When the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s new Netflix deal was announced last week, they confirmed some of the upcoming projects for Archewell. Obviously, people paid more attention to the confirmation of With Love, Meghan’s second season and the WLM holiday special, but they also announced that Archewell has produced a documentary short called Masaka Kids. Masaka Kids is a Ugandan dance troupe made up of little kids. Well, there’s some new information about that project:

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry became familiar with the subject of one their upcoming Netflix projects through videos they watched with their son, Prince Archie. It was revealed on Aug. 11 that Archewell Productions, the couple’s media hub, will spotlight the Ugandan dance troupe in a new documentary titled Masaka Kids, A Rhythm Within, marking another step in their newly announced multi-year, first-look deal with Netflix.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, parents to Prince Archie, 6, and Princess Lilibet, 4, reportedly discovered the Masaka Kids dance troupe — made up of Ugandan children, many of whom are orphaned — by watching their viral videos with Archie during lockdown amid the COVID pandemic.

“They would watch the videos regularly with Archie at home. So, they were already admirers of the organization before the film project came to them in 2023,” a spokesman for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex told The Telegraph on Aug. 16.

“In the heart of Uganda’s Masaka region, where the shadows of the HIV/AIDS crisis linger, a small orphanage becomes a beacon of hope,” the logline reads. “Masaka Kids, A Rhythm Within goes beyond the viral videos to reveal a vibrant, one-of-a-kind community where orphaned children transform hardship into joy, dancing their way toward healing, belonging, and the promise of a brighter future.”

According to the Telegraph, Prince Harry, 40, and Meghan, 44, were not involved in the filming of Masaka Kids, A Rhythm Within and were not thought to have traveled to Uganda.

“When the Duke and Duchess were made aware of the short, they quickly recognised the kids from their viral videos and fell in love with their deeper stories,” their spokesman told the outlet about the program directed by David Vieira Lopez and Moses Bwayo. “Archewell Productions then partnered with seasoned producer Geeta Gandbhir to harness the film’s style and tone and ultimately finish the film as you see it today.”

[From People]

Harry and Meghan “were not involved in the filming of Masaka Kids, A Rhythm Within and were not thought to have traveled to Uganda.” I’m surprised they aren’t doing more of this – just stepping in as producers to help get smaller projects (especially documentaries) made. Archewell spent five years mostly trying to create projects from scratch rather than collaborate with other filmmakers and producers in this way. Maybe this new Netflix contract will help them assume a role similar to the Obamas’ Higher Ground. Higher Ground is doing more and more of this as well.

Harry, Meghan and Archie probably watched videos similar to this.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.