SOUTH AFRICAN FILM

By: Mandi Kunkle

SOUTH AFRICAN: A HISTORY IN FILM

Apartheid’s effect on Film: --White/ Afrikaans films recognized almost exclusively -White films avoided political critiques -subsidies favored such movies

Films reflecting Apartheid negativley: -shot out of country/shut down -this led to clandestine shooting of such films

Hay

PERPETUATING THE STEREOTYPE

Many movies during this time illustrated:●Apartheid was good for everyone●Everyone was happy with segregation●movies reinforce social roles created at this time-Whites had God given superiority-films forced ideology of dominant (White) group onto mediaHayThomaselli, 1980

MEDIA IMPERIALISM DURING APARTHEID White South Africans dominated movie industry Control of Industry= media imperialism? Media Imperialism functions to: ●distort recorded history in favor of dominant group (White

South Africans) -could be used to diffuse “black consciousness”/ unity ●imperialistic movies justifies their actions -by perpetuating stereotypes previously discussed ●Create cultural myths to reinforce reality -again, by perpetuating the stereotypes

Tomaselli, 1980

CATEGORIZATION OF APARTHEID FILMS Tomaseli argues that three genres existed during

this time that were approved by government:1. “Back to the Homelands” -reflects government’s stance that Homeland policy

(the segregation of neighborhoods) needed to allow non-whites to “outgrow their ignorance in their own time, place and manner.”

-black man as unsophisicated -films include: Isiviko (’79), Ngomopho (’74), Moloyi

(‘78) and Yuma (‘78)

Tomaseli, 1980

CATEGORIZATION OF APARTHEID FILMS

2.Coopted Movie -black filmmakers controlled by

Nationalist capital -films include: Tigers Don’t Cry (‘76)

and Escape from Angola (’77)

Tomaselli, 1980

CATEGORIZATION OF APARTHEID FILMS 3. Conditional Urban Movies -tried to gain support of growing black

middle class (note that it only includes middle class)

-Films include: Utosti (‘78), Phindesela (’79) and Umzingeli (‘79)

Tomaselli, 1980

CHANGES IN SOUTH AFRICAN FILMS

Starting in 1980s and continuing through end of Apartheid:

●shift in focus on audience ●Industry recognized need for non-white cinema to

boost industry -these films were shown in isolated cinemas -these films were “juvenile” and cheap

Hay

FILM INDUSTRY AFTER APARTHEID ●Black Empowerment Act: -minimum number of non-whites -these employees had to act in creative roles and have production

power

●African Film Library -archive black African culture on film

●Government and Film --new focus on reflecting the socio-political environment

●Growth, Employment and redistribution (GEAR) policy: -develop film industry that reflects and represents the nation -sustains commercial capability -allows creative talents of South Africa to become internationally

recognizedHayTreffy-Goatly, 2010

FAMOUS DIRECTORS: THEN AND NOW Jamie Uys: “the Gods Must Be Crazy” (1980s) - and Afrikaan film director -successful in box office -perpetuated uncivilized “other”

Ross Devenish: (1970s) -unsuccessful due to content :based on political commentary

Darrell Roodt: (1980s-present) -focused on showing negative side of Apartheid -gained international success

Hood (2000s) -post-modernist look at effects of Apartheid on African “townships” -Academy Award winning film “Tsotsi” was big international hit

Hay

INTERNATIONAL VS. LOCAL INDUSTRY International Scale: -South Africa provides technical and logistical support for

foreign productions -Apartheid greatly weakened economy- including film

industry

Local Scale: -Geo-politcal effects of Apartheid still present -racially segregated film “culture” -many non-white South Africans can’t access theaters -this causes distribution problems -currently working on creating diverse audience

Treffry-Goatly, 2010

HOLLYWOOD MEETS SOUTH AFRICAN FILM ●News Coverage: -late 1980’s coverage of violent conflicts in South Africa hit US

news -Americans started using white South Africans as villains

-the most famous example is Lethal Weapon 2 ●African American audiences interested in South African films

-African American middle class especially -want something more complex than U.S. films targeted at them -culture struggle is key to “liberation” of South African films

●Pan African Film Festival -Tsotsi “leads way” introducing U.S. to South African Films - Other South African directors/ films earned nods at festival -”South Africa has been prolific in film making”-Griffin

Griffin, 2006Jowett, 1992

YESTERDAY: FILM OVERVIEWYesterday

Directed By: Darrell Roodt ● famous South African Director

Starring: Leleti Khumalo ● South African Actress, Tony Award Nominee

Nominated for Academy Award in 2004

Production & Distribution: International

http://www.yesterdaythemovie.co.za/Roodt, Darrell, Dir. Yesterday. Dir. Darrell Roodt." HBO Films: 2004, Film.http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0419279/

YESTERDAY

Synopsis: ●Yesterday is a young woman who

discovers she is HIV positive

●Yesterday struggles with disease, family, and ostracism from the village

Yesterday’s cinemotography: ● Long shots of South African landscapes

●Scenes are brightly colored

●Traditional African music sets the tone

http://www.yesterdaythemovie.co.za/Roodt, Darrell, Dir. Yesterday. Dir. Darrell Roodt." HBO Films: 2004, Film.http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0419279/

YESTERDAY: AIDS IN SOUTH AFRICAYesterday illustrates the devastating affects of AIDS in South Africa ●AIDS is more prevalent in South Africa than any other country

This film depicts the spread of the virus from townships to villages ● Yesterday’s husband spends many months in Johannesburg where he is infected

Yesterday represents the hardships that black South Africans suffer:

●Working: finding work is difficult and separates families for long periods of time

●Medical help: Yesterday had to walk for hours to see the doctor, who was only available once a week

●Education: many are ignorant about the disease / information isn’t readily available

Hay

Roodt, Darrell, Dir. Yesterday. Dir. Darrell Roodt." HBO Films: 2004, Film.

SKIN: FILM OVERVIEWSkin

First time Director: Anthony Fabian

Stars: ●Sophie Okonedo (United Kingdom) ●Sam Neill (United Kingdom) ●Alice Krige (South Africa)

Production and Distribtion: International

Awards: Pan African Film Festival Audience Award

Fabian , Anthony (Writer). (2008). Skin [DVD].http://www.skinthemovie.net/site/Skin . (2008). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0964586/

SKIN SYNOPSIS

●Amazing true story set in Apartheid South Africa

●A black girl, Sandra, born to “white” Afrikaans

●Film focuses on struggles of classification

●Sandra is forced to choose which race she “belongs” to and the repercussions of this choice

Fabian , Anthony (Writer). (2008). Skin [DVD].http://www.skinthemovie.net/site/Skin . (2008). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0964586

SKIN CINEMATOGRAPHY

Cinematography:●The film uses filters to make everything look slightly washed out

●Long shots of African landscapes

●Close ups allow viewer to connect emotionally with the characters

●Fabian: “I didn’t want to impose myself as a director, but make the story the star”

- no use of “fancy” camera angles-this allowed for focus on characters-”racism is a tough subject to do subtly”- Fabian

Fabian , Anthony (Writer). (2008). Skin [DVD].indieWire

SOUTH AFRICAN FILM?

●Fabian, Okonedo and Neill are UK born/raised

● Filmed in South Africa, though filmed in English (Zulu is also used)

● Set in South Africa ●Critique of South African political structure

●No South African distribution companies used

●South African Production companies were used

Anthony Fabian

Fabian , Anthony (Writer). (2008). Skin [DVD].http://www.skinthemovie.net/site/

Skin . (2008). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0964586

SKIN: APARTHIED AND FAMILYTwo Afrikaans birth black child (Sandra Laing)

●both parents contain enough “black” genes to produce a black child ●they work to classify her as white ●parents love Sandra, but are victims of system themselves

-they accept Sandra, but consider blacks as lesser beings -”Do you know how those people live?”- Abraham Laing in

reference to the black population -warning: personal plug: This movie was an incredibly moving

depiction of ApartheidIllustrates Apartheid’s injustices focusing on humanity, not politics

Gooch states: “Fabian brilliantly unfolds the horrors of the apartheid system and the cost that the system protracted on families and human dignity”

Fabian , Anthony (Writer). (2008). Skin [DVD].

Gooch,2009

WHY SKIN AND YESTERDAY?

These films, along with Tsotsi, are post-modernism films

These films can be viewed as a critique of Apartheid

Each film represents a different aspect of the affects of Apartheid: ●Yesterday: AIDS- the lack of education/ protection/ medical help is

caused by the economic aftershock of Apartheid that many South African face

●Tsotsi: (not discussed in power point due to class discussion) Violence- again the result of the economic

●Skin: Family- many families were torn apart by laws that were instituted during Apartheid after hundreds of years of crossing “the color line.”

WORKS CITED

Fabian , Anthony (Writer). (2008). Skin [DVD]. Gooch, William. (2009, November 8). Skin movie review. A Simple Woman's Story of

Courage, Retrieved from Griffin, Gil. (2006, May/June). South african film comes of age. Crisis Forum, 39-41. http://stageandcinema.com/skinreview.html Hay, Rod. A new horizon: a short history of south african films. Metro Magazine 150, 134-

139. http://www.skinthemovie.net/site/ http://www.yesterdaythemovie.co.za/ IndieWire, (2008, October 30). Interview with anthony fabian: "skins' anthony fabian: "for

days afterward, i had a lump in my throat". Retrieved from http://www.indiewire.com/article/skins_anthony_fabian_for_days_afterward_i_had_a_lump_in_my_throat/

Jowett, G.S. “Hollywod discovers Apartheid.” Journal of Popular Film and Television 19.4 (1992): 172. Communications & Mass Media Complete Ebsco.web. 8 Mar. 2011

Roodt, Darrell, Dir. Yesterday. Dir. Darrell Roodt." HBO Films: 2004, Film. Skin . (2008). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0964586/ Tomasellie, Keyan. (1980). Class and ideology reflections in south african cinema. Critical

Arts: South African Cinema, i(i), Treffry-Goatly, Astrid. (2010). Post-apartheid film industry: representation, creativity and

commercialism in the post-apartheid film industry. Retrieved from http://www.kinema.uwaterloo.ca/article.php?id=453&feature

Yesterday. (2004). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0419279/