Safta soapie awards drama

The best soapie category at the SA Film and Television Awards will probably be contested by only four shows - e.tv is expected to withdraw its Rhythm City and Scandal!

Between them, the shows have an average of 6million viewers.

An e.tv source told The Times yesterday that the channel might pull out all its shows, including music programme Club 808, from the sixth edition of the awards this weekend.

It appears that e.tv, like Danie Odendaal Productions - producers of SABC2's 7de Laan - is unhappy with the selection process and believes it has been sidelined.

SABC1's Generations, Isidingo on SABC3, M-Net's The Wild and SABC2's other soapie, Muvhango, will now slug it out in the seemingly dubious category. 7de Laan was withdrawn from the awards last month.

A source said: "For a very long time our shows were nominated and never won.

"Yet we feel we have had some great story lines in our two soapies."

The fact that several judges on the panel were SABC people also irked e.tv, which is expected to make an announcement before the event.

"The Saftas invited a whole host of Generations cast members to the nominees party but only had space for three guests from both Scandal! and Rhythm City," said the source.

Best actor nominee Clint Brink, of Scandal! said yesterday: "There are still issues between broadcasters and companies.

"Even the way I found out about my nomination was strange - I wasn't called or SMSed by the Saftas. Instead, I found out on Twitter."

Brink said he received a call from the organisers of the March 9 and 10 ceremony to find out why he had not responded - to which he replied that he had not received an invitation.

He admitted he was confused by the entire controversy but said he was not surprised.

A few years ago Generations' creator, Mfundi Vundla, pulled the show out of all the categories it was nominated in and told his actors to stay away from the ceremony.

Brink added: "I feel actors and people in the industry are scared to say something because, as soon as they do, they become dispensable."

Last month 7de Laan, which celebrates 12 years on air next month, pulled out of the awards because producers were "unaware it was the National Film and Video Foundation's policy to exclude productions which did not submit entries in performance categories".

UPDATE: e.tv sent out a statement on Monday afternoon confirming the withdrawal of its shows.

Group head of e.tv channels Monde Twala said in the statement: "It is unfortunate that we have had to withdraw our programming from the SAFTAs but we feel that it is necessary to do so in order to achieve greater organisation cohesion."

The channel refused to divulge reasons for its withdrawal.