What to Watch in Southern Africa This Month

We follow up last month’s list with another string of drops for the month of April. There was a bit of a jostle last month when Thabo Bester and Nandipha Magudumana asked the courts to stop the docu-series Tracking Thabo Bester from airing on Showmax. Their reason was that doing so would interfere with the court proceedings since some of the participants were serving as witnesses in their case. The streaming company argued that the content in the docu-series was already in the public domain and that the representatives’ demands amounted to an infringement on the public’s right to information. The presiding judge stated that there was “no basis” for the complainants' claims, and ruled in favor of Showmax.

Showmax has also revealed that its teen telenovela, Youngins, a Tshedza Pictures production set at a fictional school named Olifantsfontein High, has been renewed for the second season. Youngins stars Lebohang Lephatsoana as Tumelo, Toka Mtabane as Khaya, and Thabiso Ramotshela as Mahlatse. Connie Ferguson has also stated that the Netflix original Kings of Joburg has also been renewed, and shall be going into production for its second season. Ferguson also appears in the Mandla Dube-directed Netflix hit, Heart of the Hunter, where she plays the role of Molebogeng Mokwena. The spy thriller, based on author Deon Meyer’s novel of the same name, was the most viewed globally for the week of March 25 to March 31.

Here’s what to watch in Southern Africa this month.

'Heart of the Hunter'

Heart of the Hunter | Official Trailer | Netflixyoutu.be

Heart of the Hunter is a spy thriller, a love story, and a tale about backstabbing and political meddling in public institutions. It’s also an adventure, a portal down memory lane, and an introspection and inspection of the effects of exile on the family unit. Director Mandla Dube, who also has a strong background in cinematography, and is a scholar of history, transforms novelist Deon Mayer’s work into a majestic enterprise that translates to the screen the recurring themes in the author’s work – Cape Town, the Karoo, and so forth. Dube spoke to OkayAfrica about what he calls “digital melanin cinematography,” stating: “There’s a special sauce where the combination of the lenses, along with the camera sensor, and the make-up that goes on the actors and actresses is curated in a particular [way] to create standards on how we photograph African melanin skin tones. We were very intentional. These were special lenses that were brought in from France, the first of their kind. We brought them in specially for this project.” Heart of the Hunter stars an impressive cast that includes Bonko Khoza, Masasa Mbangeni, Connie Ferguson and Tim Theron, and is currently streaming on Netflix.

'Real Estate Sisters'

Real Estate Sisters Traileryoutu.be

Producers and writers Reabetswe Moeti-Vogt and Zoe Ramushu have spoken at length about the struggles of finding a strong, Black woman lead for Real Estate Sisters, Netflix’s South African comedy feature set to premiere on the country’s Freedom Day, April 27, which is also two days to its general elections. Their work did pay off eventually, and if its reception at the recently-held Joburg Film Festival is anything to go by, it shall be warmly received when it goes live. The movie features Galaletsang Koffman (The River, Thula’s Vine) who plays Lerato Maseko, and Leera Mthethwa, who plays her sister Malebo. The premise is that they’ve been flipping property in the township of Atteridgeville for a while, and are intent on moving up a few notches by teasing the sands in the upmarket suburb Waterkloof. Their luck turns when Lerato meets Stone Segale (played by Lerato Makhetha), who tasks her with selling his property. A series of comedic blow-outs follows, but their discovery of a dead body in a wine cellar while showing the property to prospective buyers reveals a dark side to the whole deal. Real Estate Sisters also features Sibongile Nojila, Marcus Mabusela, Sammy Fever and Jerry Chirindza.

'Soweto Blaze'

SOWETO BLAZE - Official Trailer (2024)youtu.be

“A small-time pot dealer's hopes for a better life are upended when his friends involve him in an outlandish kidnapping scheme,” reads the logline for Soweto Blaze, set to premiere on Netflix on April 20. The film stars Matli Mohapeloa, Dimpho More and Nyeleti Khoza. In an exclusive conversation with OkayAfrica, writer, director, and editor Brad Katzen stated that he was aiming for a world not based on a single character, but more a cacophony of figures who’d contribute their part to the greater story. “My main drive was to build an ensemble of characters that could build off of each other in a really larger-than-life kind of way. This isn’t a story that’s meant to be realistic [...] this is a bit more like a comic book,” he says. The trailer features a string of hilarious interactions between a stoner gone rogue and the world of clientele that he interacts with. It all goes south when a kidnapping scheme with his mates ends up rubbing a respected hood kingpin the wrong way. Soweto Blaze was one of the six films selected out of about two hundred submissions following an invitation for proposals for the NFVF/Netflix micro-budget films project.

'The Winning Ticket'

The Winning Ticket | Showmax Original | Stream from Friday, 12 Aprilyoutu.be

This Showmax original is centered around a family who decided that maximum splurging is the only way to live after they win the lottery jackpot. The film features co-stars Lerato Makhetha (A Safe Bet, Real Estate Sisters) and Simphiwe Ngema (Muvhango). The film is a Kerry Media Productions feature directed by Star Mphahlele, who won the African Rising Star Award at last year’s Joburg Film Festival. The trailer portrays the immediate transformation the family of four undergoes post-winning. They move out of the township to a high-end neighborhood, change schools, and go on an expensive vacation to Cape Town. The cracks start to show in the small things; they haven’t yet mastered the language and the mannerisms of the rich and the wealthy. These events raise the question: Is it all worth it? The Winning Ticket premieres on April 12th.

'What Did You Dream?'

What Did You Dream? Trailer | South African Film Festivalwww.youtube.com

Those around Johannesburg can view a special screening of writer and director Karabo Lediga’s short film What Did You Dream?, based in 1990 South Africa about a young girl named Boipelo who finds herself unable to dream. “Is her inability to dream because she’s anxious about being the first one in her family to go to a multi-racial school, or is it because her grandfather is dying of cancer in a dark bedroom nearby,” wonders Lediga. The audience can get answers to these questions and more at the University of Johannesburg’s Keorapetse William Kgositsile theater. RSVP on this link.