Budding filmmaker scales new heights

Mohalenyane Phakela

UP-AND-COMING filmmaker Angelus Ramone’s debut documentary, Generation Ink, has landed him a bursary to study film production at the University of Westminster in London.

Despite being yet to be officially released, Ramone submitted the documentary as a reference for his application to study at the prestigious university and was awarded “without hesitation” due to the quality of the production.

The 21-year old, who was born in the mountainous Thaba Tseka district, completed his Cambridge Overseas School Certificate (COSC) in 2009. Thereafter, he enrolled in a Law degree at the National University of Lesotho (NUL) from where he got the opportunity to complete the programme in the United Kingdom.

“I graduated from Sacred Heart High School in 2009 and immediately enrolled at NUL as a Law student,” Ramone said from his base in London.

“While I was at NUL, I was afforded the opportunity to study in the United Kingdom and moved to London in 2012.”

He fell in love with cinematography after being exposed to the craft at Amersham and Wycombe College in Buckinghamshire, where he is in his second year.

“My initial goal was to complete my LLB degree and specialise in Media Law but after being exposed to cinematography, I developed an interest in filmmaking,” Ramone said.

“I started writing film scripts and storyboarding ideas to gain an understanding of how films are made. I also took a media course at my current university which has helped me gain understanding of the craft.”

He shot his first production, Generation Ink, which delves into the rapidly rising tattoo culture in High Wycombe, a town in Buckinghamshire, England. It features the legendary Sean “Woody” Wood, who controversially tattooed Britain’s Princess Diana, and has been in the trade for over 20 years with his artwork on some of the UK’s biggest celebrities.

“Generation Ink is currently in post-production and should be released later this year,” said Ramone.

“Thanks to the documentary, I will be studying film production at the University of Westminster in September.”

His other film, Tattoo Girl, which was shot concurrently with Generation Ink, is a no holds barred insight into the world of tattoos and the challenges therein. The short docu-film, which was written and directed by Ramone, was shot and edited within a week’s time.

It profiles Hannya Jayne – a female tattooist based in High Wycombe and explores the challenges female tattooists face in a male-dominated industry and what steps can be taken to overcome them.

“Tattoo Girl was meant to be the trailer for Generation Ink, but because of the many interviews on the latter, I decided to make them two separate films,” he said.

“When I finish my studies, I intend to come back to Lesotho and make films about our people. I believe we have a lot of amazing stories that need to be shared with the world.”