Music by Prudence
Encyclopedia
Music by Prudence is a 2010 short documentary film
directed and produced by Roger Ross Williams
. It tells the uplifting story of the now 24-year-old Zimbabwe
an singer-songwriter
Prudence Mabhena, and follows her remarkable transcendence from a world of hatred and superstition into one of music, love, and possibilities.
Music by Prudence won the 2010 Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject).
Music by Prudence premiered on HBO, on May 12, 2010.
Zimbabwean singer-songwriter Prudence Mabhena was born severely disabled. The society she was born into considers disabilities to carry the taint of witchcraft. Because of this, many disabled children are abandoned. But Prudence and the seven young members of the band she has formed called Liyana, all disabled, have managed to overcome stereotypes and inspire the same people that once saw them as a curse.
The main subjects of Music by Prudence, and members of the band "Liyana", are:
Music by Prudence also won:
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
directed and produced by Roger Ross Williams
Roger Ross Williams
Roger Ross Williams is an American television news, documentary and entertainment director, producer and writer. He directed most notably Music by Prudence that won the Academy Award for Best Documentary , about a 21-year-old Zimbabwean singer-songwriter Prudence Mabhena, who was born severely...
. It tells the uplifting story of the now 24-year-old Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
an singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Prudence Mabhena, and follows her remarkable transcendence from a world of hatred and superstition into one of music, love, and possibilities.
Music by Prudence won the 2010 Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject).
Music by Prudence premiered on HBO, on May 12, 2010.
Synopsis
Music by Prudence tells a self-empowering story of one young woman's struggle who, together with her band, overcomes seemingly insurmountable odds and, in her own voice conveys to the world that ‘disability does not mean inability.’Zimbabwean singer-songwriter Prudence Mabhena was born severely disabled. The society she was born into considers disabilities to carry the taint of witchcraft. Because of this, many disabled children are abandoned. But Prudence and the seven young members of the band she has formed called Liyana, all disabled, have managed to overcome stereotypes and inspire the same people that once saw them as a curse.
The main subjects of Music by Prudence, and members of the band "Liyana", are:
- Prudence Mabhena - singer and composer (suffers from arthrogryposisArthrogryposisArthrogryposis, also known as Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita, is a rare congenital disorder that is characterized by multiple joint contractures and can include muscle weakness and fibrosis. It is a non-progressive disease...
) - Tapiwa Nyengera - back-up singer, keyboard, front man (has spina bifidaSpina bifidaSpina bifida is a developmental congenital disorder caused by the incomplete closing of the embryonic neural tube. Some vertebrae overlying the spinal cord are not fully formed and remain unfused and open. If the opening is large enough, this allows a portion of the spinal cord to protrude through...
) - Energy Maburutse - first marimba player, back-up vocalist (suffers from osteogenesis imperfectaOsteogenesis imperfectaOsteogenesis imperfecta is a genetic bone disorder. People with OI are born with defective connective tissue, or without the ability to make it, usually because of a deficiency of Type-I collagen...
, brittle bone syndrome) - Honest Mupatse - tenor marimba player (has hemophilia)
- Marvelous Mbulo - back-up singer (has muscular dystrophyMuscular dystrophyMuscular dystrophy is a group of muscle diseases that weaken the musculoskeletal system and hamper locomotion. Muscular dystrophies are characterized by progressive skeletal muscle weakness, defects in muscle proteins, and the death of muscle cells and tissue.In the 1860s, descriptions of boys who...
) - Vusani Vuma - bass marimba player (is hearing-impairedHearing impairment-Definition:Deafness is the inability for the ear to interpret certain or all frequencies of sound.-Environmental Situations:Deafness can be caused by environmental situations such as noise, trauma, or other ear defections...
) - Goodwell Nzou - traditional drums and percussion, back-up singer (leg amputatedAmputationAmputation is the removal of a body extremity by trauma, prolonged constriction, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on individuals as a preventative surgery for...
) - Farai Mabhande - lead keyboardist (suffers from arthrogryposisArthrogryposisArthrogryposis, also known as Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita, is a rare congenital disorder that is characterized by multiple joint contractures and can include muscle weakness and fibrosis. It is a non-progressive disease...
)
Awards
On 7 March 2010, Music by Prudence won the 2009 Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject).Music by Prudence also won:
- the Audience Award for Best Documentary Short at the Florida Film FestivalFlorida Film FestivalThe Florida Film Festival, produced by Enzian Theater in Maitland, Florida, is an annual international film festival. Showcasing the best American independent and foreign films, the festival has become one of the most respected regional film events in the United States.-Overview:The Festival...
- Best Short at the Africa World Documentary Film Festival
- Best Short at the DocuWest Film Festival.