Disney has announced that the National Geographic Documentary Film, “Bobi Wine: The People’s President”, is going to be going back to cinemas for a limited engagement in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.  The film will only be returning to cinemas from January 12th 2024, until January 14th 2024.

It’s being re-released in cinemas after being shortlisted for an Oscar, and nominations for the event will be announced later this month.

The film, co-directed by Ugandan-born filmmakers Moses Bwayo and Christopher Sharp, follows Bobi Wine, the Ugandan opposition leader, former member of parliament, activist and national superstar musician during the country’s 2021 presidential elections, where he risks his life to fight the ruthless regime led by Yoweri Museveni. Museveni has been in power since 1986 and changed Uganda’s constitution to enable him to run for yet another five-year term.

Carolyn Bernstein, who is the executive vice president of Scripted and Documentary Films for National Geographic said in a statement about the re-release:

“Bobi Wine is a courageous African leader committed to bringing democracy and equality to the people of Uganda. A rerelease of “Bobi Wine: The People’s President” over the holiday weekend is the perfect opportunity to honor his heroism.  We are dedicated to sharing this film with the widest audience possible in order to urgently highlight Bobi’s inspiring fight for freedom.”

Born in the slums of Kampala, Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, famously known as Bobi Wine, is a musician turned politician who is the current leader of the National Unity Platform (NUP) and the People Power Movement. He has campaigned for hospital sanitization, malaria prevention, refugees’ rights and children’s education. His songs are known as peaceful protests and edutainment (a mix between education and entertainment), focusing on the struggles of Uganda’s underprivileged and low-income earners and calling upon young people to join politics and change their country’s destiny.

Co-directors Bwayo and Sharp said in a statement regarding the theatrical re-release:

“We are thrilled audiences in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco will have another chance to watch the film in theaters and to learn more about what’s happening in Uganda.  As documentary filmmakers, we were fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to relate events that can bring about transformation,” Bwayo and Sharp continue. “Our goal in making this film was to create an authentic representation, not just of the dramatic events unfolding in Uganda but also of the raw and genuine spirit of an inspiring group of people. In a world that presently feels more tyrannical than ever, where truth has become expendable. We have a duty to celebrate those who stand against violence and offer hope in the face of autocracy.”

“Bobi Wine: The People’s President” premiered at the 2022 Venice Film Festival, where critics raved, calling it “a portrait of unfathomable political courage” (The Playlist) and “an intimate portrait of a hugely engaging figure” (Screen International), with Variety noting that the film “startles with its immediacy.”

Most recently, the film was awarded the prestigious Best Documentary Feature Award by the International Documentary Association (IDA) and co-director Christopher Sharp has been selected for the BAFTA longlist as a contender for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer.

As it screened all over the world, the film has made stops at the Telluride Film Festival, BFI London International Film Festival, IDFA and The Hamptons International Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature. It continued to shine on the festival circuit in 2023 with sold-out showings at True/False, CPH: DOX and Millennium International Documentary Film Festival, taking home two of the festival’s coveted statues: the Audience Award in international competition as well as the Human Rights Award. Additional awards the film has picked up this year include the Audience Award for Documentary Feature at the Boston International Film Festival, as well as the Special Jury Award at the 2023 Blue Water Awards.

The following theatres will be showing “Bobi Wine: The People’s President”:

• New York City, IFC Center
• Los Angeles, Laemmle Monica Film Center
• San Francisco, Presidio Theater

You can also watch “Bobi Wine: The People’s President” on Disney+ now.

Have you checked out “Bobi Wine: The People’s President”?  Let us know on social media!

Roger Palmer

Roger has been a Disney fan since he was a kid and this interest has grown over the years. He has visited Disney Parks around the globe and has a vast collection of Disney movies and collectibles. He is the owner of What's On Disney Plus & DisKingdom. Email: Roger@WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com Twitter: Twitter.com/RogPalmerUK Facebook: Facebook.com/rogpalmeruk

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