Legend has it that fearsome warriors and those left destitute by pursuit from King Shaka, the Boers, the Arabs and the French, forged a village stronghold on top of a mountain in the northeast of Lesotho. Its trees grow taller at night to protect the people from nocturnal sieges. To emphasise the feeling of hidden danger, the camera movement is slow, like an animal stalking its prey. Sound is a salient feature of Mosese’s films. In earlier productions, he used a broken organ and the traditional lesiba. In Chattering of Teeth, drums, which have long been used rather inappropriately in African colonial cinema, underscore the sense of someone watching and waiting to strike. Mosese travelled for two years to find players who understand the wizardry of drumming, who play not with their heads and hands, but with spirit and fire.
Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese is a filmmaker and visual artist from Hlotse, Leriba, Lesotho.
