Local Filmmaker Seeks Community Support to Complete Documentary

Last January, Alvin Shen was documenting poverty for a humanitarian nonprofit in Kenya’s Mathare Valley — a sprawling slum of more than 500,000 people crammed into shanties in the nation’s capitol of Nairobi.

“The poverty there is undeniable,” said Shen, a 29-year-old Union City resident and independent filmmaker. “You see it, you smell it.”

There was inadequate water, sewage, electricity, roads and housing, along with a high AIDS rate and poor access to education for the disproportionate number of youth, Shen said. According to the Population Reference Bureau, 42 percent of Kenya’s population is under the age of 15, and 40 percent live below $2 a day.

But in that village where big dreams are often buried beneath the piles of rubble that litter the streets, Shen found an inspiring story.

The group of teens guiding Shen through the slums, he learned, were members of a dance group who were auditioning to be on Sakata Dance Battle, a Kenyan TV show fashioned after American reality competition shows like America’s Best Dance Crew and American Idol. The winners will receive the equivalent of $40,000 in Kenyan shillings, according to Shen.

Shen was surprised to learn that the five boys were aspiring hip-hop dancers blessed with acrobatic agility and moves that would make Michael Jackson shout “Shamon’!” from his grave.

“The kids would save up money to go to a computer café to learn about dancing and American pop culture by watching clips on YouTube,” he said.

The five boys, who were 17 and 18 years old, dubbed themselves the Black Blingers and danced to hits by Chris Brown, T-Pain and Rihanna.

“We were so compelled by the story, we were like, ‘We gotta go back again,’” Shen said.

He returned a few months later in July to film what would be his latest film, and possibly first feature-length documentary, “Kenya Boys.”

As it currently stands, “Kenya Boys” is a visually-striking 15-minute documentary. But Shen’s hoping to raise enough money to return to Mathare Valley so he can turn it into an hour-long feature.

“What we have so far is a window into their lives, but there’s still so much more to flush out. Our hope is to go back one more time to Kenya,” Shen said. “We’re trying to get the community involved and get the funds to finish the film.”

Shen will screen “Kenya Boys” The event will include a silent auction and the screening of two other films Shen has worked on, the dark silent film “Marvin the Clown” and “Sous,” a short film that follows a San Francisco chef and a young boy as they get into trouble.

Anyone who donates to the filming of “Kenya Boys,” either at today’s screening or online, will receive recognition in the film’s credits.

“Everyone who donates is part of the film,” Shen said. He hopes to have it finished this spring.

A film student at San Francisco’s Academy of Art and lifelong film hobbyist, Shen was inspired by the Black Blingers’ commitment to their collective dream and wants to share their story with the masses, he said.

“It’s just a true underdog slum kid movie,” Shen said. “These kids don’t have much, but they have so much heart.”

All of the boys in the dance crew are full-time students who, between homework and chores, hustle to find money. “For them, every last penny is precious,” Shen said.

The turning point in the movie, however, is when one of the boys is hit by a car while trying to get to dance practice. “The big challenge is how they get through that,” Shen said.

Eventually, the boys make it to the finals of the TV show.

“But I won’t tell you what happened,” Shen said.

Watch “Kenya Boys” today at 4 p.m. at .

To donate to the filming and production of the documentary, visit the “Kenya Boys” fundraising website here.

For more information about the film, visit the “Kenya Boys” Facebook Page here.