What does life look like after being part of a royal family? There’s a new documentary focusing on the surviving family of the Ethiopian Imperial family after the political uprising and coup in the 1970s. Told from their perspectives, viewers can learn what happened and what life after that fateful day looks like for the family now.
Grandpa Was an Emperor is nothing short of eye-opening. On not only the real-life consequences after a political coup but the cost it has on the families involved. It shows the different side of what the news shows, or what the euro-centric news cycle leaves out. It takes a historical moment and changes it to one that is not only personal but the impact and consequences it has for people that may have not been in charge and how it impacts their whole lives after that point.
The movie also helps reshape the euro-centric thinking of imperial families that we are raised with. Often we’re taught about the Russian Imperial family and what happened to them in the revolution at the turn of the last century. But when we hear about the change in regime in Ethiopia, the news didn’t give the same coverage – despite it being a more current event. Instead, the only thing people know about the area is about the famine and starvation that occurred – but not what caused it, more than once. We’re not told about what happened to the family after the uprising, or the children involved.
Instead, the movie gives you that perspective. It’s not just news clips making up the documentary, but the family giving their side of the situation. That doesn’t mean that everything isn’t skewed from their perspective – as all life would be. But it’s an interesting perspective overall and helps reshape how we see the change in government for their nation and what happened in the 70s.
The documentary will reshape how you see history, and change your perspective on what life after being a royal family means for the survivors. Grandpa Was An Emperor” is available for rental or purchase on iTunes/Apple TV and Amazon now.
In addition, “Grandpa Was An Emperor” is available for rental or purchase on AT&T U-Verse, DirecTV, Dish Network and Sling TV, iN DEMAND (Spectrum, Comcast), Vubiquity (Verizon Fios), Swank, Hoopla, Xbox, Google Play, and YouTube Movies.
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About Grandpa Was an Emperor
GRANDPA WAS AN EMPEROR follows Yeshi Kassa, great-granddaughter of Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, as she embarks on a personal quest to discover what happened to her closest relatives during the coup of 1974. While Yeshi and her older sister were thousands of miles away in a British boarding school, her great-grandfather was deposed by a revolution, setting off a harrowing chain of events that would put her parents and siblings in grave danger. For the very first time, the royal family examines the events that led to the collapse of a 3,000-year-old dynasty and reflects on how, against all odds, they were able to survive this turbulent time in Ethiopian history.
