ABSTRACT
The Ethiopian born Haile Gerima's 1976 film, Harvest 3000 Years (Mirt Sost Shi Amat) was the first Amharic language film to garner global recognition. It is unique in Gerima's filmography for its ideological content, political commitment, and desire to represent the needs and aspirations of an entire people, whereas Gerima's later films tend to be personal and more self-reflexive in nature. The rediscovery of the film in the modern era is perhaps hindered by Haile Gerima himself who has held on to the distribution rights and maintained a direct distribution model from his Washington D.C. base in the USA. As he has always sought to ensure strict control over the distribution rights of his films, the possibilities of a rediscovery outside the USA are slim unless Gerima actively seeks new distribution outlets in other (particularly African) countries. The narrative of the film focuses on the contrasting lives of a rural peasant family confined and oppressed by a conceited landlord.
