CINEOS Premiere

I Am Not a Witch

A silent little girl is accused of witchcraft and tied by a ribbon to a machine of superstition, state, and spectacle — a deadpan fable where every exit turns out to be another cage.

Nyoni plays it deadpan and dry, and that flatness is the trap — Shula barely speaks, so you read everything from her posture and her unreadable stare while the weight accumulates with nowhere to discharge. The severe beauty of the landscape keeps a cold ironic distance even as the indignities pile up. What settles into you is a low-frequency dread and the specific loneliness of a girl seen only as a category, never a person.

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FAQ

Is this based on reality?

Witch camps like the one in the film genuinely exist, and part of its power is the shock of realising the absurdity on screen is documentary truth.

Why does the girl barely speak?

Her silence is the film — she is spoken about, decided for, and displayed, never asked. Her stare carries everything the world around her refuses to hear.