South Africa’s 30 Years of Democracy Celebrated on Film

With the advent of democracy, cinema became an avenue for reflecting the principles of the new Rainbow Nation, one that embraced multiracialism and inclusion. South African cinema began a slow march to the future by unpacking the past and interrogating the present via motion pictures.

Freedom might have arrived, but so did a conveyor belt of problems — economic disparity, poverty, crime, racial inequality, HIV/AIDS, and gender-based violence. As democratic ideals struggled to take footing, film was utilized as a medium to critique the state of the nation, while charting a course for what the future could look like.

The films on this list — all released after 1994 — represent multiple facets of post-apartheid living while also hinting at the modes of production and circulations that birthed them. They embrace lofty ideas of unity and desegregation, but also pick holes at the shortcomings while ensuring that the grievances aren’t swept under the rug. To mark the 30-year anniversary of Freedom Day, OkayAfrica presents an essential list of 10 films that — together and individually — agitate nationhood in rather interesting ways.

‘Yesterday’ (2004)

Before turning the tide with an aggressive multi-partner response program, South Africa was the country hardest hit by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, with women and children suffering the worst outcomes. Veteran filmmaker Darrell Roodt reunites with his Sarafina! leading lady Leleti Khumalo in this emotional drama about a protective mother and her daughter. Released during the presidency of Thabo Mbeki, an infamous AIDS skeptic, Yesterday was nominated in the Best Foreign Language Film category at the Oscars.

‘Tsotsi’ (2005)

After coming close the year before, South Africa eventually clinched a historic foreign language trophy at the Oscars with this Gavin Hood-helmed crime drama based on the novel by Athol Fugard. Set in a Johannesburg slum, Tsotsi tells the story of a street thug who steals a car and discovers a baby in the back seat. He then recruits a young widow to help care for the child. The movie stars Presley Chweneyagae and Terry Pheto.

‘District 9’ (2009)

South Africa has a long history of international co-productions that predate the arrival of democracy, but District 9 — put together with the United States and New Zealand — remains the apex of this particular mode of filmmaking. Returning over $200 million at the global box office against a production budget of $30 million, this Neill Blomkamp-directed science fiction epic was inspired by real-life events that occurred in apartheid-era Cape Town.

‘Beauty (Skoonheid)’ (2011)

Creating a national cinema means making room for the inclusion of a variety of voices and experiences. Oliver Hermanus steps in with this stunner about a racist and homophobic Bloemfontein businessman (Deon Lotz) living on the down low. His world is rocked when he meets a handsome young law student. A disturbing tale of obsession, toxic masculinity and repressed passions, Beauty was awarded the Queer Palm Award at the Cannes Film Festival.

‘Necktie Youth’ (2015)

Stylish and rambunctious, Necktie Youth remains culturally relevant for being the rare film of its pedigree to take seriously the struggles and disillusionments of a new generation of privileged post-apartheid youth. Directed by Sibs Shongwe-La Mer, Necktie Youth endures as a potent snapshot of youth in crisis.

‘Strike a Rock’ (2017)

Aliki Saragas-Georgiou’s rousing documentary returned the world’s attention to a national tragedy, perhaps the biggest of the democratic era, the 2012 murder of 34 striking workers by police officers in Marikana. The film follows two grandmother activists as they start an impactful campaign demanding accountability. This intimate account of courage and conviction is a reminder that citizen action has always been a part of the South African identity.

‘Whispering Truth to Power’ (2018)

Shameela Seedat’s absorbing documentary charts the final year in office of South Africa’s first female Public Protector, Thuli Madonsela. Democracy is in action — and under threat — as Madonsela leads one of the most important structures to investigate her biggest professional challenge, the alleged systematic capture of the Jacob Zuma-led government by a private family. A fascinating tale of an outstanding citizen, Whispering Truth to Power demonstrates the importance of strong institutions in sustaining the idea of democracy.

‘Sew the Winter to My Skin’ (2018)

In Sew the Winter to My Skin, Jahmil X.T. Qubeka makes a near-wordless interpretation of the local legend of John Kepe, a Robin Hood-like figure who roamed the Karoo region in the 1940s. Qubeka is nothing, if not ambitious, and Sew the Winter to My Skin is interesting for being both epic western and experimental indie.

‘Flatland (2019)’

Two women are on the run from the patriarchy and the police in this tough reminder of what it must be like for women in post-apartheid society. Set in the Karoo desert, Jenna Cato Bass’ Flatland examines the intersection of gender, race and class and does this with a pastiche of genres. Part road movie, moody noir and high-strung western, Flatland makes sure to center the stories of its female characters and does so with empathy.

‘Milisuthando’ (2023)

Milisuthando Bongela’s loose interrogation of the national project arrives almost 30 years into the democratic era and presents an opportunity for a different kind of voice to contribute to the tapestry of narratives. Presented in five chapters, Milisuthando is a shape-shifting undertaking that is both complex and personal thematically. Bongela chronicles her own unique experience growing up in Transkei, a rural, segregated region established in 1976 as an apartheid-era experiment.