After nearly a decade of research, filming and reflection, filmmaker Alexander Honisch has completed a documentary chronicling the life and resistance of Nama leader Hendrik Witbooi.
Titled Hendrik Witbooi: ‘God from Heaven Has Now Broken the Treaty’, the 82-minute film retraces the spiritual conviction, political foresight and armed resistance of one of Namibia’s foremost anti-colonial figures.
It will be screened on 14 March 2026 at 15h50 at Auditorium 1 of the Namibia University of Science and Technology during Namibian Film Week.
Selected for 12 international film festivals and recipient of three awards, the documentary was produced without external funding or sponsorship. Honisch said this independence allowed him to work at his own pace, though it extended production to almost 10 years.
His interest in Witbooi’s story was rekindled after he turned 60 and began reflecting on the direction of his later years. Revisiting the Witbooi Paper, preserved letters and diaries recognised by Unesco as part of the documentary heritage of humanity, he encountered an account that resonated deeply.
In the writings, Witbooi described narrowly escaping death in Hereroland and riding home alone more than 130 years ago.
Honisch said he was struck by the image of an ageing leader contemplating his purpose.
“On that solitary ride, he may have asked himself what remained to be done,” Honisch reflected.
Rather than leading his people to the fertile northern pastures envisioned by his grandfather, Kido Witbooi, the Nama leader soon confronted intensifying German colonial expansion following the 1884 Berlin Conference.
The documentary situates Witbooi within this tightening colonial structure: the arrival of Imperial Commissioner Heinrich Göring, followed by Governor Theodor Leutwein and later Lothar von Trotha, whose command culminated in the genocide of 1904.
At its centre, however, is a portrait of Witbooi as a complex and reflective leader rather than an untouchable hero. Honisch said portraying him with fairness required close reading of historical sources, including Leutwein’s memoirs, alongside the Witbooi Papers.
“You can only try to be as honest as possible to the sources and read between the lines,” he said. “There is always ambiguity in heroes. They do not always do the right thing.”
A key theme of the film is Witbooi’s spiritual accountability. After signing a protection treaty with Leutwein in 1894, he later felt compelled to renounce it. The documentary’s subtitle is drawn from his reported words: “God from Heaven has now broken the treaty.”
According to Honisch, this reflected a leader who believed even rebellion required divine sanction.
Despite declining health, Witbooi returned to armed resistance at the age of 74. For Honisch, now in his seventies, the episode carries personal resonance.
He noted that at 72, Witbooi wrote of feeling tired yet still mounted his horse two years later and formally declared war.
The production was developed with support from members of the Witbooi family and the Gibeon community. Re-enactments were staged with local riders, adding visual depth to the historical narrative.
Honisch also drew on the expertise of historian Werner Hillebrecht and oral accounts, including those of the late Petrus Moses Kooper.
The film further traces the Khoikhoi’s migration from the Cape into southern Namibia and the subsequent formation of Nama groups, a context that Honisch said reshaped his own understanding of the region’s history.
Reflecting on Germany’s colonial role, he described what he called an “automatism” in the expansion of imperial power, as administrative control gave way to increased military force.
Beyond its historical focus, the documentary invites reflection on leadership, conscience and resistance. Honisch said he hopes audiences will consider the endurance of principled leadership under political pressure.
Namibian filmmaker Joel Haikali said films that explore Namibia’s colonial past are essential in helping the country confront and understand its history.
“Any film that deals with Namibia’s colonial past, particularly the period of German colonial rule, is an important contribution as we confront that history and try to understand what happened to us as a people,” he said.
Haikali added that he was encouraged by the documentary’s international recognition and hopes local audiences will engage with it as well.
“I hope Namibians get to see the film and ask questions, because it also raises issues about presentation and representation, especially for the community and cultural background from which Hendrik Witbooi comes,” he said.
If the project were to mark the closing chapter of his career, he indicated he would regard it as a meaningful culmination. The screening next week offers audiences an opportunity to engage with a cinematic portrait of a leader whose preserved words continue to inform Namibia’s understanding of its past.