All of Cape Town in my viewfinder.
Radically funny and enjoyable Car Guard Song (by Derick Watts & The Sunday Blues)
"Yes we know it’s Christmas" say African musicians as they finally record a response to Band Aid
CAPE TOWN. After 28 years of silently tolerating it, a group of unemployed local musicians have joined forces to release a Christmas single, entitled ‘Yes we do,’ in response to the Bob Geldof inspired Band Aid song, ‘Do they know it’s Christmas?’.
Overheard
Julius Malema apparently stated: “I want the people of South Africa to treat me the same way they treated Nelson Mandela.”
Evita Bezuidenhout responded with: “What a great idea. Let’s start with the 27 years in jail … . . “
Rad trailer for SA movie, ETERNITY
(Pity the accents suck.)
Vuvuzelas can't drown out din of Fifa's money making machine
by James Corrigan
Just before Italy walk out of the tunnel tomorrow evening to begin their defence of the World Cup trophy, the blimp will scan its lenses over the startling panorama which surrounds the Green Point Stadium. There’s Table Mountain, there’s Robben Island, there’s the Victoria and Albert Waterfront. What a picture, what a country, what a con.
By rights, the eye in the sky should be sweeping across the Athlone township, across the squalor and the grime, before it reaches the Athlone Stadium. This is the venue where the original South African winning bid said the Cape Town matches should be held, this is the venue which the local government on many occasions insisted would be the city’s primary venue. But Fifa didn’t agree. “A billion television viewers don’t want to see shacks and poverty on this scale,” said one of the organisation’s reports.
So instead of spending the 200 million rand (£18m) to make the necessary upgrades to the ground nestled in the football-obsessed environs, Fifa insisted the South Africans spend 4.5bn rand on a new stadium nestled in all the scenery. The vista would, of course, make it more palatable to all those billions who didn’t have a clue there were social problems in South Africa and hence make it easier to sell advertising for the games at the Green Point, including a semi-final. And while they were at it, Fifa could lob another 20,000 or so seats on the plans to ensure they receive more revenue. Everyone’s a winner. Well, everyone at Fifa, that is.
Putting South African Films On The World Stage
by Clayton Truscott
For South African filmmakers, the 2000’s may be remembered as the decade where their contributions to film were recognized far beyond their borders.
In 2005, Tsotsi became the first South African film to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Tsotsi is about a gang leader who steals a baby from a mother whose car he stole. Interestingly, the film’s director, Gavin Hood, went on to direct X-Men Origins: Wolverine, released in May 2009.
In August 2009, District 9 premiered in theatres. Promotion for this film can best be summed up in three concepts: aliens, Johannesburg, and producer Peter Jackson, best known as director of the Lord of the Rings film trilogy. District 9’s sci-fi interpretation of South African apartheid was widely praised as one of the most original films to come along in years. And, the film was comprised mostly of South African cast and crew.
The success of District 9 arguably put the South African film industry on the map for good. And even though building it up to becoming an industry that can compete and exist on the same playing field as Hollywood and Bollywood won’t happen overnight, it is possible with the kind of talent S.A. is starting to foster.
I recently caught up with groundbreaking South African filmmaker, Simon Hansen, who has been on the boil of activity since the early 1990’s. His résumé is hard to top within the borders of his homeland, South Africa, having been involved in a number of hefty productions performing a number of roles – from producing, to digital effects, developing new cameras, to writing and directing. In 2005 he co-produced the short film, Alive in Joburg, which is what District 9 was based on. The other co-producer was Sharlto Copley, who stars in the feature-length District 9. Neill Blomkamp directed the original short and the feature film.
This video is for Humans Only!
![[DarkDippy on Bloggers.com]](http://bloggers.com/u/71301/p/img_01.png "DarkDippy on Bloggers.com")
