At a relatively low-key event held at Atlas Studios in Johannesburg on 25 February,
the nominees for the 2015 South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTA) were
announced.
While the theme for last year’s awards was a celebration of 20 years of film and
television in democratic South Africa, this year’s campaign plays on the fact that,
one year on, the industry is “coming of age’.
“This year we’re entering a new milestone,’ said judging co-chairperson Roberta
Durrant, “where we celebrate the past achievements of both the TV and film
industries and look to the future growth of the industry. Our industries are receiving
recognition both locally and internationally, and the way we are telling our stories
has transformed to a new level, giving rise to our theme for this year’s SAFTAs:
coming of age.’
The SAFTAs are South Africa’s premier film and television awards and take place
under the aegis of the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF).
The objective of the awards as stated by the NFVF, is to “honour, celebrate and
promote the creativity, quality and excellence of South African film and television
talent and encourage entrepreneurship and the development of new talent in the
industry.’
The awards are given in more than 80 categories covering various genres of film
and television production. Aside from the Best Picture category, possibly the most
eagerly awaited category is Best TV Soap. In previous years, this category has been
decided by public vote. This is no longer the case this year, the winner being
decided by the judges, as with other categories. The nominees in this category are
Binnelanders, Isibaya and Rhythm City. These three, along with other popular
soapies, such as 7de Laan, and Skeem Saam, are in tight competition for the other
categories in the TV Soap drama, making for a tight race.
The Best Film nominees would have come as no great surprise to most of guests at
the event: Ian Gabriel’s Four Corners, Donovan Marsh’s iNumber Number and Koos
Roets’ Faan se Trein. The exact same nominees were named in the Best Director
category. For Best Actor in a Lead Role, newcomers Jezriel Skei, who starred in
Four Corners, and Pallance Dladla of Hard to Get are in competition against veteran
Willie Esterhuizen from Faan se Trein, and established TV star S’dumo Mtshali, who
led the cast in iNumber Number. In contention for Best Actress in a Lead Role are
Thishiwe Zuqubu (Hard to Get), Erica Wessels (Alles Wat Mal Is), Elzette Maarschalk
(Seun) and Donalee Roberts (Pad na jou Hart).
In the cinematography categories, Tom Marais got a total of three nods – twice for
Best Achievement in Cinematography for a Feature Film (iNumber Number, Hard to
Get) and one for TV Drama (Soul City). As far as editing is concerned, Nicolas
Costaras was nominated for both Faan se Trein and Hard to Get, while Donovan
Marsh got the nod for his work on iNumber Numberi and Ronelle Loots was
recognised for Four Corners.
The three Best Film nominees appeared in almost every other category for film,
including scriptwriting, production design and costume design. Zee Ntuli’s Hard to
Get is another big contender, with six nominations.
In TV Comedy, ZA News: Puppet Nation and Late Nite News with Loyiso Gola are
once again in contention several awards, with newcomers Lastborn does the
Loeries, Single Guys and Single Gals entering the fray. In TV Drama, Swartwater
and Donkerland came up with the lion’s share of nominations.
With TV soaps now no longer open to public vote, a new category has been created
for viewer participation: Best Presenter. The list includes Thembi Seete, Bonang
Matheba, Lungile Radu, Phat Joe and Jeremy Maggs. Voting will take place on social
media platforms leading up to the final awards evening on 22 March.
For the full list of nominees, visit www.screenafrica.com, www.nfvf.co.za or the SAFTAs Facebook page.
