KWAZULU-NATAL Film Commission endorses Amathambo (Bones), a film written, directed, and produced by KwaZulu-Natal’s very own Sabelo Ndlovu and Busani Mbili. The two friends, who are former students of the Durban University of Technology, have brought to life this film that explores the dynamics of reconciliation and forgiveness within families.
The film sees a family go through dysfunction, hurt people holding grudges as the siblings struggle through life because of past family traumas and deceit. “When the idea to write this film came to me, I was going through my own personal traumas and journey of healing in my family. It occurred to me that many people go through, exactly what I was going through, but some never get a chance to speak up and find healing because they never get to fight past their family trauma,” said Sabelo Ndlovu, who wrote the film.
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Busani Mbili, the producer of the film, added that, “It was important for us to create our own work because our industry is, unfortunately, very seasonal and very much based on relevance. You can have a job for six months and be unemployed for two years. This film is our way of creating employment and uplifting our industry in KZN which is very stagnant currently.
Many big productions mostly come to KwaZulu-Natal to shoot, as the province has great locations for film and television productions. And, when they do, they come with their own casts and workers so they do not really hire anyone this side, and if they do, it is never really anything sustainable. So, that is why we took it upon ourselves to create work and hire people we know have potential, can execute the job in time and give outstanding results, as the film will only be shot over five days, no longer.”
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The film follows Nqoba, a son behind bars for the murder of his father, whom he never killed. He only helped his older brother cover up the murder. After spending 10 years behind bars, Nqoba is finally legible for parole, but he must first face his resentful mother who must sign his parole documents. He is seen pleading with his mother to believe his side of the story that he never really killed their abusive father but only helped his older brother, who let him take the fall. Siphesihle Cele (31) who portrays the character of Nqoba, a very troubled young man, said, “I wish to see myself get far with my craft of being an actor. I hope, one day, my name will be mentioned among the greatest talents to ever come out of KwaZulu-Natal.”
The Durban Film Commission, through their agreement with Paramount Pictures, will showcase the film once they have completed the production. The film will also be showcased at theatres and film festivals.
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