Wênd Kûuni

Wênd Kûuni is an orphan, who was abandoned in serious condition in the African woods and found by a peddler. The foundling brings a mystery with him, which gets even deeper because the baby is unable to speak.
Greeted in a family, Wênd Kûuni finds warmth and affection again. His quiet shepherd’s life is pleasantly unsettled by the house girl, Pognéré.
When he finds a hanged man, Wênd Kûuni will be able to speak again and will tell everything about his past.
Traduzione in inglese Francesca Sala – English translation Francesca Sala

In Africa, fiction and reality are nothing but two sides of the same coin: life. The substance of life inspires tales which produce a new lesson, a new soul and a new breath.
The first off text of the film says: “ At the time, a white man hadn’t entered the Mossi ground yet. The Mossi Empire had never been so powerful. The barns were full of millet, wells and rivers were overflowing with water. There were peace and prosperity everywhere”.
Wênd Kûuni is supposed to be a story in pictures. The screenwriting tried to preserve the poetry, the naivety, the rhythm and the structure of the tale.
The characters arise from the memory of time. Through the situations, we discover the psychology, the shadows, the contradictions and the ethics of a society… a society whose usual tranquility is sometimes the setting of sudden and painful spasms.
The original music of Wênd Kûuni was composed by René B. Guirma. The inspiration field of this author from the Upper Volta is tradition. He gathered the arias and motifs in the musical heritage of the Mossi tableland. The melody that recurs in the whole film is taken from a folk song, whose words say: “It’s the shadow of the kwinkwinga (tree) that attracts the bird: on a withered kwinkwinga, no bird will ever stop”.
The music intimately takes part in the narration: it defines the characters, amplifies the pictures and gives them a spiritual dimension.
Gaston Kaboré
Traduzione in inglese Francesca Sala – English translation Francesca Sala

Regia, sceneggiatura e dialoghi: Gaston J.M. Kaboré.
Director of photography: Sékou Ouedraogo (35mm, colore).
Music: Rend B. Guirma.
Editor: Andrée Davanture (ATRIA).
Sound: Boubakar Kone.
Cast and characters: Serge Yanogo (Wênd Kûuni), Rosine Yanogo (Pognéré), Joseph Nikiema (Tinga), Colette Kabord (Lalè), Simone Tapsoba (Koudbila), Jean Ouedraogo (il viaggiatore), Yaya Wima (Bila), Martine Ouedraogo (Timpoko).
Produttore delegato: Gaston J.M. Kaboré.
Production company: Direzione del Cinema dell'Alto Volta, Ouagadougou.