Kuomboka
As the river rises, the Kingdom moves.
Africa's oldest standing kingdom has never been properly filmed.
Inside a broad bend of the Zambezi River, isolated by a wilderness full of lions and a history of colonialism — the Barotse people has gathered every year for five centuries to move against the current as the floods push their ancient kingdom to high ground in a ceremony called Kuomboka. It means simply "to get out of the water."
I've been granted full access.
With light earned from sunrises and coal fires, Kuomboka carries a tone of quiet wonder at the balance between the rugged and the sacred — alive with modern local music, migratory movement, and the weight of history beneath it all. It's reverent but restless, caught between the pulse of celebration and the stillness that follows as families rebuild their homes.
"We therefore officially invite you to come to Barotseland for the Kuomboka Ceremony of 2026... your skill to develop documentaries will be so helpful to us, because we have been isolated from the world."
— Rt. Hon. Dr. Jacob Mashwelo, Prime Minister, Kingdom of Barotseland · Nov. 2025What your brand receives.
End credits placement in the finished documentary, distributed to festivals, streaming, and a private Barotseland premiere.
2 collaborative expedition posts via Instagram's co-author tools — each post shared across your channel, @jaldridgeadventures, @sixironscreative, and up to two fellow sponsors simultaneously.
Ongoing gear visibility throughout expedition content — Zambezi floodplain, Liuwa Plains, and the Kuomboka ceremony as backdrop across both Six Irons channels.
A branded short-form clip (60–90 sec) shot on location, edited for your channels and usable in perpetuity.
Invitation to the US premiere and ongoing recognition throughout the multi-year initiative this short doc will anchor.
This 20–30 minute proof of concept is the foundation for a feature-length project with confirmed royal access, an attached DP with credits across 16 countries, and a humanitarian initiative already in motion. Partners at this level are first in line for the full feature documentary.
