13-23 nov 2025
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The Rift
Program
The Rift
DocLab

The Rift

Janire Najera, Matthew Wright
United Kingdom, Zimbabwe
2025
6 min
World Premiere
IDFA DocLab Program & Competition, IDFA DocLab Competition for Immersive Non-Fiction
Synopsis

A pulsating combination of powerful contemporary dance and exhilarating music, with water as the unifying element. Multiple dancers perform a shared choreography—brought together through the editing—across various locations in Zimbabwe, from dense forests and open plains to urban settings and pristine natural landscapes.

Some of the buildings look like abandoned ruins, about to be reclaimed by nature; others are brightly painted with motifs that are an echo of the prehistoric drawings previously visible on a rock face. Boundaries blur between built environments and natural structures, and the dancers bring all these places and times together into a single, cohesive whole.

The 360 fulldome projection offers an all-encompassing view of the unity of people, culture, and nature, showing how—especially in these times of alarming climate change—water both connects all things and puts them to the test. A voice reminds us that, “There was water, even before there was light.” And without water, there is only darkness.

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Credits
6 min
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-
Spoken languages: No dialogue
Director
    Janire Najera,
    Matthew Wright
    Janire Najera,
    Matthew Wright
Created by
    4Pi Productions
    4Pi Productions
Key collaborator
    Siza Mukwedini for Matamba Film Labs for Women,
    Kudakwashe Makuzwa for Matamba Film Labs for Women,
    Soukaina M. L. Edom for Afrikera Arts Trust,
    Victor Peturo for Afrikera Arts Trust
    Siza Mukwedini for Matamba Film Labs for Women,
    Kudakwashe Makuzwa for Matamba Film Labs for Women,
    Soukaina M. L. Edom for Afrikera Arts Trust,
    Victor Peturo for Afrikera Arts Trust
Production
    4Pi Productions
    4Pi Productions
Executive producer
    4Pi Productions
    4Pi Productions
Cinematography
    Janire Najera,
    Matthew Wright,
    Rhys Davies
    Janire Najera,
    Matthew Wright,
    Rhys Davies
Editing
    Mauricio Martin,
    Janire Najera
    Mauricio Martin,
    Janire Najera
Sound Design
    Mauricio Martin
    Mauricio Martin
Music
    Mary Anibal,
    NO SHAPE
    Mary Anibal,
    NO SHAPE
World Sales
    4Pi Productions
    4Pi Productions
Screening copy
    Janire Najera
    Janire Najera

Stills

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