Outside views · Africa

4 Best Movies Set in or About Botswana

Compare how outside filmmakers have used Botswana as a sustained setting or subject.

Compare this list

Compare the route at a glance

Runtime, mood, and entry level help narrow the list without replacing the editorial ranking.

FilmRuntimeGenreMoodBest for
The Gods Must Be CrazyNot verified
Into the OkavangoNot verified
A United KingdomNot verified
N!ai, the Story of a !Kung WomanNot verified

4 Movies Set in or About Botswana

Foreign-led films whose sustained setting or subject remains centered on Botswana.

  1. The Gods Must Be Crazy (1980) poster

    1. The Gods Must Be Crazy

    1980

    When a Coca-Cola bottle falls from a passing plane into the Kalahari, a Bushman who has never seen such a thing sets out to return the strange object to the gods, his gentle odyssey crossing paths with bumbling scientists and revolutionaries. A beloved slapstick comedy.

  2. Into the Okavango (2018) poster

    2. Into the Okavango

    2018

    This National Geographic documentary follows a team of explorers on a grueling months-long expedition tracing the rivers that feed Botswana's Okavango Delta, from the highlands of Angola into the heart of one of Africa's great wildernesses, in a bid to protect it.

  3. A United Kingdom (2016) poster

    3. A United Kingdom

    2016

    Based on a true story, the heir to the throne of what is now Botswana falls in love with a white London clerk in the late 1940s, and their marriage ignites a political firestorm across Britain, the empire, and southern Africa. A stirring historical romance.

  4. N!ai, the Story of a !Kung Woman (1980) poster

    4. N!ai, the Story of a !Kung Woman

    1980

    Spanning decades, this landmark documentary tells the life story of N!ai, a Ju/'hoan woman of the Kalahari, and through her the wrenching transformation of her people from a life on the land to the margins of a changing world.

Hear the country first

1 Best Movies from Botswana to Watch First

Start with films made from within Botswana, then follow the country's own creative voice through the complete ranking.

  1. Ngaka 1976
Open the native-cinema ranking →

Selected by the FilmsAroundThe.World editorial desk

Selections require an outside creative lead and a story or subject substantially centered on Botswana. Decision labels are concise editorial aids, and content notes are non-exhaustive. Read the methodology.

Editorial review: 2026-07-14

Nearby on the atlas

More Africa guides:

FilmsAroundThe.World is a hand-curated atlas of world cinema with ranked country guides. It has no ads or accounts; anonymous aggregate page views and product milestones are measured with Vercel Web Analytics. Open the map, follow a curated route, or read the methodology.