Kgoroge as Gregoire Desmond Dube as Dube Hakeem Kae-Kazim as Georges Rutaganda Leleti Khumalo as Fedens Antonio Lyons as Thomas Mirama Mosa Kaiser as Elys Rusesabagina Mduduzi Mabaso as a Hutu lieutenant Jean Reno as Mr. Tillens (uncredited) Eugene Wanangwa Khumbanyiwa as Hotel Staff (uncredited) Production and historical accuracy Sharing his thoughts about the lack of international intervention during the crisis, director George commented, "It's simple, ... African lives are not seen as valuable as the lives of Europeans or Americans." Attempting to share the horrors of the genocide, George sought to tell the story of Rusesabagina, portrayed as a humanitarian during the relentless acts of violence. However, Rusesabagina has since come under criticism from survivors of the Genocide. In 2008, the book Hotel Rwanda, or, the Tutsi Genocide as seen by Hollywood by Alfred Ndahiro, who was a former advisor to Paul Kagame, and journalist Privat Rutazibwa, was published. The authors conducted interviews with 74 people who had stayed in the Hotel during the Genocide. Inside the Hotel Rwanda: The Surprising True Story … And Why it Matters Today, co-written by Hotel des Mille Collines Survivor Edouard Kayihura and American author Kerry Zukus, was published in 2011. The books include allegations that during the Genocide, Rusesabagina extorted money from hotel guests for rooms and food. It was also reported that the UN headquarters in Kigali received information that Rusesabagina had provided a Rwandan army commander with a list of hotel guests and their room numbers. UN observers managed to change the room numbers of those most threatened. The character of the Canadian Colonel is based on Senator Roméo Dallaire, now retired Lieutenant-General from the Canadian Armed Forces. Dallaire was not pleased with the film's portrayal of the events that he witnessed, arguing he and his men did far more to help survivors. He recounted his own experiences in his biography, Shake Hands with the Devil. The book was later adapted into two feature films; a documentary, and a 2007 dramatic motion picture. George stated that it was important to craft the film for a mass-market audience, using the question of whether the film is "going to play in Peoria? Will it be understood? Is it mainstream enough?" Filming Principal filming was shot on location in Kigali, Rwanda, and Johannesburg, South Africa. Paul Rusesabagina was consulted during the writing of the film. Although the character of Colonel Oliver played by