(01): Halima's Choice

Title: Zabin Halima – (Halima’s Choice)

Language: Hausa 

Writer/Director: Korede Azeez

Production: Cinema Kpatakpata

Runtime: 24 Mins. 

#UNESCO #Netflix #AfricanFolktales 

Korede Azeez's Halima's Choice is one of the episodes in the Netflix series African Folktales. It is a story about a young girl named Halima who challenges her parents' desire for an arranged marriage to a man old enough to be her father. Instead, she chooses Umar, a total stranger passionate about artificial intelligence. The opening scene presents two contrasting places: a modern sci-fi city, "Napata," and a conservative village, "Gidanpula." The fictitious people of Gidanpula are Fulani Muslims, in complete deterrence with modernity and what comes with it, including artificial intelligence, and instead clung to their religion and culture. The two places Napata & Gidanpula not only contrast in progress but also in their intolerance towards one another. Notwithstanding, the curious Halima becomes enamored with Umar, who introduces her to the imaginary world of AI.

The film's unique mise en scène portrays the cultural beliefs of the Hausa-Fulani people through the clever use of props and costumes. It also examines attitudes toward AI shaped by their distinct histories, values, and traditions. Halima's Choice is undoubtedly a masterpiece that deftly highlights the conflicts between AI and traditional beliefs. The people of Gidanpula view AI as a challenge to the notion that humans are creatures made by the almighty God and that only humans possess a soul. They regard AI as a form of "playing God" and thus consider it morally wrong. Overall, the depiction of the conflicts between AI and traditional beliefs is complex and multifaceted, and it will likely continue to evolve as AI technology becomes more advanced and ubiquitous.

By:

Nura Abubakar

Email: abujazmeen@gmail.com

Twitter: @Noorer