Kenya and South Africa / 2009 / 33mins / Drama, Sci-fi / English

Pumzi / Air is set in the East African region, 35 years after World War III, in a world with no water and toxic soil. The story is told through the eyes of Asha, a curator at a virtual natural history museum in the Maitu Community. She receives soil in the mail and decides to plant a seed in it, regardless of her superior's instructions.

Wanuri Kahiu

Wanuri Kahiu is an alumna of UCLA’s master’s program in film directing and made her professional debut in 2006, directing a behind-the-scenes documentary, The Spark that Unites. In 2008 she completed her first feature film, From a Whisper, which was based on the real-life events surrounding the 1998 twin bombings of US Embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam. The film went on to win several international awards. In 2009 Kahiu completed a short science-fiction film, Pumzi (Air), which was partially funded by Focus Features (part of NBC Universal), the Goethe-Institut, and Changa Moto Fund in Kenya. Pumzi premiered at Sundance Film Festival and went on to win best short film at Cannes Independent Film Festival and the Silver at Carthage Film Festival. Her 2018 film, Rafiki is the first Kenyan feature film to be invited to Cannes Film Festival 2018 as part of the Official Un Certain Regard selection. Rafiki was banned by the Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) "due to its homosexual theme." Kahiu sued Kenya's government, and the ban was later lifted. After the lift, the film was shown to a sold-out crowd at a cinema in Nairobi. Kahiu is part of AFROBUBBLEGUM a collective of African artists whose ambition is to create fun, frivolous and fierce work. Learn More