A New Rwanda
A documentary film about the transformation of Rwanda since the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. The world has a lot to learn from Rwanda’s story. If Rwanda can continue to rise from their past, and overcome their history, anything feels possible. This documentary feature film is currently in production.
Pitch Video (February 2020)
Canadian therapist and filmmaker, Julie Epp, first travelled to Rwanda in 2010 for a workshop on Communities Facing Hardship. She fell in love with the country and has since returned several times. She has always been fascinated by the resilience and hope she witnessed, and the transformation of this post-conflict country that she now considers her second ‘home’. For many years she helped support an orphanage, eventually forming a deep connection with one young orphan named Claude, who is now like her son. Many of the people Julie met in Rwanda asked that she return home and share their story - not only about the genocide, but also their resilience and fierce determination to rise from the past.
Filming in Northern Province, Rwanda 2018 (photo by Julie Fulsher)
Teaser (2019)
Is it possible to heal in a country where almost a million people were killed, and perpetrators and victims must continue living side by side? Can a nation ever fully recover from an atrocity of that magnitude? These answers could give us tremendous hope for the world.
In 1994, Rwanda was devastated by the mass genocide against the Tutsis, where 800,000 people ere killed in 100 days. Twenty-five years later, they have the third fastest growing economy in the world and appear to be undergoing a complete transformation. If this is true, the world could learn a lot from their story.
Twenty-five years after the genocide, Rwanda appears to be a country transformed. They have the third fastest growing economy in the world, are one of the safest and cleanest nations, and seem to live together peacefully despite their horrific past. But, is all this growth and change sustainable? Rwanda is still a landlocked and densely populated country with no natural resources and a very youthful population. Sixty percent of the people are below the age of 25, and 75% are below the age of 35. This poses significant challenges, as 1.5 million young people face unemployment, but it also brings unique opportunities. These young people hold the key to their future. Can they continue on the path that has been carved for them by their parents generation? We will meet young people who are working to overcome their past, navigate the reality of Rwanda today, and reaching for a better future.