Wyclif Mwamba Tells His Side of the Story After The Pawn Premiere Failure
Wyclif Mwamba says the problems that disrupted The Pawn premiere began long before the audience arrived, with lost footage, costly reshoots and unfinished work creating pressure as the screening date approached.
The filmmaker has now given his account of what happened behind the scenes after the premiere left many of the approximately two thousand people who attended unable to watch the movie.
Speaking during a livestream shortly after the incident, Mwamba described a production that had faced several setbacks before reaching what he says was a difficult final stretch.
The trouble started with lost footage
Mwamba said footage from ten scenes was lost during post production. According to him, more than twelve thousand United States dollars was spent on software in an attempt to recover the material, but the effort failed and the scenes had to be filmed again.
The production then underwent another change when the original editor secured a scholarship to study abroad.
Mwamba said he brought in another editor to continue the work. He initially believed the collaboration was progressing well, but he recounted that tensions later developed following a press briefing on August twenty ninth.
According to Mwamba, the editor raised concerns about receiving insufficient recognition for contributions to the entertainment industry.
Mwamba also addressed a pledged one million kwacha contribution from Havana Vision to Wyclif Mwamba Films. He said the pledge was made to the registered production company, rather than to him personally.
He maintained that the differences were discussed and that work on the film continued.
As the premiere approached, time was running out
Mwamba said sound mastering was expected to be completed around October fifth, but substantial post production work, including colour grading and other finishing tasks, was still outstanding close to the screening.
He claimed that the editor had assured him the film would be ready by an agreed Thursday deadline. However, Mwamba said he could not reach the editor when the deadline arrived and alleged that the editor's phone was switched off.
His plan was to prepare the finished film in Digital Cinema Package format, which is used for digital cinema projection, and test it at the cinema before the premiere.
According to his account, the delays left him struggling to get the film ready in time.
Mwamba makes a serious allegation
During the livestream, Mwamba directly blamed the editor for what happened.
‘I blame the editor. He sabotaged my premiere,’ he said.
That is Mwamba's allegation. His account alone does not establish that the delay was deliberate, and the editor's response was not available when this story was prepared.
Mwamba said he never intended to invite people to an event where they would be unable to watch the film. He maintained that he had relied on assurances that the production would be ready.
His immediate concern is the disappointed audience
The filmmaker apologised to supporters who attended the premiere, including people he said had travelled from Livingstone, Solwezi, Chingola, Chongwe and Kafue.
He said his priority was to compensate affected supporters before addressing those he believes contributed to the failure.
Mwamba has also said that tickets remain valid and that those who missed the screening will still have an opportunity to watch The Pawn. A new screening date has not yet been announced in the information available to SoundScope Zambia.
For now, Mwamba's livestream offers his explanation of how a film that drew a large audience ended up failing to reach most of the people who came to see it.
His account is one side of a developing story. The editor's response, along with any further information about the production and rescheduled screening, could provide additional context about what happened.
