Filmmaker's tale of racial encounter in SA suburbia makes its debut on world stage

A random encounter that highlighted everyday racial tensions has catapulted a young South African filmmaker to international prominence.

Tebogo Malebogo, 25, from Cape Town, has been chosen to show his short film, Mthunzi, at the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland in August.

The film grew out of an encounter Malebogo had while walking through a suburban neighbourhood.

He saw a woman who had fainted in her doorway. When he went to help, one of the woman's relatives demanded to know what he, a black man, was doing there.

Even after explaining his presence, the lingering discomfort clouded the atmosphere and “prevented the two from seeing each other as anything more than society had conditioned us to see”, said Malebogo.

“We are all just expected to live in harmony, but there are many micro-aggressions and little nuances that find their ways into that daily life, and when this incident happened to me, I wondered to myself, 'how can I explore this using film?'.

“We all carry a little prejudice within us and the film makes the audience interrogate the 'why'.

“I am just interested in exploring a modern South Africa, where people of different races live in the same areas, and what that looks like.

“The ultimate goal for this film is to spark a dialogue, and to show on an international stage how much crossover there is with socio-political issues.”

Before making Mthunzi, which was filmed in Strand, Cape Town, Malebogo worked on music videos, as a cinematographer on smaller productions and as a casting director for commercials.

He was also the cinematographer and editor for a film about safari guide training in Africa, made by British naturalist and author Sarah Roberts.

Malebogo and Mthunzi producer Peet van Staden will attend the festival, which takes place from August 7-17.

The festival is famous for its discoveries and open-air screen in a town square, where almost 8,000 spectators can be seated. The award ceremony takes place on the final day.