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Lena Karbe
DE FR 2022 52' 81'
⚬ Green ⚬ Human Interest ⚬ Crime & Investigative
“Black Mambas” are the first all-female anti-poaching unit in South Africa assigned to protect the Big Five (Elephants, Rhinos, Lions, Leopards, Buffalo) in the Greater Kruger Park. Chosen by the (mostly white male) conservation committees as a vital marketing tool, the women stand at the crossroads of progress and a colonial past.
“Lena Karbe’s exploration of South Africa’s Black Mamba anti-poaching unit reveals colonial structures still in place. An astute, unshowy film” - Screen Daily
“a stunning expose” - Filmmaker Magazine
“digs deep into complex racial and class dynamics” - The Guardian
Director | Lena Karbe |
Producer | Lena Karbe |
Co-Producer | Jan Vasak |
Associate Producer | Ramadan Suleman |
Production Company | Karbe Film |
Co-Production Companies | Day for Night Productions |
In collaboration with | ZDF/ARTE, Ushuaïa |
Cinematography | Mateusz Smolka |
Writers | Lena Karbe, Tristan Coloma |
Editor | Georg Michael Fischer |
Music | Rémi Alexandre |
Sound | George Ramosime |
F:ACT Award | CPH:DOX 2022 |
Green Documentary Award | Pordenone Docs Fest 2022 |
Stylistic Achievement Jury Prize Winner | Social Impact Media Awards 2023 |
Social Justice Award | Santa Barbara FF 2023 |
CPH:DOX 2022 |
Pordenone Docs Fest 2022 |
Guadalajara IFF 2022 |
DOK.fest München 2022 |
Sydney Film Festival 2022 |
Krakow Film Festival 2022 |
Durban IFF 2022 |
DokuFest 2022 |
Haugesund IFF 2022 |
Edinburgh FF 2022 |
Reykjavik IFF 2022 |
Adelaiade FF 2022 |
IDFA 2022 |
Jerusalem Anthropological FF 2022 |
Santa Barbara IFF 2023 |
ZagrebDox 2023 |
Luxembourg City FF 2023 |
| Runtimes | 52' 81' |
| Spoken Languages | English, Tsonga, Sepedi |
| Production Countries | France, Germany |
| Resolution | 4K |
Born in St Petersburg, Russia, Lena Karbe is a Germany-based filmmaker. Having studied film internationally (École normale supérieure, University of Oxford and University of Television and Film in Munich), she founded her own production company KARBE FILM GmbH in 2018 with the focus on documentaries for national and international audiences, based in Munich. The mission of Karbe Film’s documentaries is to foster new perspectives and amplify voices and opinions outside the status quo. She has produced several feature films before starting to write and direct. Documentary series CHINESE DREAM that she co-directed with Tristan Coloma premiered at Hofer Filmtagen in 2018 and was shown at more than 30 festivals worldwide. It was published on ARTE in Spring 2020. BLACK MAMBAS is her feature film debut as a writer/director.
