A group of female directors shot a collaborative, direct cinema style documentary in Jeppestown in the east of Johannesburg’s CBD on 9 March 2012.
With 10 crews, 52 crew members and eight female directors, Jeppe on a Friday is a collaborative effort that aims to help foster a creative community in Johannesburg.
The documentary, directed by Shannon Walsh and Arya Lalloo, interweaves five storylines directed by local female directors Kitso Lynn Lelliott, Lucilla Blankenberg, Mujahid Safodien, Natalie Haarhoff, Ryley Grunenwald and Xoliswa Sithole.
Collaboration
Walsh directed a similar documentary, St-Henri the 26th of August, in her home country Canada in 2011. Inspired by this process, she started looking for Johannesburg-based directors to collaborate with, and met Lalloo through a mutual friend and filmmaker.
“Arya and I really clicked – we had the same fascination with the everyday life in the inner city and the process of gentrification it was undergoing. We’ve shared an amazing collaboration over the last year and a half of working together.
“We also couldn’t have done it without the incredible team of South African directors who participated in the process and gave their time, creativity and trust to us.’
According to Walsh the film was made on a “shoestring budget’, funded by the Gauteng Film Commission and the Swiss film fund Vision Sud Est, as well as $12 000 raised on crowdfunding platform Indiegogo.
“Of course, for a film that was as much an uphill battle to finance as this one was, our producers Sarah Spring from Parabola Films in Canada and Elias Ribeiro from Urucu Media in Johannesburg were instrumental in making it happen,’ notes Walsh.
Spirit
She explains that the film is meant to reflect the spirit of the people in Jeppestown, as captured in a single day. “It is one of the oldest neighbourhoods in Johannesburg, and so rich with stories. We wanted to show the beauty and the everyday magic of the city, without shying away from the darker side of Johannesburg.’
The five storylines follow the lives of Beninese entrepreneurs Arouna and Zainab who run a restaurant and survived the xenophobic violence; Ravi, a second generation Indian shop owner; garbage reclaimer Vusi; JJ, a young property developer who wants to create a New York style urban environment in the inner city; and Robert, who lives with thousands of other men in the Jeppe Men’s Hostel and is part of a Isicathamiya singing group.
Walsh explains that the themes that emerged during the day were the struggle for survival against all odds in Johannesburg, and people working towards their dreams.
According to Lalloo they found the stories by exploring the neighbourhood as often as their schedules allowed. “Shannon and I spent our spare time in Jeppestown meeting people, listening to their stories and really doing a lot of hanging out, walking, watching and just feeling the space.
“This developed into discussions about the kind of characters we were most interested in following, what the mix would look like and how these separate narratives could potentially play off against each other. We started meeting and talking with the other directors and finally committed to the wonderful group of people in the film and started bringing everyone together.’
Local production
Walsh adds that the documentary is an unofficial co-production between South Africa and Canada. “However, we were committed to making it a South African production, and we really committed to using women directors because we really wanted to ground it in this country.’
According to Walsh the 10 crews followed eight stories throughout the day with two roaming cameras. “They were small crews – a director of photography (DOP), a sound recordist, a production assistant and director. Two of the stories were eventually cut out during editing.’
They filmed on Sony EX-3 and Sony EX-1 cameras. “We used some of the cameras on shoulder mounts, but both cameras are pretty easy to use, and we’re really happy with the way it looked,’ says Walsh.
They sourced cameras with the help of Gavin McCulla of The Cameraman rental company.
Adds Ribeira: “We started the day with Adam Bentel shooting establishing shots from a helicopter and we also had Karen Slater filming traveling shots from a truck moving through the neighbourhood. The DOPs were amazing.’
Walsh continues: “The crew’s response on the shooting day was phenomenal. It was as though we had organised a party, it was so joyful. The day was about getting back to the roots of cinema of engaging with the world.’
Direct cinema
An important aspect of the documentary is the use of the direct cinema style, which is similar to the cinema verite style and tries to capture reality and represent it truthfully. Walsh explains: “It’s a day in the life, shooting from the hip kind of style which aims to cause as little disruption as possible.
“In pre-production we spent a lot of time workshopping the cinematic look we were aiming for and how we would approach it – for example we decided there would be no talking heads. We set clear parameters and also talked a lot about film ethics in how we would approach the documentary and what we would include.’
Post-production took six months and Jeppe on a Friday premiered at the Montreal International Documentary Film Festival (RIDM) in Canada in November.
Says Walsh: “As it was our first screening internationally we weren’t sure what to expect, but people really understood the film and loved the characters and the pace. It showed them a side of South Africa that was completely new. Lots of compliments went to our incredible editor Vuyani Sondlo, who wove the film together so magically.’
They are currently in discussions with distributors and broadcasters to decide the next steps with the film, as they have received lots of interest in South Africa and abroad. “We will continue on an international festival run through early 2013 before launching here in Johannesburg with a festival we are organising in Jeppestown in August 2013, as well as some local screenings across the country.
“We are also hoping for a wide distribution in South Africa and internationally through broadcast and a theatrical run,’ concludes Walsh.
By Linda Loubser
screen africa magazine – january 2013
