Let me start off this way; there are documentary assignments you prepare for, and then there are those that remind you of your why.
For Mara Mambo Media, documenting the naming ceremony of Pearl Sweet Crude Oil in Buhuka, Kikuube District, was one of those assignments.
That occasion marked a significant moment in Uganda’s oil and gas story, with Pearl Sweet Crude recently making its debut in Singapore and Uganda’s crude stepping onto the international stage.
When the country is marking a milestone of that magnitude, you want to be there with your cameras rolling, and your team ready.
And we were.
We have made our mark that where the big names are mentioned, there we are, too.
The naming ceremony brought together some of the biggest names in Uganda’s leadership and energy sector.
H.E. President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni was the Chief Guest, accompanied by the Prime Minister, Hon. Robinah Nabbanja, and Minister of Energy and Mineral Development, Dr. Monica Musenero, alongside industry leaders, government officials and other key stakeholders.
But while the dignitaries were taking their seats and the speeches were getting underway, our documentary videographers and photographers, were already doing what we had come to do.
Under the scorching sun, in hot personal protective gear, the big assignment commenced.
We needed to get the right angles, capture the atmosphere, follow the action, and record the details. No blinking. No snoozing.
Our main task was to ensure that long after the event was over, there would be a visual record worthy of the occasion.
And that responsibility was entrusted to us by TotalEnergies EP Uganda, a client who has trusted our work, time and time again.
TotalEnergies holds a 56.67% participating interest in the Kingfisher Oil Development Area, making it a major player in Uganda’s journey towards oil production.
Now, let’s be honest.
The finished video rarely tells you how much work went into getting it.
It doesn’t show the equipment being hauled around, neither does it show the coordination happening behind the scenes.
It certainly doesn’t show the production crew trying to function under the hot Kikuube sun, which appeared to have taken the assignment personally.
But that is the job.
Sometimes you work in comfortable studios.
Sometimes you work in controlled environments.
And sometimes you’re out in the blazing sun, surrounded by people, activity and moving parts, knowing that there is no “let’s do that shot again” when the moment, you’re waiting for happens.
Pearl Sweet Crude’s debut in Singapore represents more than a ceremony or a headline.
It is another chapter in Uganda’s evolving oil and gas story.
And we are proud that Mara Mambo Media was trusted to produce this documentary, that marks one of the moments that will form part of history.
