Toronto celebrates SA film
8 September 2004
South Africa is a special guest star at this year's Toronto International Film Festival, which runs from 8 to 18 September. Three SA movies will receive special screenings at the prestigious event, with seven others making up the festival's national cinema programme, "South Africa: Ten Years Later".
"South Africa has joined the world's leading filmmaking nations with authority this year", said festival co-director Noah Cowan.
"We are not only incredibly pleased to present so many exceptional works of cinema from South Africa, but also to celebrate with a nation that, against all odds, is celebrating 10 years of triumphant peace and stability."
Terry George's "Hotel Rwanda", a joint US/South African production, makes its world premier at the festival, while Darrell Roodt's "Yesterday" and Tom Hooper's "Red Dust" - both produced by Anant Singh's company Videovision Entertainment - have been selected for special screenings.
"These
emerging filmmakers turn their lenses on the political and social effects of oppressive regimes, depicting the chaos, terror, and aching desire for freedom and hope through the beauty and audacity of cinema", the organisers say on the festival website.
Hotel Rwanda
"Hotel Rwanda" tells the true story of an ordinary man whose love for his family inspired him to an extraordinary act of courage that saved the lives of more than 1 000 helpless Rwandans during the 1994 genocide.
When the Hutus began slaughtering Tutsis, hotelier Paul Rusesabagina - himself a Hutu - opened the doors of an exclusive luxury hotel to over a thousand Tutsis, sheltering them from certain annihilation.
A true example of unqualified mercy, Rusesabagina overcomes insurmountable odds, risking his life and family to keep the murderers at bay.
Yesterday
South African filmmaker Darrell James Roodt ("Cry, the Beloved Country")
returns to the festival with the North American premiere of "Yesterday", the first feature-length film in isiZulu.
Red Dust
"Red Dust", the directorial debut from Tom Hooper, is based on Gillian Slovo’s novel of the same title. A suspense-filled courtroom drama set in Smitsriver, "Red Dust" explores the effects of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, one of the most significant healing instruments of South Africa's young democracy.
New York City prosecutor Sarah Barcant comes home to Smitsriver to represent the interests of the local community in a Commission hearing for Dirk Hendricks, a former local police officer.
Key to Barcant's case is the testimony of Alex Mpondo, who was tortured by Hendricks. She hopes that Mpondo's account will force Hendricks to reveal the whereabouts of a missing man in the community, and bring
others involved in the case to justice.
Mpondo, however, is uncomfortable with his position of victim and witness, and is reluctant to participate. He is now a promising politician, and fears not only reliving his painful memories of this time, but also facing the unknown truths that lie within them.
"Red Dust", shot in Graaf-Reinett and Johannesburg, stars Academy Award-winner Hilary Swank ("Boys Don't Cry") and BAFTA winner Chiwetel Ejiofor ("Dirty Pretty Things"), along with South Africans Jamie Bartlett, Marius Weyers and Ian Roberts, with a screenplay by Troy Kennedy-Martin ("Italian Job", "Bravo Two Zero").
Max and Mona
In Teddy Matterra's fast-paced comedy "Max and Mona", 19-year-old village boy Max (played by Mpho Lovinga) has an extraordinary talent: a professional mourner, Max can bring tears to the eyes of a killer. A rising star in the farm community of Zwartruggen, like his legendary grandfather before him, Max can melt
a heart of stone. Max's natural talent, however, conflicts with his dreams of a becoming a doctor.
Also starring Jerry Mofokeng, Percy Matemela and Coco Merckel, "Max and Mona" is scheduled for mainstream release in South Africa early in 2005. The film will be distributed on 32 prints, one of the largest cinema releases for a local film.
Drum
Based on a true story, Zola Maseko's "Drum" centres around Henry Nxumalo, a fun-loving, hard-drinking writer (played by Taye Diggs) for the fashionable black magazine Drum in 1950s Johannesburg. With the onset of apartheid, Nxumal finds it difficult to ignore the increasing tales of injustice.
Slowly, he begins to claim a new identity as the fearless political reporter Mr Drum. As he becomes closer to young politicos like Nelson Mandela, the threat to Nxumalo's life becomes more real.
Forgiveness
In Ian Gabriel's film "Forgiveness", an ex-cop (played by
Arnold Vosloo) granted amnesty by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission seeks out the family of one of his apartheid-era victims to ask them for forgiveness.
Inclined at first to drive the cop away, the victim's sister (Quanita Adams) and her family become involved in a plot to keep the ex-cop in the small West Coast town of Paternoster in order to avenge her brother's murder. As former colleagues gather for revenge, the victim's sister uncovers a long-hidden secret.
Zulu Love Letter
In Ramadan Suleyman's "Zulu Love Letter", Thandeka (played by Pamela Nomvete Marimbe) finds her life severely altered when she and friend Mike are arrested after witnessing the murder of a young female activist. Mike, a photographer, is also killed, and Thandeka, pregnant at the time, is beaten so badly that her daughter is born deaf and mute.
Years later, Thandeka is a journalist with writer's block who can't shake her personal demons, nor the gnawing sense of guilt that alienates her from her family.
A South African Love Story
Tony Strasborg's documentary, "A South African Love Story - Walter & Albertina Sisulu", profiles Walter and Albertina Sisulu. Walter was a leader in the African National Congress (ANC) and Nelson Mandela's mentor, muse and political father. His wife, Albertina, was leader of the now-defunct coalition organisation the United Democratic Front, and nurtured many young women in the ANC.
The Sisulu partnership became a force to be reckoned with, and their household a sanctuary for their four children and the myriad of rising political voices in the ANC. This compelling documentary paints a detailed and graphic picture of the triumphant history of the ANC.
Cape of Good Hope
Mark Bamford's film, "Cape of Good Hope",
reflects the dynamic nature of contemporary South African cinema, exploring themes of love, xenophobia, abandonment, race and justice.
Debbie Brown stars as Kate, the founder of an animal rescue centre that also houses some wounded souls, including a local vet (Morne Visser) who recently lost his wife to cancer, and Jean-Claude (Eriq Ebouaney), a distinguished refugee astronomer forced into menial labour.
Mozart - The Music of the Violin
In Mickey Dube's short, "Mozart - The Music of the Violin", a 12-year-old boy is tyrannised by an overachieving mother intent on seeing her son become a violin virtuoso.
As the day of his recital nears, the tension in his household, and out on the tough Soweto streets, builds. Beautifully composed by veteran music video director Dube, this short is a strong barometer of South Africa's emerging talent.
SouthAfrica.info reporter
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