Munya Chawawa and Rumpus to shine spotlight on North Korea in more How to Survive a Dictator for Channel 4

30 May 2024

Satirist and broadcaster Munya Chawawa will return to Channel 4 with a documentary about North Korea’s notorious dictator Kim Jong-Un, produced by Rumpus. 

Following his critically acclaimed documentary about Zimbabwe under Robert Mugabe How To Survive a Dictator, Munya will raise the stakes in his quest to find out how it is autocrats and despots manage to cling onto power by honing in on the nuclear armed totalitarian state.

Told with Munya’s signature wit and barbed satire, How To Survive a Dictator: North Korea will aim to find out the truth about Kim Jong Un and how dangerous he really is. In the West, he’s often presented as a weapon ready maniac ready to blow up the world. But he’s been in power for 12 years, confounded his critics and enjoyed bromances with Donald Trump, Dennis Rodman and Vladimir Putin.

In a journey that will take in Switzerland, Seoul and suburban West London, Munya will track down a school friend of Kim’s and meet the people who have seen the effects of Kim regime at first hand. In the genre-bending documentary mixing his encounters with history and sketches, Munya will seek out those who have risked their lives to defect and bust some of the myths that surround the hermit kingdom, from both North and South of the DMZ.

Munya Chawawa says: "It’s been tricky to not feel a sense of ‘apocalypse anxiety’ recently - is the world going to end? Are nukes going to be launched? Will we make it to the release of GTA 6?! A lot of that stems from North Korea and Kim Jong Un, so doing this doc has not only been fascinating, but also given me a strange sense of closure, cheers Kim!"

Shaminder Nahal, Head of Specialist Factual at Channel 4 and Commissioning Editor of the programme says: “In an uncertain and often dangerous world, it feels more important than ever to understand the dictators who wield unchecked power . In his utterly unique style Munya Chawawa, with the exceptional team from Rumpus lead by Iain Wimbush, will explore the world of Kim Jong Un in a surprising and compelling way, asking questions not just about the North Korean regime, but what its existence means for all of us.”

ENDS

Producer/Director: Tomasz Frymorgan
Executive Producers: Iain Wimbush and Morgan Roberts
Production Company: Rumpus Media