South African Film Felix Wins in Germany

Feel-good South African film FELIX – which carries  the message that ‘in every one of us lies a talent waiting to be shared’ – has aptly had its own talent recognised by winning the Best Children’s Film at a Festival in Germany.

FELIX was selected from over 400 worldwide entries for the €7 500 award at the Lucas International Children’s Film Festival in Germany last weekend, where the panel of judges included four children as well as industry experts.

The family film, which was already chosen for the Audience Award at the Durban International Film Festival, gives “a multifaceted insight into South Africa today” said the jury, and “tells an entertaining and exciting story with ease, great actors and good music.”

FELIX tells the story of “13-year-old Felix Xaba who dreams of becoming a saxophonist like his late father, but his mother Lindiwe thinks jazz is the devil’s music,” according to the film’s website synopsis. “When Felix leaves his township friends to take up a scholarship at an elitist private school, he defies his mother and turns to two ageing members of his father’s old band to help him prepare for the school jazz concert.”

The all-star cast includes Oscar-nominated and England-based but Johannesburg-born Dame Janet Suzman in her first South African film. She plays Felix’s favourite teacher and says that “I’ve always thought that teaching was an underrated and very important profession. Everyone can remember having a good teacher on your side at school, who made a difference in your life.”

The title role is played by Hlayani Junior Mabasa, who made his debut at 18-months-old in a TV advert, and at 14, has already acted in British and German TV series including ‘Coronation Street’.

Hlayani was cast from over 400 hopefuls, and found it easy to identify with his character – they both love performing, both love soccer and hate rugby…and they both know how it feels to be an outcast at a new school, in Hlayani’s case Jules High in Jeppe South.

SAFTA Best Actress winner Linda Sokhulu, who plays his mother Lindiwe, says. “Hlayani’s expressions are beautiful; your heart just goes out to him.”

Hlayani had never studied music, but threw himself wholeheartedly into lessons and learnt the basics of playing the pennywhistle in a couple of days, and the sax within a month.

The  movie is directed by SAFTA Lifetime Achievement Award winner Roberta Durrant who gathered an all-female production team, in a South Africa first. After  receiving the award Durrant said: “We had two incredible screenings at Lucas, complete with ovations and whistles…The audience absolutely loved the film but I didn’t expect to receive the main award as the competition was stiff.”

The award is not unexpected to South African reviewers who have been raving about FELIX:

Barry Ronge called it “a feel-good story about a youngster who has the courage to follow his dream; a fresh and entertaining note in SA cinema.”

Khetha Mkhize (from Yeahbo.net) admitted he “was in tears numerous times. It has been a while since a film touched me that way.”

And Leon van Nierop (from The Citizen) commended it for being “a film for all ages that doesn’t try to be politically correct or address any contentious issues, nor drag in apartheid or the difficulties of the past with it… A fun South African movie about innocence and accepting who you are, but also accommodating the family problems caused by our history.”

FELIX has already sold out its screenings at the prestigious BFI London Film Festival, and will also screen at Vancouver International Film Festival later this month.

WATCH THE FELIX MOVIE TRAILER HERE:

MORE INFO ABOUT FELIX

www.felixthemovie.com
www.facebook.com/felixfilm
www.twitter.com/felixmovie