‘Dear Mandela’ wins ‘Outstanding Filmmaker Award’

SHORT FILM ABOUT ABAHLALI BASEMJONDOLO WINS AWARD AT PANGEA DAY
19/05/2008

‘Dear Mandela’, a short film about Abahlali baseMjondolo, has been chosen out of 2500 entries from over 100 countries to be one of 34 films featured on the Pangea Day website, a global hub that seeks to bring the world together through the power of film. Filmmakers Dara Kell and Christopher Nizza spent a week with Abahlali baseMjondolo in December 2007. They produced a short film so that a worldwide audience could learn about the plight, and the fight, of the shackdwellers.

‘Dear Mandela’ was awarded the ‘Outstanding Filmmaker Award’ representing Africa. The award includes a $5,000 grant towards the production of the full-length documentary film, which we are presently fundraising for. We plan to return to South Africa to film for a longer period of time, to capture the scope and complexity of the situation. Here’s an excerpt from the Pangea Day press release:

PARTICIPANT MEDIA AND PANGEA DAY ANNOUNCE THE FIVE WINNING ENTRIES IN THE “OUTSTANDING FILMMAKERS AWARDS PROGRAM” The winners, one from each of the following continents – North America, South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia (including Australia) – were announced this evening in Santa Monica, CA. “Each of the five winning films is an outstanding example of the kind of cinematic storytelling that reflects Participant’s mission to inspire and compel social change,” said Jim Berk, CEO of Participant Media. “On behalf of Participant, I’d like to congratulate all five filmmakers for their remarkable achievements and look forward to seeing the treatments that will be competing for the development grant.”

Thanks to Participant Media for recognizing the powerful story of Abahlali baseMjondolo. Many thanks to our wonderful crew, and to all those who filmed with us in December. We also thank Fazel Khan and Sally Giles for sharing their footage. The international recognition for ‘Dear Mandela’ is affirmation that the story of the Shackdwellers Movement is one that will inspire the action necessary to end the unacceptable conditions in South Africa.

To see the film, go to http://www.pangeaday.org/pangeadayFilms.php

Dear Mandela cited in Le Monde diplomatique

Dear Mandela is cited in an article detailing South Africa’s glaring economic imbalances in this months edition of the French publication Le Monde diplomatique. Philippe Rivière writes a compelling piece covering many aspects of the complex story of the ‘New South Africa.’ These include lack of decent housing, lack of water resources, danger of shack fires, damaging economic policies, growing discontentment with the ANC and the enormous allocation of money for 2010 World Cup related projects. The author also mentions “social movements of extraordinary vitality, such as the Anti-Privatisation Forum and Abahlali baseMjondolo, are beginning to cohere into national networks and are not afraid to speak out or take to the streets.” Readers are encouraged to watch Dear Mandela on YouTube to learn more about Abahlali. Check out the article here:

http://mondediplo.com/2008/05/13southafrica

Dear Mandela accepted into Pangea Day

We are very excited about the six-minute short version of Dear Mandela being accepted into Pangea Day, a global event with the mission of bringing the world together through the power of film. To learn more about Pangea Day click here:

http://www.pangeaday.org/

The film will be exhibited, along with 20 other short films, on the Pangea Day website beginning May 10th.