Samuel grows up on a farm in Kenya and longs for a different life, as great value is placed on old traditions in his home village. The young man moves to Nairobi, where he finds belonging in a community of queer men. There he also meets Alex and the two fall in love. But Kenyan laws criminalize anyone who comes out as LGBTQI+. And Samuel’s father, a preacher at the local church, doesn’t understand why his son is still not married. Samuel therefore faces the dilemma that the truth about his identity could cost him the acceptance of his family …
In the presence of director Peter Murimi.
Peter Murimi is a multi-award winning documentary filmmaker from Kenya specializing in social issues. His film I AM SAMUEL has screened at numerous international festivals from Hot Docs in Canada to the British Film Institute in London. Murimi has conducted numerous investigative research for the BBC’s Africa Eye program, including THE BABY STEALERS (2020), a film about a child trafficking syndicate that led to numerous arrests of perpetrators. The documentarian has worked for broadcasters such as Al Jazeera and Channel 4 News in 30 African countries. Back in 2004, he was named CNN’s “African Journalist of the Year” for his sensitive film WALK TO WOMANHOOD about genital mutilation in Kenya’s Kuria community.
