A short documentary produced as part of a University of Aberdeen co-led research project has secured two film awards for its portrayal of a genocide survivor's story.
The film Why We Dance features a survivor’s story from the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. It emerges from the SSHRC-funded ‘Survivor-Centred Visual Narratives’ initiative, a Canadian partnership project spearheaded by the University of Victoria, with the Universities of Aberdeen and Glasgow co-leading its Rwanda research cluster. The film has received the Audience Award for Best Short Documentary at the Toronto/Los Angeles Documentary Feature and Short Film Festival in April 2026. Additionally, it earned the Award of Excellence in the Documentary Short category at the IndieFEST Film Awards.
The genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda stands as a stark marker of mass violence in recent history. This project seeks to deepen understanding of this genocide by using a survivor-centred methodology: pairing survivors with graphic novel artists and researchers to co-create a series of visual narratives and short documentaries.
Why We Dance features the testimony of Jerome Irankunda, who was six years old when Hutu Power extremists incited a genocide against the Tutsi minority in Rwanda. Jerome’s family took shelter in Kibeho church in southern Rwanda before it was attacked, prompting him to flee to Burundi with his uncle. They survived for months in the precarious conditions of a refugee camp before returning to Rwanda. Jerome never saw his parents again.
Over the years, Jerome has become a community leader and educator helping Rwanda’s many child survivors navigate their passage into adulthood. He is now also raising his own family.
In the film, filmmaker Marc Ellison captures the relationship that developed between Jerome and graphic novel artist Michel Kichka - himself a second‑generation Holocaust survivor - during the interviews for a forthcoming graphic novel about Jerome’s life, under contract with University of Toronto Press.
The documentary also explores the landscapes that shaped Jerome’s story, including the site of his first home, the avocado tree under which his family gathered when it became clear that their lives were in danger during the genocide, and Kibeho church. By weaving together these strands of memory, trauma, and artistic interpretation, the film offers insight into the pasts that underlie Jerome’s everyday life, the resilience that sustains him, and the hopes he and his wife carry for the future.
Dr Fransiska Louwagie, Senior Lecturer in French and Francophone Studies at the University of Aberdeen, and Dr Erin Jessee, Senior Lecturer in History at the University of Glasgow, co-lead the Rwanda Research cluster. They say: “We are delighted with this recognition for the short documentary produced by Marc Ellison in collaboration with survivor Jerome Irankunda and graphic novelist Michel Kichka. The short film documents the relational process which underpins our work with survivors, and will support our efforts to engage young people as they build an understanding of the genocide and its impacts”.
The trailer for Why We Dance is available online, along with a recording of audience responses from the festival.
The film received its first public screening in Kigali on 17 April 2016 as part of this year’s Kwibuka commemoration, marking 32 years since the genocide against the Tutsi.