Nyokabi Macharia features in new Vincent Mbaya's Sketchy Africans

Nyokabi Macharia. (Courtesy)

In Sketchy AF!, a desperate entrepreneur, pushed by family expectations and business struggles, teams up with her friend, a debt-ridden theatre director, to fake an engagement and stage a sham dowry ceremony to secure much-needed cash.

“The film stars Nyokabi Macharia (Country Queen) and Bruce Makau (Kina) in the lead roles, with supporting performances from Morris Mwangi (Faithless), Shix Kapienga (Country Queen), Duncan Murunyu (Boda Love), Benson Ojuwa (Untying Kantai), Beatrice Kamuyu (Faithless), Gloria Songoro (Selina), and Andrew Levi (Shanga).”

Vincent Mbaya has previously directed Country Queen, the first Kenyan series on Netflix, the Kalasha-winning crime drama series Pepeta for Showmax, and the Kalasha-nominated drama film Chaguo. Sketchy AF! is his first-ever comedy project, and one that he hopes will deliver laughs and relatable storytelling that explores the quirks of navigating modern life in Kenya, and in Africa.

“Sketchy AF! takes a comical look at the hardships of making it in a cut-throat Nairobi during these tough economic times, while also struggling to balance modernity and cultural expectations. It’s a universal experience that resonates across Africa,” says Mbaya. “The film also celebrates how quirky we can get as a society, where sometimes ambition means setting aside what would be perceived as moral values. Then again, it’s a comedy and so it looks at the improbable and the impossible.”

This film is also the launching pad for the main brand Sketchy Africans, with Sketchy AF! as the first instalment in what aims to be an ongoing series of comedy films. With plans to release three films a year under its banner, the brand intends to redefine the comedy scene in Africa by telling stories that are not only relatable but also capable of reaching a global audience.

“This is the start of a movement in African comedy cinema, with the potential to captivate audiences far and wide,” says Mbaya who created the ambitious concept along with a talented team that includes the film’s stars.

“By involving the actors and writers from the very beginning, we were able to craft something truly unique, featuring a diverse ensemble cast that prioritises the audience experience,” he says.

Sketchy AF!’s visual narrative is shaped by Jim Bishop, an experienced cinematographer in Kenya’s film industry, known for Intellectual Scum, Half Open Window, and Fakii Liwali’s upcoming film 2 Asunder, starring Sanaipei Tande. Bishop also executive produces alongside Francis Mwaniki and Sarah Wangari Thuo. Sketchy AF! is co-produced with Multan Productions, led by Reuben Odanga, known for successful projects like Selina, Nafsi and Pink Ladies. Kara Wambui (Mpakani, Mission to Rescue) and Sally Nyoike (Selina, Faithless) are also producing.

Nyokabi, 29, is one of the prolific female thespians in the country. She has won the Kalasha Film and TV International awards for various film roles.

In the popular County 49, she starred as Debrah Maka, the governor’s chief of staff at fictional Bwatele County.

“For me, executing that role had to be a balance between vulnerability and power,” she told Eve. The actress notes that while playing the role, she learned to take one scene at a time and truly separate her personality from the character.

“I had to remove the ‘Nyokabi’ from my thoughts while performing and instead ask myself; What would this specific character feel and do?”

Her voice is firm and her pronunciations perfect, as I later learn, she is exposed to and has lived in the land from which English ‘originates’, the UK.

But she also has that sense of being truly Kenyan - she will occasionally throw in a few words in sheng or slang, or Kiswahili ‘Sanifu’ itself.

But despite the evidence of her talent, Nyokabi didn’t always look at acting as something she could do to make a living.

“Growing up, art was not looked at as a career. I was brought up being given the example of Nameless and Wahu and their professional careers as architect and mathematician respectively,” Nyokabi says.

“I was often told that art does not pay and that I would have to have another career as a plan B.”

But it was her experience at Daystar University that opened her up to the possibilities of a profession in the arts.

“The campus was culturally vibrant, and I met many colleagues who were taking their craft seriously. I became aware that this is something that I could do and make a living from.”

The Theatre times reports on Nyokabi’s path to professional acting after school.

“Outside school, her most notable production was Jesus Christ Superstar produced by the Nairobi Performing Arts Studio in the year 2017. A few months later she was on a plane to the UK,” the report notes. Nyokabi describes her experience as Jesus Christ Superstar as an eye-opening one, where she got to nurture her skill and range as an actor.