SA short film Five Tiger has been selected to feature in the Sundance Film Festival in the US next year.
The festival is scheduled to take place from January 28 to February 3. The film, written and directed by rising filmmaker Nomawonga Khumalo, features actors like Fumani Shilubana, Menzi Biyela and Khalalelo Makhanda.
Five Tiger, which is slang for a R50 note, tells the story of Fiona, a God-fearing woman who finds herself in a transactional relationship with the leader of her church as she tries to support her sick husband and daughter.
Khumalo said the film also explored feminism within the religious environment while transcending centuries and continents.
“When I heard that we have made the selection I was over the moon. Beyond the joy of being able to tell stories that are important to me, there is a great pleasure that comes with knowing that the story resonated with the programmers of a festival as prestigious as Sundance,” she said.
According to Khumalo, the idea for the film developed out of a conversation she had with a prostitute that she met while working on a television production that was filming on the outskirts of Johannesburg last year.
“While engaging with the woman and speaking about both culture and religious issues, it was difficult for me to judge her. We went our separate ways but our conversation kept me thinking after she was long gone. She told me that she believed that as long as she was able to work hard and tithe at church, God would provide for her and her family. As I replayed our conversation, I couldn’t help but feel bitter over how this woman’s faith kept her going but in reality, it did little to change her circumstances,” she said.
The Five Tiger script was first shortlisted for the 2020 Sundance Development Lab and 2021 Cinemart after being selected for the 2019 Durban FilmMart where it was named best SA feature.
Film producer Brett Innes said: “We are incredibly excited for what the Five Tiger Sundance selection means both for Nomawonga and The Bursary [Khumalo's feature debut]. The script is dear to both of us and the producing team can’t wait to see her bring it to life.
"We’ve assembled an incredible group to support her, from Paulo Areal and Schalk Burger who produced Ellen Pakkies to one of the leading film producers in the Netherlands, Raymond van der Kaaij of Revolver Amsterdam.”
Khumalo has worked on the production of films such as Danish western The Salvation in 2014 and Chappie in 2015.
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