If we have learned anything from the global Coronavirus pandemic and the resulting nationwide lockdown, it is that life can change overnight. But can people change? A moving new film by actor-turned-director Andrew Heckler, set to be showing on DStv Box Office soon, tries to answer this age-old question.

Burden is a dark tale documenting the true story of Ku Klux Klan (KKK) member Mike Burden, who was raised in an atmosphere of hate and segregation. The film kicks off in 1996 when Mike, along with his Klan family, opens the Redneck Store and KKK Museum in South Carolina, the presence of which is inflammatory to the local black population. When he falls in love with someone who is deeply opposed to his racist views, he is forced to make a choice – one which finds him homeless and unable to find work.

Against all odds, help comes in the form of Mike’s mortal enemy, civil rights activist Reverend David Kennedy. The young man’s life is impacted forever when the Reverend offers to take him into his own home, sending shockwaves through the community. The unlikely pair forms a true bond, forging a path towards redemption and forgiveness as they face down merciless Klan members and sceptical parishioners.

It took more than two decades for Heckler to make his directorial debut with this eyebrow-raising true tale, which he also wrote – he first saw an article about the opening of a KKK museum and shop in 1996. The film finally premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the US Dramatic Audience Award.

The story is brought to life by a solid cast. Garrett Hedlund impresses as Mike in a nuanced portrait of a man resistant to change. Loose limbed and dumb looking, his quiet nature hides his penchant for horrific violence and his high-ranking place in the Klan.

Then there’s Mike’s opposite. The Reverend David Kennedy, who is expertly portrayed by Forest Whitaker, is a family man dedicated to his faith, and who is committed to always doing the right thing. Versatile British actress Andrea Riseborough plays Judy Harbeson, the young woman who steals Mike’s heart and who helps save his soul.

Hedlund, Whitaker and Riseborough are supported by the likes of Tom Wilkinson, Usher Raymond and Crystal Fox.

While Burden is a no holds barred story about race that shows the ugliness of hatred toward our fellow man, it is also about love conquering all. It delivers an incredible and powerful message – true change is possible, but it takes courage and determination to push through the difficult moments change so often requires.

The film is distributed by Filmfinity (Pty) Ltd. and will be available on DStv Box Office.

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A new film reveals the personal and professional cost often paid by women when publicly going into battle with very powerful men.

Bombshell, a film by award-winning director Jay Roach and screenwriter Charles Randolph, tells the explosive story of the women who brought down a powerful media mogul. Based on the real-life chain of events of the Fox News scandal – which saw multiple women accuse former Fox News CEO and chairman Roger Ailes of sexual harassment – it offers a revealing look inside the most powerful and controversial media empire of all time.

While the drama portrays a workplace where women face demeaning comments, policing of their appearance and unwanted sexual propositions by male executives, it focuses specifically on Ailes’s female victims and their battle to bring him to justice. It follows the stories of two women in particular – Gretchen Carlson, played by Nicole Kidman, and Megyn Kelly, depicted by our own Charlize Theron. In 2016, Carlson sued Ailes for sexual harassment, which led more women, including Kelly, to come forward with allegations against him.

Starring alongside these heavyweights is Margot Robbie as Kayla, a young producer who looks to have a future on camera. While fictional, the filmmakers say her character was inspired by the stories of multiple real-life women, whose experiences were amalgamated for the film.

The rest of the hotly anticipated film’s star-studded ensemble includes Connie Britton as Beth Ailes, Allison Janney as Ailes’s lawyer Susan Estrich, Kate McKinnon as a Fox News employee, Nazanin Boniadi as former Fox News correspondent Rudi Bakhtiar, Malcolm McDowell as Fox CEO Rupert Murdoch, Mark Duplass as Kelly’s husband, Douglas Brunt, and Alice Eve as Fox & Friends co-host Ainsley Earhardt.

Shot in an observational documentary style, Bombshell is gripping and timely and critics are praising the film not only for its handling of a difficult topic and a complicated story, but also for its screenplay and directorial decisions.

The Hollywood Critics Association (LAOFCS) has also nominated Charlize Theron in the Best Actress category of thehe 3rd Annual LAOFCS Awards.

Bombshell is distributed by Filmfinity (Pty) Ltd. and will be released in South African cinemas on 24 January 2020.

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A Million Little Pieces is the adaptation of the notorious 2003 bestseller with the same name by James Frey, which offered a visceral account of the author’s time at a rehabilitation centre in the 1990s.

An alcoholic and a drug addict, 23 year-old James has two options: treatment or death.

After waking up on a plane with a smashed up face and no memory of the past few weeks, he heads to rehab where he discovers much more than detox and therapy. As James endures the white-knuckle journey of mending his broken body, he heals his broken soul by connecting with other kindred spirits who also yearn and fight for a better life.

A Million Little Pieces is the latest film from acclaimed director Sam Taylor-Johnson and stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson in a tour de force performance. Based on the best-selling book by James Frey with a screenplay by Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Sam Taylor-Johnson, the film also stars Billy Bob Thornton, Juliette Lewis, Giovanni Ribisi, Charlie Hunnam and Odessa Young.

While A Million Little Pieces doesn’t hold back from displaying the harsh and horrible realities of addiction, it is not only a study of addiction, but also of recovery, love, friendship and hope. It aims to offer a realistic look at how a young man pulls himself back from the brink of self-destruction.

A Million Little Pieces is distributed by Filmfinity (Pty) Ltd. and will make its official on-screen debut at the Johannesburg Film Festival (21 November at Ster-Kinekor Sandton at 5pm and at Rosebank Nouveau on 23 November at 9pm). The film will be released in South African cinemas on 7 February 2020.

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Marguerite van Eeden speel as Magdaleen, ’n gekultiveerde student, vasgekeer in die klein dorpie Potchefstroom, en sy smag na die liggies en kultuur van Londen. Na die aaklige verbrokkeling van haar verhouding, pak sy haar tasse en vertrek na haar droomstad saam met haar beste vriendin, Lara, soos vertolk deur Kenley Swart.

Hulle bly in Huis Konettie, saam met vyf ander Suid-Afrikaners wat in Londen werk. ’n Onverwagse romanse ontstaan ,tussen Mardaleen en haar Namibies-gebore huismaat, Hugo, gespeel deur Sean-Marco Vorster. Dit voel vir Magdaleen te goed om waar te wees en die oomblik wanneer dinge te ernstig raak en nie heeltemal verloop soos sy beplan nie, laat sy haar onsekerhede en vrese oorspoel in haar verhouding in.

Sy hardloop weg en gaan huis toe.

Hulle romanse vlam weer op wanneer hulle twee jaar later ontmoet, gevolg deur ’n uitnodiging van Hugo aan Mardaleen om vir hom in Namibië te gaan kuier. Haar naweek in Namibië ontaard in ’n nagmerrie. Afgesien hiervan, vra Hugo haar om te bly en om ’n nuwe lewe saam te bou, maar sy het ander planne en is hardkoppig.

Mardaleen wil kultuur, die stad en liggies hê – die plaas is nie ’n plek vir ’n meisie soos sy nie.

Met regie deur André Velts en Marius De Nysschen as kinematograaf, sluit die rolverdeling langsaan Marguerite Van Eeden, Sean-Marco Vorster en Kenley Swart, ander name in soos Amalia Uys, Pietie Beyers, Elani Dekker, Rick Strauss, Leché Joubert, Fiona Ramsey, Arno Greeff en vele meer.

Vergeet ook asseblief nie hierdie fliek se Hashtags nie: #VergeetMyNieFilm en #14Feb2020.

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Een les wat die lewe graag vir ’n mens wil leer, is dat niks ooit so eenvoudig is as wat dit mag voorkom nie. ’n Feit wat bevestig word deur regisseur Quentin Krog se splinternuwe rolprent, Ander Mens, wat net soos die hoofkarakter glad nie volgens ’n standaard-formule beoordeel kan word nie.

https://youtu.be/NM7zUkjcZ2c

Die fliek word aangebied vanuit die perspektief van Luitenant Erica Kruger, van die getuiebeskermingsprogram in die Kaap, en is gebaseer op die bekroonde skrywer, Zirk van den Berg  se topverkoperroman wat in 2014 bekroon is met die kykNET-Rapportprys in die rolprentkategorie.

Ander Mens vertel, met oorgenoeg aksie en donkerhumor om kykers op die punte van hulle stoele te hou, die spanningsvolle verhaal van ’n doodgewone en baie vervelige boekhouer, Daniël Niemand, wie se lewe onherroeplik verander nadat ’n reeks misverstande sy bestaan heeltemal omvergooi. Alhoewel die chaos tot groot tragedie lei, help dit hom ook om ’n belangrike persoonlike oorwinning te behaal.

Bennie is briljant in die rol van die bleeksiel, Daniël, wat sy hele lewe lank deur die mense rondom hom geboelie word. Sy saai bestaan verander egter gou in ’n nagmerrie wanneer ’n konfrontasie met sy huweliksberader, deur Tim Theron, skeefloop en sy skelm werkgewer en misdaadbaas, Frank Redelinghuys, gespeel deur Frank Opperman, hom help om die gemors skoon te maak.

Wanneer nuwe inligting Frank se aardsvyand, die polisieman Johannes Ackermann, deur James Borthwick die perfekte geleentheid gee om uiteindelik hierdie krimineel en sy broer Hansie, gespeel deur André Weideman vas te trek, word Daniël onwetend as lokaas gebruik en onder die toesig van Erica Kruger (Marlee van der Merwe) geplaas wat ’n paar donker geheime en agendas van haar eie het.

Ander sterre soos Jana Cilliers, Lika Berning, Clyde Berning, Neels van Jaarsveld, Laudo Liebenberg en meer is ook in die fliek te sien.

As regisseur, was Quentin ook baie oop vir kreatiewe voorstelle en verklap hy dat verskeie tonele op die laaste oomblik spontaan aangepas is as gevolg van die akteurs se interessante interpretasie daarvan.

Tussen die bloed en konsternasie deur, sal die kyker beslis gekonfronteer word met baie stereotipes, maar ook gou besef dat Ander Mens dieper temas soos afknouery, selfbeeld, respek, verhoudings, familiebande, geweld en misdaad aan die kaak stel, wys dat selfs die mees geharde persoonlikheid ook soms weerloos kan wees én dat ’n Niemand op die ou einde ook kan ontwikkel in ’n Iemand wat kan opstaan vir homself. Die rolprent beloof om gehore met tye te laat skaterlag as gevolg van spitsvondige dialoog en donker humor, asook te laat naels kou soos wat die gebeure ontvou en hulle besef dat dit elke mens se verantwoordelikheid is om sy eie identiteit in die lewe te bepaal.

Ander Mens is vervaardig deur Marche Media in samewerking met kykNET Films, M-Net Movies en die Departement van Handel en Nywerheid en word versprei deur Filmfinity (Edms) Bpk. en sal by plaaslike bioskope begin draai op 23 Augustus 2019.

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Vervaardiger Helena Spring het aangekondig dat die nalatenskap fliek, Poppie Nongena op 30 Januarie 2020 in fliekteaters landswyd uitgereik sal word. Die fliek is gebaseer op die bekroonde boek “Die Swerfjare van Poppie Nongena” deur Elsa Joubert.

Clementime Mosimane maak haar rolprentdebuut as Poppie. Die res van die rolverdeling sluit groot name in, soos Anna-Mart van der Merwe, Dawid Minnaar, Rolanda Marais en Lida Botha.  Nomsa Nene, wat die naamrol vertolk het in die verhoogproduksie Poppie – wat ook van 1982 tot 1984 internasionaal opgevoer is – vertolk die rol van Poppie se ma.

Poppie Nongena vertel die aangrypende verhaal van ʼn Afrikaanssprekende Xhosa-vrou wie se lewe om haar gesin draai terwyl sy probeer om stabiliteit te vind in ʼn era van ondraaglike onrus in Suid-Afrika. Dit speel in ʼn tyd af waarin swart vroue deur boetes, arrestasies en gedwonge verskuiwings gedwing is om hul tuistes te verlaat om in afgeleë gebiede, die sg. swart tuislande, ʼn nuwe lewe te gaan begin.

Wanneer Stone, Poppie se man, te siek word om te werk, beskou die owerhede haar skielik as ʼn  onwettige burger in haar eie land. Sy voer ʼn desperate stryd om wettiglik te mag bly, al beteken dit sy moet van huis na huis trek en gedurig aansoek doen vir permitte en verdere uitstel. Poppie werp alles in die stryd om nie van haar kinders geskei te word nie. Maar uiteindelik word sy vasgevang in die spervuur van haar kinders se behoeftes, haar man se siekte, ʼn gemeenskap se woede en onderdrukkende wette. In 1976 – net toe die onluste uitbreek – word Poppie uiteindelik gedwing om die stryd gewonne te gee.

Die roman is wyd geloof en word steeds beskou as baanbrekerswerk in die Afrikaans letterkunde. Dis binne die eerste vier maande drie maal herdruk en uiteindelik in dertien tale vertaal. Plaaslik is dit bekroon met die W.A. Hofmeyr-, CNA- en Louis Luyt-prys. Die British Royal Society het Joubert bekroon met die Winifred Holtby-prys en sy is in 1981 aangewys as ʼn “Fellow of the Society”. Joubert se latere werk is bekroon met talle plaaslike en internasionale pryse, onder meer die Hertzogprys, die mees gesogte prys in die Afrikaanse letterkunde.

Die veelbekroonde dramaturg en regisseur Christiaan Olwagen het die regie behartig, en Vicci Turpin was verantwoordelik vir die kinematografie. Olwagen was die regisseur van drie vorige rolprente (Die Seemeeu, Johnny is nie dood nie en Kanarie). Die draaiboek is deur Olwagen en die bekroonde dramaturg Saartjie Botha verwerk.

Poppie Nongena word moontlik gemaak deur kykNET, M-Net, FilmFinity, Die Departement van Handel en Nywerheid en Arco. Dit word landswyd in rolprentteaters in Januarie 2020 bekendgestel.

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The contemporary psychological thriller from Academy Award-winning director Neil Jordan, Greta, will open in SA cinemas nationwide this Friday, 5 July 2019.  Co-written by Jordan and Ray Wright, it tells the story of Frances McCullen, played by Chloë Grace Moretz, a young woman struggling to fit into New York life.

She has a job as a waitress in an upscale Manhattan restaurant, misses her deceased mother, and feels estranged from her newly married father. Her only true friend is Erica Penn, Maika Monroe’s character,  a boisterous 20-something from a wealthy family with whom she shares an apartment.

After discovering a handbag on a New York subway train, Frances sets about returning it to its rightful owner. This good deed places her in the orbit of an enigmatic middle-aged widow named Greta, played by the unstoppable Isabelle Huppert.

In between dog-shopping and cosy dinners, Frances makes an alarming discovery that changes her perspective on her new friend. When she tries to sever ties with Greta, things get stranger and more sinister and Frances’ once innocent remarks take on a very ironic resonance as Greta unleashes her inner stalker.

As a game of cat and mouse ensues, the legendary French actress gives a masterclass in crazy. She takes all the neuroses of her troubled characters in The Piano Teacher and Elle and amps them up a notch.

The film also stars Stephen Rea as a private investigator hired to investigate Greta and Colm Feore Frances’ estranged father, while Zawe Ashton plays a mysterious woman with important information about Greta’s past.

In Greta, Jordan is doing what he does best: subverting genre expectations and creating a unique and unexpected experience.

Greta is a contemporary thriller in the vein of films such as Fatal Attraction and Misery, with various twists and turns that the audience might not see coming. It is dubbed a psychological thriller that balances terror with comedy, making it hard to resist… like an unattended bag on the subway that’s just begging you to look inside.

Greta releases in South Africa on July the 5^th, and is distributed by Flimfinity.

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It’s hard to imagine how difficult it had to be for someone to invent all the things we now can’t live without, which is why the charged battle over rival electricity systems, fought between two brilliant visionaries, is so illuminating.

Fuelled by the intense rivalry between electricity titans Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse, The Current War tells the epic story of the cutthroat competition that literally lit up the modern world.

Directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon and executive produced by Martin Scorsese, the film stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Thomas Edison, the celebrity inventor who, backed by JP Morgan, as played by Matthew Macfadyen, is on the verge of bringing electricity to Manhattan with his radical new direct current (DC) technology.

On the eve of triumph, his plans are upended by the charismatic businessman George Westinghouse, played by Michael Shannon, who, aided by the legendary genius and scientific maverick Nikola Tesla played by Nicholas Hoult, here just a young upstart, has discovered fatal flaws in Edison’s DC design. Igniting a war of currents, Westinghouse and Tesla bet everything on a risky and dangerous idea for how to rapidly electrify America: with alternating current (AC).

Hostilities boil and lives are lost as the rivalry plays out on a thrilling, world-changing scale. As Edison and Westinghouse vie for the right to power the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, they spark one of the first and greatest corporate feuds in American history, establishing for future Titans of Industry the need to break all the rules.

When considering the look and feel of the film, the rules weren’t in Gomez-Rejon’s playbook, either. Rather than a stuffy period piece, he wanted to juice up The Current War with energy and bring a modern spirit to its telling.

Written by playwright Michael Mitnick, The Current War is high-minded and poised; it shows that while Edison and Westinghouse had vastly different personalities, they also had a lot in common.

In the film, Edison is intoxicated by his own genius. He is a lone wolf who takes his employees’ dedication for granted and refuses to share credit. While he loves his wife Mary, as played by Tuppence Middleton, and their children, he is too consumed by work to provide the attention they crave.

Westinghouse, by contrast, is devoted to his supportive spouse, Marguerite, played by Katherine Waterston, whose drive and ambition might even exceed his own. He treats his workers with gratitude and respect and values his collaboration and friendship with electrical engineer Franklin Pope, as portrayed by Stanley Townsend.

The cast is rounded out by Tom Holland, who plays Edison’s young confidant and personal secretary, Samuel Insull.

That said, The Current War looks beyond the attempt to understand loss and instead offers a feeling of rebirth through creativity, spontaneity, invention – a love of making things and a chance to explore the true nature of winning.

The Current War is a stylised historical drama, with a well-flowing narrative supported by gorgeous cinematography and a rousing score. While its sheds some light on the late 19th century battle between Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse to control the power grid, the film offers more than that – it is an inspirational tale about the wonder of invention.

The film is distributed by Filmfinity (Pty) Ltd. and will be released nationwide on 26 July 2019.

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The Film Factory en Nostalgia Productions is trots om aan te kondig dat ‘n nuwe filmaanpassing van Fiela se Kind, die topverkoper-roman deur Dalene Matthee, rolprentteaters regoor Suid-Afrika op 13 September 2019 sal tref.

Met regie deur Brett Michael Innes, skrywer/regisseur van die 2017 SAFTA-wenner vir die film, Sink, is die film vervaardig deur Danie Bester in samewerking met kykNET Films, Filmfinity (Pty) Ltd en die Departement van Handel en Nywerheid.

Die roman is voorheen aangepas in ‘n film in 1988 deur regisseur Katinka Heyns met Shaleen Surtie-Richards in ‘n uitvoering wat so ikonies was as die karakter deur wie dit geïnspireer is.

Die verhoogaktrise Zenobia Kloppers bring lewe aan Fiela Komoetie; met die nuwelinge Luca Bornman en Wayne Smith in die rol van Benjamin Komoetie. Drikus Volschenk en Cindy Swanepoel verskyn onderskeidelik as Elias en Barta van Rooyen met Melissa Willering, Andre Stoltz, Wayne van Rooyen en Stefan Erasmus ook in die rolverdeling.

Met kinematografie deur Tom Marais van onder meer Ballade vir ‘n Enkeling, en Verraiers, en redigering deur die gesogte C.A. van Aswegen, is die film op lokasie geskiet in die Knysna Bos en in die Karoo met produksie-ontwerp deur Chantel Carter, grimering deur Maritsa Maritz en kostuums deur Mari van der Merwe. Charlotte Buys is in beheer van die klankontwerp met ‘n oorspronklike klankbaan deur Kyle Shepherd.

Vir onmiddellike uitreiking kan u die film op @thefilmfactoryza volg, gebruik die hutsteken #FielaSeKind.

Fiela se Kind word landswyd in teaters op 13 September 2019 deur Filmfinity (Pty) Ltd uitgereik.

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Liewe Lisa, die debuutfilm van Kompanjie Stories, se lokprent is nou aanlyn te sien. Die film word vrygestel op 14 Februarie 2019 en kykers sal Hendrik Cronje en Elani Dekker in die hoofrolle sien.

Die film Liewe Lisa is nie net die filmmakers se eerste produksie nie, maar het ook as inspirasie gedien vir die begin van ‘n nuwe produksiemaatskappy, naamlik Kompanjie Stories, met die uitsluitlike missie om ware en oorspronklike storie-gebaseerde films aan die Afrikaanse mark te bring.

Die draaiboek is deur Hendrik Cronje geskryf en is geïnspireer deur die film, The Graduate van 1967. Vanweë Hendrik se groot behoefte om sy eie films te maak, het hy kragte saamgesnoer met sy broer, Johan Cronje, en hulle het begin gesels oor Liewe Lisa, toekomstige films en die behoefte aan storie-gebaseerde rolprente gebaseer op die werklike lewe. Gevolglik het hulle besluit om Liewe Lisa en ander toekomstige films self te vervaardig.

Liewe Lisa se regie is deur Hendrik Cronje behartig, en hy vertolk ook die hoofrol van Daniel in die film. As skrywer, was die rol van Daniel in sy brein gegiet, wat aan die produksie die ekstra voordele van die karakter gebied het. Die regie van die film was nooit onderhandelbaar vir Hendrik nie, aangesien hy homself eerstens as ‘n regisseur beskou, tweedens as ‘n skrywer en derdens as ‘n akteur. Om daardie redes het die broers besluit dat Hendrik die regisseur sou wees, asook die hoofrol sou vertolk.

Die karakter Daniel is deurmekaar en bekommerd oor sy toekoms. Hy gradueer binnekort en gaan sy loopbaan eersdaags begin, maar het ‘n geheime droom om ‘n skrywer te word. In sy strewe na opwinding, word hy vasgevang in ‘n buite-egtelike verhouding met ‘n invloedryke besigheidsman se vrou. Na die verhouding verby is, ontmoet Daniel vir Lisa, vertolk deur Elani Dekker, die dogter van dieselfde besigheidsman.

Teen sy belange, raak Daniel verlief op Lisa. Die foute van sy verlede haal hom in en Daniel roep die koers wat die lewe vir hom bepaal het vaarwel en hy ontmoet vir Tom, gespeel deur Zane Meas – ‘n eenvoudige visserman.  Daniel verwyl sy dae deur vis te vang en om met Tom te gesels oor die lewe en die liefde en hy deel sy herinneringe van die verlies van sy lewensmaat.  Tom onthul ‘n ander kant van homself aan Daniel en help hom om sy ware potensiaal te bereik.

Liewe Lisa se rolverdeling sluit ook in, onder meer Albert Maritz, Barbara-Marie Immelman, Stian Bam, Marco Spaumer, Chrystal-Donna Roberts en meer.

Die film word landswyd op 14 Februarie 2019 deur Filmfinity (Pty) Ltd uitgereik.

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