IQHAWE MAGAZINE- CON-HILL FILM SCREENING

con-hill human rights festival:

FILMS

"using representation to tackle socialmisrepresentations about black people"

Pretty Renae Mangena &Sikelelwa Vuyeleni

ASCREATIVES

LIVING IN SOUTH AFRICA

25 years after the abolishment of apartheid. We understand the sacrifices that were made by those that came before us, we aware of the privilege that comes with being able to practice our craft. We are also aware of the fact that their sacrifices have granted us the opportunity to be able to tell our own stories using whatever tool at our disposal to critically challenge social and political ills that still face us today.

So when we got the opportunity to screen documentary films by young black filmmakers at the 2nd annual Constitution Hill, Human Rights Festival which ran from the 21st till the 24th of March. Our main objective was to showcase work by young black creatives who are using representation to tackle social misrepresentations about black people. While highlighting the fact that even though there has been a transition in social, politics and economic structures in the country there are still a lot of issues surrounding the lived experiences of black people and other minority groups living in the country.

We also wanted to use the opportunity to pay homage to the women that had spent time incarcerated at the women’s jail which is where we got to screen the films. Furthermore, to use the platform to celebrate blackness and the multilayered identities that exist in the spaces we dwell in as young millennials living in the country today. And in doing so giving black creatives the platform to be at the driving force of defining black representation.

The common thread among the films was the overall urgency in the representation of black people by black filmmakers The first film being a flm called “Nomasonto” directed by Neo Twala,which aims make a commentary on the different notions surrounding the thrift culture and how one dresses and visually represents themselves is closely linked to identity.

" THE DRIVING FORCE OFDEFINING BLACKREPRESENTATION"

While “Conversations about Home “ directed by Anastasia Nkhuna investigates the notion of being away from one's home country, how this influences your livelihood experiences, particularly living in a country such as South Africa. And “A revolutionary Act”directed by Tsogo Kupa investigates the idea of culture and the intersectionality it has with what society considers taboo and therefore tries to find the root level of the problem which is evidently present particularly in the context of homosexuality. And "Ubuhle" directed by Pretty Renae Mangena and Mbali Mashaba aims to instigate a conversation about beauty standards and the ideologies that have defined these in and around black communities, particularly in modern day South Africa, and how they are often linked to history and politics of survival.

Which is also closely linked to “A Gentle Magic”directed by Lerato Mbangeni which investigates the extent in which colourism infiltrates into society, and the extent of skin bleaching reaches in those spaces. But enough about what we have to say, and hear it from the filmmakers themselves about their work below.