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Ballito boys win
BIG
A SHORT FILM ENTITLED AMANZI OLWANDE – WHICH MEANS OCEAN WATER – MADE BY A CREW AND CAST FROM BALLITO – HAS WON THE JUDGES’ CHOICE AWARD IN THE WORLD’S LARGEST SHORT FILM COMPETITION, MY RØDE REEL 2020, WRITES SHIRLEY LE GUERN
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or Timothy Hay, who both wrote and directed the short film, and his production company Hellmot Productions, news of the win came in the middle of the night due to the time difference between South Africa and Australia where the competition sponsor is based. But it was a dream come true. “I had always wanted to enter this competition because it is an international competition with awesome prizes. It is not just a statue that you win at the end of the day, but also equipment and 200 000 Australian dollars. So, I thought we’d take a chance. It was a bit of a gamble but I loved the story, the content and the opportunity to film in the Transkei where it is easy to make every image amazing because it is such a beautiful place,” he says. The film tells the heart-rending true story of how teenage surfer Avuyile “Avo” Ndamase lost his 15-year-old brother, Zama, during a shark attack while the two were catching waves off Port St Johns. The story was due to be included in a documentary on which Timothy was working. When that fell through, Timothy
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TOP: Director and writer, Tim
Hay, with the star of the award winning film, Avuyile Ndamase. ABOVE: The three stars of the film: From left: Sanele Antonio Mthethwa and Mpathi Ndlovu who play the ill-fated teenage brothers with Avuyile “Avo” Ndamase who plays himself.
says he couldn’t forget the story and wrote a short script which he discussed with the now 26-year-old Avo Ndamase over coffee. It takes the tragedy one step further and tells how Avo continues to surf to connect with his lost sibling. Avo played himself as an adult and acted as an assistant on the set while young Salt Rock surfers, Sanele Mthethwa and Mpathi Ndlovu, played the parts of the 15- and
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