Sleeping Warrior

Director's Statement

Director and Producer Statements: Janet Director’s Statement I am a first-time director and when I decided to do this film, I thought we were going to make a small film about humble young women getting the chance of a lifetime to travel across the globe for the lacrosse world championships. But what we ended up with is an epic story about incredibly strong young women who never feel sorry for themselves or their situation. Through their attitude and friendships, they laugh and sing their way through life, even when things are going horribly. And it’s this attitude and these friendships that will transform their lives, not some competition overseas. I learned the term ‘A Kenyan Yes’ whilst filming this documentary. This means saying yes before you even understand the question. Trusting people and acting like you were meant to be there. Some of these girls come from very challenging and humble backgrounds, but they are completely at home being cheered by thousands of people (even though some had never left their village before lacrosse), being on an island (even though they can’t swim) and eating salad (that’s a lie - they all hate Canadian food). It really was a joy to watch. We focus on Sharon in this story because overlaying her journey to the world championships with her search for her mother was a great allegory as family is the most important thing in the world and your teammates can become true sisters. We are proud to show how these strong, brave young women manage despite everything stacked against them. From crippling poverty, abandonment and even death these girls never give up. The film is called ‘Sleeping Warrior’ because the girls train under a mountain in the Rift Valley called ‘Sleeping Warrior’, but also because they are so strong and have been held back their whole lives, and now they are starting to rise up. Tim Director’s Statement I had no incentive to focus on Lacrosse. It felt like another imported idea that young Kenyans had to adopt. Another skill they had to be good at. Another rule book they had to master. It felt like it was the only way to interact with the outside world and they had to keep smiling because people were watching. You have to be really good at something to ever get a chance to see other cultures. These were my mental notes a week into filming. Then I saw the larger picture when their shells started cracking, when their pain oozed into my image and their tears became mine. Something remarkable happened. The cracked shells would mend every time they got into the pitch and these fragile pieces of humanity would transform into fierce warriors. They loved the battles more than the victory as if it was the only way to be a part of something much greater than their past and present wars. That is when I understood how significant lacrosse was to their lives. This film is not just about the invisible war many girls in Kenya and Africa are fighting but the warriors it has fashioned. Nina Ruiz Producer’s Statement: Four years ago around 300 schoolgirls from surrounding areas came to a rural disused sugar plantation in Mumias, Western Kenya to trial for the national lacrosse team. Some had malaria, some were barefoot and some had never held a lacrosse stick before. Over the following 3 years 18 girls were selected to make history by being the first ever female African lacrosse team to make the world championships in Canada. Of those girls, it emerged that some of them came from particularly difficult backgrounds facing challenges and struggles, both physical and mental that I had never witnessed an athlete overcome before. These girls displayed courage, strength and stamina to achieve, what seemed like an unlikely dream at the time. The film follows their story with access to their private lives, documenting their experience before, during and after the world cup. With no privilege, other than the body and mind they were born with, they showed us female empowerment. I want the world to see this.