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ARCHIVE

25th(2023)



Milisuthando

Milisuthando BONGELA

  • South Africa, Colombia
  • 2023
  • Asian Premiere
  • 129min
  • DCP
  • color/black and white

Asian Premiere

SYNOPSIS

Set in past and present South Africa, Milisuthando is a poetic coming-of-age personal essay documentary on love and what it means to become human in the context of race, explored through the memories of Milisuthando, who grew up during apartheid but didn't know it was happening until it was over. 

PROGRAM NOTE

In an interview, director Milisuthando Bongela said, ¡°I¡¯ve learned in the last couple of years that the antidote to fascism is intimacy.¡± This documentary also deals with history and memory in a private and intimate mood. The first half of the film tells about the history of apartheid, the earlier discrimination against black people further back, and the present day for Bongela and her family, who are bound to be affected by it, directly or indirectly. Through interviews, archival footage, home videos, photographs, and more, the film effectively illustrates the complex conflicts surrounding apartheid and Transkei, one of the temporary independent states designated by it, as well as the complex emotions that still linger. The second half focuses on interviews with the director¡¯s longtime friends, who reveal their insights and struggles with blackness and whiteness in an intensely personal and honest way. At the same time, the film challenges a more aesthetic approach by using a variety of footage, including poetic narration and performative scenes such as prayers, rather than trying to convey information. [HAHM Yeon-sun]

Director

  • Milisuthando BONGELAMilisuthando BONGELA

    Milisuthando Bongela is an award winning writer, blogger and editor whose work pivots around the subject of the post-apartheid condition from the perspective of black middle class South Africans and women. She is currently exploring the post-apartheid condition in South African society, focusing on the psychological effects of racism on Model C educated black South Africans through her first film. 

Credit

  • ProducerMarion ISAACS
  • Cast Milisuthando BONGELA
  • Screenwriter Milisuthando BONGELA
  • Cinematography LEE Hankyeol
  • Editor LEE Hankyeol