The German King

"I felt compelled to tell this story so that another young boy growing up in Africa would have the opportunity that I didn’t have - to see themselves reflected positively in the media. To see that a “black man” in the 1900’s could in fact be smart and articulate and brilliant and a king. Someone that a 12 year old me would have loved to look up to and emulate." - Adetokumboh M'Cormack

Growing up in Kenya, I attended a private English school. My knowledge of world history tended to be from the British perspective. I learned about British and European royals, explorers and their conquests to discover and civilize “uncivilized cultures”. When I turned on the television, I saw negative stereotypes of my people as “backward” and “savage”. This was reinforced in all aspects of media.

As I grew older and started doing my own research I read about these incredible ancient civilizations who were far more advanced than their western counterparts at the time. I read about African Kings and Queens and their heroic feats as they fought back against colonialism and oppression. And I stumbled across the story of King Rudolf Douala Manga Bell, whose story like so many other African heroes has been omitted from our History books. I realized that his story needed to be told and as Africans we need to re-write our history books to reflect the truth about our own history. I felt compelled to tell this story so that another young boy growing up in Africa would have the opportunity that I didn’t have - to see themselves reflected positively and beautifully. To see that a black man in the 1900’s could in fact be smart and articulate and brilliant and a King. Someone that a 12 year old me would have loved to look up to and emulate.

The German king is the story of one man, King Rudolf Douala Manga Bell, who stood up and rebelled against oppressive colonial rule. Shortly after the Scramble for Africa, colonial powers were enslaving and killing Africans by the millions. He believed in standing up against oppression even if it meant costing him his life. It’s this incredible story of “doing the right thing no matter what the consequence” is what touched me the most about his story. With so much hate, and racism and bigotry in the world I felt it was important to tell a story that although happened over 100 years ago, had themes that resonated today. To quote the writer and philosopher George Santayana:

“Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.”

I wanted to present a story about a people who simply wanted equality and wanted to be heard. And show that that shows that there is more that unites us as human beings than separates us.

I wanted to feel like everything in this film was a mirror image to show the similarities between the African and German royals. They are a constant reflection of one another. And what’s fascinating is in the scene where the boys are fencing - you see a literal representation of their parents war against each other. However at the end of the day, the boys are friends which is to show that as kids, we are not corrupted by what society says we should think and feel about other people because of their ethnicity, creed or background. It is the message about equality and the stand against injustice is what brought Humanitarian and Social Activist & Actress Pauley Perrette on board as an Executive Producer on this film. Together we feel passionately that this film will resonate with all those who have ever felt oppressed or persecuted simply because of who they are.

The German King is an inspirational story of hope and courage and how one person rising up against injustice, inspired a small nation to defeat an empire. And it’s a story I hope will bring about more stories about our forgotten African heroes to the forefront and be put back into our history books.