UK grassroots collective T A P E has acquired its second distribution title – Shamira Raphaela’s musical documentary Shabu, which it will release into cinemas on July 7.
Set in the working-class Rotterdam neighbourhood of De Peperklip, the film follows Shabu, a precocious teenager who is spurred on to stage a block party to showcase his talents as a rapper.
The film debuted at International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) in 2021, where it won the best youth documentary prize; and went on to take the best documentary award at the Nederlands Film Festival in 2022. T A P E acquired the film from sales agent Reservoir Docs.
Written and directed by Raphaela, it is produced by Willem Baptist and Nienke Korthof for their Dutch company Tangerine Tree.
“The optimism and cheek of Shabu – who beats to his own drum – will melt the hearts of all who meet him,” said Isra Al Kassi, T A P E co-founder. “Shamira Raphaëla’s beautiful celebration of Black, working-class youth, and supportive family and community, is rare thing to find on film. This is exactly the kind of story that T A P E is here to platform.”
Founded in 2015 as a collective of curators, T A P E moved into theatrical distribution last year with Miryam Charles’ Cette Maison.
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