterprise development manager at Black South West Network (BSWN).
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On Louise’s new project, Bobbi-Jo said: “Louise has taken an enablement opportunity to deepen her craft while shining a light on the connections and lessons that can be learned when we take the time to listen.
“We had the privilege of seeing Louise’s journey as she developed her documentation of the stories of Black elders, and that in itself is something special. I’m thrilled that her work is taking centre stage and I hope that she continues to amplify stories and tell her own for years to come.”
The film will be screened at Watershed on Saturday, with a post-screening Q&A hosted by Anthonia Okokon.
For tickets, visit www.headfirstbristol.co.uk/whats-on/watershed/rice-at-home-film
All photos: Louise Ndibwirende
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