The Vancouver International Film Festival will screen Maia Lekow and Christopher King’s How to Build a Library (Oct. 6 and 11, International Village Cinemas)—a documentary following two visionaries’ attempts to restore Nairobi’s McMillan Memorial Library. For the husband-wife directing duo, the film offers a rethinking of colonial structures by examining the library’s “psychological space.”

“The library is much more than just bricks and mortar,” King says. “It’s really about how do you create community, how do you reclaim narratives and build identity.” 

A psychological rebuilding 

The documentary—which was seven years in the making—follows Angela Wachuka and Wanjiru Koinange as they attempt to decolonize the library. Built in 1931, the library is a colonial inheritance that still represents a history of exclusion. King notes that at the beginning of their project, the library did not hold any books by African writers. 

“It’s a space that everyone knows in Nairobi, and everyone always had dreams of what could be done with the building,” he shares. 

“There’s that [colonial] history, but also a sense of our government now not wanting to change anything,” Lekow adds. “It’s been opened all these years but left in a state of derelict.” 

The directors have known both subjects of their documentary for a long time. King used to film the literary festivals put on by Wachuka, who was running a literary publishing house in Nairobi at the time. 

“We just knew how exciting their work was, even in their previous roles and organizations,” he says. “They were so well connected with the literature space, the writers and the arts funding world.” 

King and Lekow were initially approached to produce social media content for the library restoration project. The directors filmed for a day—a scene that involved their first board meeting—then suggested documenting the process through a longer form. 

“It was a no brainer,” Lekow says. “It could tell so many stories and threads about the two women and their resistance and their plight.” 

Constructing a future 

The film captures how Wachuka and Koinange had to navigate various challenges—including local politics—throughout the project. For King, these challenges are “a microcosm” of the struggles facing many young Kenyans. 

“You realize why the library was in such a horrible state,” he says. “It started as a renovation project, but it ended up being a way to reimagine and do a psychological rebuilding of the space.”  

He sees the younger generation as engaged in reflections of their future—thinking about the type of country they desire—rather than the “one they inherited.”   

“For us, what was really important is to show these young Kenyans who are unearthing all of these old, colonial tropes and histories, but also being able to question and challenge it,” Lekow adds. 

With greater access to education and online networks, Lekow recognizes this new generation, the Gen-Zs, as bringing a sense of hope, justice and community. The directors also recognize this generation’s desire to connect with their pre-colonial heritage. 

“There’s a lot of young people wanting to get back in touch with their early, [pre-colonial] history,” King observes. “This project is a way of reviewing and scrutinizing the past as a way to build a better future.” 

The film also highlights what Lekow refers to as “a necessary irony.” With little local funding available, these projects to revamp colonial systems are funded by remnants of colonialism.  

“It’s also about how you are changing the minds of people who have been in this space for all these years,” she adds. “But [they] have not at any point thought about how the collection of books or how the Dewey decimal system is also a colonial inheritance.”

Vancouver International Film Festival runs from now until Oct. 12, showcasing over 170 films, 80 shorts and other special events. 

For more information, see https://viff.org/whats-on/viff25-how-to-build-a-library/.