WUTAME | CACHÉ

Commissioned by HKW and supported by savvy KWATA & the Goethe Institut Cameroon, the video installation WUTAME | CACHÉ interweaves conversations with two Cameroonian men, who embarked for different reasons to Russia and ended up at the frontlines of Russia's invasion war against Ukraine. Both returned to their home and share testimonies on their paths, their survival and experience as contemporary tirailleurs. While their identity remains protected for security reasons, their stated experiences reveal how young men are lured into Russia with promises unfulfilled, life threatening and traumatic experiences but hope for dignified future. A few days after the video's on-site production in Douala in early Feburary 2026, the first newspapers broke stories on fallen, imprisoned and returned tirailleurs in Cameroon. It remains a hidden, controversial an suppressed topic within the Cameroonian society and beyond. Produced in Douala, Cameroon with researchers who wish to remain anonymous, WUTAME | CACHÉ will be first time on view at HKW's Lydie Dooh Bunja Space.

DCP, Color, Stereo 2.0, 29’’

French with English andGerman Subtitles

Produced by Mario Pfeifer & Haus der Kulturen der Welt

Line Production: Nana Mbatchou Ricardo

Aerial Cinematography: Patrick Same Edjidji

Archive Research: Ben Christ

© 2025

Selected Press

Exhibitions / Screenings

Haus der Kuluren der Welt, Berlin, 2025