There will be in the region of 28 South African films and projects in development represented at the Cannes International Film Festival, which takes place in Cannes, France from 12 to 23 May. Among the titles are State of Violence, The First Grader, Spud: The Movie, Descent of the Whirlwind, A Million Colours, Greener Grass and A Tin of Paint.
Some of the projects are supported by South Africa’s National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) and will be previewed at its dedicated sales event scheduled for 14 May. (See page 5 for details of these and the other South African projects at Cannes.) The NFVF will also host a special networking event on 15 May to allow South African filmmakers to meet with key stakeholders in the global film community.
Perhaps the most high profile South African project to be launched at Cannes, by virtue of its subject matter, will be Oscar-nominated Darrell James Roodt’s Winnie Madikizela-Mandela biopic, Winnie, starring Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls, Sex and the City: The Movie) in the title role.
There has been much speculation about who will play Nelson Mandela in the film. At the time of going to press, Screen Africa learnt that American actor and Oscar nominee Terrence Howard (Hustle & Flow), who also starred in the Oscar-winning Crash, had been cast in this key role.
Read more in the May 2010 issue of Screen Africa
