A South African-produced psychological thriller, The Actor, is paving
the way for micro-budget filmmaking and intense story-telling, and will be making
its South African debut at the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) taking place
at venues in and around Durban until 26 July. Made for just R49,000
(US$4,000) this indie gem has garnered interest from international film festivals.
“Miracles are possible when driven by passion,’ said DIFF director Pedro Pimenta
when talking about The Actor at the DIFF media launch.
Written and directed by South African actor Aidan Whytock, The Actor
tells the tale of what happens when a method actor takes it too for when preparing
to play a demonically-possessed character.
Simon (Aidan Whytock) lives for two things: his dream of becoming an acclaimed
actor, and his love for Sarah (Heidi Bottcher), his twelve-year old daughter who he
only gets to see on the weekends. Unfortunately, as his ex-wife Emily (Shannyn
Fourie) often points out, his career is stagnating and Nathan (Gregory Parvess), his
best friend turned agent, isn’t trying that hard to help him.
Whytock is an award-winning producer, director and actor who has recently worked
on Black Sails, Dominion, Momentum, Mat Joubert, Saints and
Strangers and with Claire Danes on Homeland.
He was a DIFF Talents Durban participant in 2014 – and this year he presented a workshop on low-budget film-making as part of the Durban FilmMart
Jumpstart programme for emerging film producers.
The Actor screens on Tuesday 21 July at 12h00 at the Elangeni Hotel.
