Monday, March 06, 2006

Jollywood? Collywood? Dollywood?

South African director Gavin Hood poses with the Oscar for best foreign film which his movie Tsotsi won at the 78th Academy Awards in Los Angeles. Picture: iol.co.za
Hopefully Tsotsi's success is the beginning of a burgeoning film industry for South Africa. Not just acting as a nameless production setting for foreign films but the production of our own international stunners - as Tsotsi is.

What a movie. What I found trully remarkable was the audience when I watched - more black than white (unusual in Sandton). It is a movie that really seemed to touch the South African story.

In fact, one of the production crew was hijacked a few weeks back. He asked the hijacker whether he had seen the movie. The hijacker replied, "Yes, that's what makes me so sorry to do this to you."

Well done Tsotsi. Well done Athol Fugard. Well done Gavid Hood (what a long way from his dad's appearences on the OK Bazaars ads, and his appearence in "The Game"). Well done South Africa!

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