Welcome
Nicky Lankester is an award winning independent filmmaker specialising in making factual programmes, particularly in Africa.Based primarily in Cameroon, Nicky is a self-shooting director who has made films for local and international broadcasters covering a wide range of topics from sexual violence in post war Congo, newborn tetanus in Ethiopia, to more recent films such as ‘Going Ape 2’, a wildlife series for Animal Planet.
In June 2008 Nicky’s film ‘Bama’s Journey’, commissioned by Al Jazeera English, became a Wildscreen 2008 Finalist in the UWE Children’s Choice category.
Biography
After graduating with a Masters degree in Social Anthropology from Edinburgh University in 2001, Nicky spent two years working for Carlton Television in London producing and directing a daily news programme for ITV, ‘City Survival Guide’. In 2003 she moved to Africa to pursue a freelance career in Kenya and, later, Cameroon.In Kenya, Nicky initially began making films for broadcasters including Reuters, the Kenyan Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) and Sky Sports. Soon afterwards she was commissioned by the United Nations to make a number of films addressing issues surrounding Gender Based Violence in Africa. The first of these, ‘Our Bodies, Their Battleground’ went on to win ‘Best Documentary’ and ‘Viewers Choice’ at the 2005 UN Film Festival held in New York.
Later, Nicky was responsible for making ‘To Serve With Pride’, an inter-agency documentary and training video commissioned by the UN and designed to draw attention to the devastating impact that acts of sexual exploitation and abuse, carried out by UN personnel, has on the people they are sent to protect. It was subsequently translated into three different languages and over 15,000 copies have been distributed worldwide.
In 2004 Nicky moved to Cameroon with her husband Felix, a wildlife vet and conservationist who runs The Limbe Wildlife Centre (LWC), a rescue and rehabilitation centre for endangered primates and great apes. Since moving to Cameroon she has made films locally and in other parts of the continent for broadcasters including BBC World, Animal Planet and Al Jazeera English.
Since moving to Cameroon, and through her involvement at the LWC, Nicky has developed a growing interest in making wildlife related films for local and international audiences that address important conservation issues. Her recent film ‘Bama’s Journey’, about a gorilla keeper from Cameroon, is a finalist at Wildscreen 2008.
Productions
Below is a small selection of Nicky's productions. To see a more comprehensive version download Flash and get viewing!!‘Bama’s Journey – An African Safari in England’
Presented by Rageh Omar, this 22 minute observational documentary is about Bama, a gorilla keeper from Cameroon who is about to embark on a once-in-a-lifetime journey to England to work in Chester Zoo for a month. But will the wealth of the Western world really appeal to Bama or will he discover that the real riches are back home in Africa, exactly where the left them?
Contact
Cameroon - 00237 99762113 / 00237 99266278UK - 0044 7801 732789
info@nickylankester.com