YouTuber Kgothatso Mmoledi is tapping into unorthodox filmmaking methods as he used a smartphone to produce a short film from the comfort of his bedroom.
The 29-year-old from Ga-Rankuwa, north of Pretoria, used a Samsung Galaxy S3 to produce the 11-minute short film, Suicidal Black Man, that debuted last weekend on YouTube.
The film is about how suicidal young black men can combat the scourge.
Mmoledi portrays the lead character that opens with him lying flat on the floor in his bedroom next to a brown night stand, with his eyes wide open and firmly staring at a knife next to him – presumably about to take his own life.
It’s a riveting, yet uncomfortable scene to watch.
“The film is about a young adult who is contemplating committing suicide,” Mmoledi explains.
“So in contemplating suicide, he is confronted by a figment of his imagination who questions his views on various topics in order to attempt to change his mind about taking his own life.”
The film comes in the wake of the alarming World Health Organisation's report that suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among 15 and 19 year olds and that 77% of global suicides occur in low and middle-income countries.
Mmoledi holds a diploma in law from the University of South Africa (Unisa) and he adds that the film was inspired by the death of a childhood friend who committed suicide.
“I was hurt and in disbelief. This was someone I went to pre-school with and grew up with in primary school. During my teenage years I was bullied at school and became suicidal,” he shares.
“As time went on I found religion, became Muslim and started building a relationship with God, found purpose and those suicidal thoughts left my mind.”
Mmoledi says he has received a lot of positive responses from people who have already watched the film.
“People told me that the film is beautiful, well-made and produced well,” says Mmoledi.
Mmoledi dreams of having his own law firm after completing his course. He is currently studying bachelor of law at Unisa.
“I want to have a law firm… [Because] filmmaking has a lot of legal issues relating to copyrights,” he says.
“The final goal is to get to the global level and produce one of the best movies in the world. I did not go to university for this [filmmaking] and I am able to do what I am doing right now. I believe I can compete and be the best filmmaker in the world.”
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