Kudakwashe Rutendo is more than just a talented up-and-coming actress, she’s an avid reader and an advocate for all things Black creativity.
She is most notably known for her breakout role in the highly acclaimed feature film Backspot where she starred alongside Devery Jacobs.
The film, which was produced by Elliott Page, made its world premiere at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and will make its theatrical release this spring 2024.
The Toronto actress was also named as one of TIFF’s rising stars last year. And has proved that she isn’t afraid to put herself out there all while putting others like her, notably Black women with a passion for the arts, on the map and in full view.
Rutendo will make sure of that promise in her latest endeavor as a panelist on CBC’s “Canada Reads,” which is an annual “battle of the books” competition organized and broadcast by the media corporation.
“I’m a huge reader, it’s almost my entire personality trait. This has been the honour of a lifetime. I recommend books to my friends all the time, to be able to do it for all of Canada is kind of crazy,” Rutendo told Now Toronto in an interview.
“I get to do what I do everyday, read books and form opinions about them, and talk about them on TV” she added.
Rutendo will be advocating and promoting a book released in 2019 titled “Shut Up You’re Pretty,” written by author Téa Mutonji.
The novel depicts a woman’s struggle to find herself all while dealing with many insecurities along the way.
“It was never going to be another book, it’s everything that I feel to the core of who I am and the things that I’ve gone through. Téa has done the work and it’s a phenomenal book.”
When asked how she feels about being a Black woman fighting for the literature work of a fellow Black woman, she said it’s a position she wants to find herself in whenever she can.
“To be able to bring this [book] to the world is exactly what I wanted. Especially when it comes to industries like the publishing industry or the acting industry. Navigating these industries as a Black woman can be tricky sometimes and finding the support you need. Walking down paths that no one has before or that weren’t made for you to walk down.”
You can catch “Canada Reads’ broadcasted live from Mar. 4 to 7.