Handmade in Africa Season 1

Master kora-maker Seydou Kane crafts a new kora from scratch in his studio in downtown Dakar, Senegal. Dating back to the 13th century, the kora, also known as a West African lute or harp, has long been of sacred importance to the people of Senegal. Many believe it to be imbued with the essence of Allah, and that it has the power to ward off evil spirits. The film follows Seydou as he gathers the natural materials he needs to make the kora: cow hide, a calabash gourd and rosewood. Seydou shows how making a kora involves several intricate processes and skills, from tightening the cowskin, to carving wooden handles and tuning the strings. The instrument is the principal instrument of the ‘griots’ - a caste of musicians, storytellers and oral historians who, a little like European minstrels, are cultural custodians of traditional myths and stories. They sing songs of royal legend and Islamic faith. With the kora complete, the film culminates in a performance of a traditional song, by a local griot musician.

Filmed in the remote Gamo highlands of southern Ethiopia, this episode tells the story of Dorze house builders, as they weave a traditional bamboo home for an elderly woman in their community. The Dorze are a minority ethnic group who live in the mountains and have retained their distinct culture and dialect. They’re renowned as producers of colourful cloth, and for unique houses, which are woven from strips of bamboo. The film follows Dorze village elder Admasu Ourge, as he oversees the building of a new house for his friend Dasanshi, whose old house is falling down. The film captures the whole process, from the moment Dasanshi’s old house is moved, the cutting and preparing of the bamboo, to the construction and completion of the new house. This process is a window onto the significance of Orthodox Christian faith in Ethiopia, as each stage of the build is accompanied by blessings and prayers of thanks, led by Admasu. The film is also a portrait of a community in flux, as more and more Dorze people are choosing to build their houses with corrugated iron roofs, as opposed to the traditional, woven bamboo. For the Dorze, the construction of a new woven house is like “a child being born.” It is testament to a thriving community. Once complete, the whole village comes together to sing and dance in celebration.

For the Maasai people of the Great Rift Valley, beaded jewelry is of great ceremonial significance. The Maasai are a semi-nomadic tribal group, who inhabit much of Kenya and Tanzania. Many Maasai people continue to live traditional, pastoral lives. While the men tend to their cattle, Maasai women care for children, maintain the village buildings, and craft intricate, colourful beaded items. Necklaces, bracelets and head-pieces are used in Maasai weddings and coming-of-age ceremonies, but they are also enormously popular with non-Maasai Kenyans, and tourists. Over the past few decades, tourist interest in Maasai beads has allowed Maasai women to earn their own money for the first time. This episode follows Jane Semanto, a master beadmaker, as she crafts a traditional Maasai wedding necklace. Like many Maasai, Jane lives a modern life in Nairobi, but retains a deep knowledge and reverence for her tribal heritage. The Maasai use beads to signify social and marital status. Colours also hold special importance - signifying elements of the Rift Valley landscape, as well as valued Maasai character traits such as bravery and friendship. During the film Jane leaves her Nairobi studio to visit her Maasai friends who live a more traditional rural existence. We discover how, for them, beadmaking not only gives them an income and independence from their husbands, it also fosters a sense of female solidarity.