Whale Cottage Portfolio Blog

John Cleese, master comedian, has signed to play a lead role in the movie of the South African-written book ‘Spud’ by John van de Ruit, reports The Times.  Local teenage actor Troye Sivan, who starred in ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’, plays the other lead role in the movie.

The movie will be financed privately and produced in South Africa, a rarity in South African film production.   This means that the movie producers will make all creative decisions, rather than have them made by financiers and studio executives.

The book and movie are set at the elite private school Michaelhouse in KwaZulu-Natal, and John “Spud’ Milton is the principal character of the book.  Van de Ruit went to school at Michaelhouse.  The story is set in 1990, the year that the ANC was unbanned and Nelson Mandela was released.  The book won numerous prizes, including the Bestsellers Choice Award.

The movie will be a novel means of marketing South Africa.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com

South Africa features strongly on the Oscar nominee list, which was announced in Hollywood last week, reports the Cape Argus, and will be good for the marketing of the country.

South African film ‘District 9′, a movie which is set in a township in Johannesburg, has been nominated for Best Picture, Best Editing, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Visual Effects awards.    ‘District 9′ is up against ‘Avatar’, which has won all the major movie awards to date, specifically as far as special effects are concerned, a strength of “District 9′ too. 

‘Invictus’ has been enjoyed by many South Africans, living in the country and abroad, who nostalgically  relived the World Cup Rugby championship, which was played in South Africa in 1995.   Then-President Nelson Mandela wore the number 6 jersey when he went on the field before the final match between South Africa and New Zealand was played, to help the South African team face the power and strength of the New Zealand team.  South Africa won against all odds.   Matt Damon successfully plays Springbok rugby captain Francois Pienaar, at least as far as his South African accent goes, while Morgan Freeman is less successful with Nelson Mandela’s accent.   See the review of Invictus here.   Invictus has been nominated for Best Actor (Morgan Freeman) and Best Supporting Actor (Matt Damon).

The Oscars take place on 7 March.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com

A novel relationship between Hilton Hotels and the producers of the (Oscar nominated) “Up in the Air” has led to a most successful marketing campaign for the American hotel chain at little cost.

The fast-paced movie stars George Clooney in the lead role, and his love for being on the move around the USA, utilising his credit and loyalty cards to travel efficiently and cost-effectively.   When his boss threatens to ground him, his world collapses, especially as he is on the brink of reaching his one and only goal of 10 million frequent flyer miles.

The movie was shot at various Hilton Hotels, and “signature” Hilton products and amenities were used in the filming, reports the Weekend Argus.   The movie director Jason Reitman was a ‘Hilton HHonors frequent traveller scheme’ member before making the movie, and was familiar with the HIlton brand.   Most of the filming took place at the hotel group’s St Louis branches.  No payment changed hands, but the hotel group made accommodation and filming space available, and launched its own marketing campaign in conjunction with the movie.

Whilst the Hilton branding was visible, it never dominated, nor alienated the viewer of the movie.  In reading the article, the subtle Hilton branding became more evident.   Some of the Hilton products shown in the movie include the HHonors Diamond VIP card, MP3 alarm clock radio, room service menu, phones, uniforms, and name badges.   Services such as the Hilton HHonors check-in service, the shuttle service, the restaurants, and the hotel bathrobes, are shown.

A website www.hilton.com/UpintheAir has been created, to show how Hilton staff have helped frequent travellers and provided service by walking the extra mile.

“‘Up in the Air’ is set within the world of travel and Hilton is the most recognised name in hospitality, so our involvement provides additional credibility and authenticity.  Hilton links to the messages in the film in a seamless and subtle manner” said a Hilton spokesperson.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com

When leaving the cinema after seeing ‘Invictus’, I could not come to a conclusion about my feelings about the movie.   While it has a star cast of international actors (Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon) and a star director in Clint Eastwood, and is set in Cape Town and Johannesburg, which bodes well for the country’s awareness and visibility, there was a nagging question as to which movie-goers around the world would be interested in a movie about South Africa’s transformation into a democracy almost 20 years ago, and more particularly, the country winning the Rugby World Cup in 1995 against all odds.   

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt and one of their adopted sons were at the premiere of the movie in Los Angeles a week ago, and one wonders what would have made them see the movie, other than respect for their fellow-actors and the producer.

The filming is mainly concentrated on the rugby field and in Madiba’s official residences and offices.  Cape Town features in the scenic shots, one being a magnificent shot of a SAA aeroplane flying in front of Table Mountain; various shots of the V&A Waterfront, including a trip to Robben Island on the ferry, and a number of rugby match celebrations at Ferrymans; and a run on Beach Road in Mouille Point, the lighthouse forming a dominant backdrop.

While most would say that Morgan Freeman was the star of the movie, playing the role of the magnificent Nelson Mandela, who sees the Rugby World Cup as a way in which to unite 42 million South Africans, it is Matt Damon who is the real star.   Matt Damon IS Francois Pienaar, and speaks with a most believable South African accent; Morgan Freeman is Morgan Freeman in voice, and is Nelson Mandela in looks only.

Nostalgically, the movie was interesting to see, in observing how much and yet how little has changed in South Africa in 20 years.    Long-forgotten brand names, such as Volkskas, Xerox and Iscor, and old logos such as those of SAA and Coca Cola, were visible around the rugby fields.

One error was that Madiba was seen to be reading the Cape Argus for breakfast!   Some characters had too pronounced an (unrealistic) South African accent, including Pienaar’s mother, and the white security men.   Pienaar’s wife Nerine, played by local actress Marguerite Wheatley, was very real in acting and speaking.  Both Freeman and Damon have been nominated for the Screen Actors’ Guild awards, as best actor and best supporting actor, respectively.

The name of the movie comes from the Invictus poem by William Ernest Henley, which Mandela had in his prison cell on Robben Island, and was the mantra by which he survived:

It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishment the scroll,

I am the master of my fate:

I am the captain of my soul.

Given the 2010 World Cup, and a similar scenario of only a particular section of the South African population enjoying soccer,  ’Invictus’ may hold clues as to how President Zuma and FIFA will get all South Africans behind the spirit of the world’s biggest soccer event.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com

The movie ‘Disgrace’, which is based on Nobel prize winner JM Coetzee’s Booker Prize winning book by the same title, is a beautifully shot movie, depicting South Africa’s beauty, as well as its social complexity, and should stimulate tourism to this country, if the viewers can look past the shocking depiction of the crime stereotype associated with South Africa.  The movie is set in Cape Town, Grahamstown and on a farm in the Eastern Cape.  It has just started screening locally.

Starring John Malkovitch as UCT Professor David Lurie, fortunately without any attempt to speak with a South African accent, all other actors are South African, and make one feel that one knows characters such as those depicted in the movie, and that one can empathise with them.   At all times the Malkovitch character feels to be the odd one out.

A Cape Argus review summarises the book and the movie as follows: “Like the book, there’s a definite sense that the person who created this piece of art loves the country and doesn’t understand the people.”  Local actress  and radio presenter Natalie Becker also stars in the film, as does South African actress Jessica Haines.  DO Productions in Cape Town co-produced the movie.

The book originally caused an outcry, being criticised for reinforcing racial stereotypes, despite the new South Africa.    Coetzee left for Australia soon after writing the book, and now lives there.   The director and screenwriter are an Australian couple, yet seem to have an excellent grip in representing life in South Africa.

The movie is showing at the Cinema Nouveau movie houses at Cavendish Square and the V&A Waterfront, as well as at Canal Walk, and was a winner at the Toronto and Middle East Film Festivals.

Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com 

Matt Damon is the most high-profile VIP to be riding in the Cape Argus Pick ‘n Pay Cycle Tour today, together with 35000 other cyclists.

The Cape Argus reports that Francois Pienaar, ex-Springbok Rugby captain,  inspired Damon to participate in the Cycle Race.  Damon plays Pienaar in the movie ‘The Human Factor’, which is about the 1995 Rugby World Cup win for South Africa, and is being filmed in Cape Town at the moment.   Pienaar climbed Mount Kilimanjaro this past week, only to come back and get on his bicycle and participate in the Cycle Tour, all in aid of charity.

The Cycle Tour has been successfully hosted in Cape Town for many years, and is estimated to contribute R 400 million to the economy of Cape Town and the Western Cape through entry fees, accommodation and restaurant costs, and travel costs.   Part of the monies generated by the race will go to charities.    The Tour also plays an important tourism marketing role for the city and its environs. 

For the first time in a number of years, the Cycle Tour will go through Chapman’s Peak, but only after the cyclists have signed an indemnity absolving the race organisers from any responsibility.

A number of Hollywood stars will make Cape Town their temporary home for the next few months, to shoot movies in the city, reports the Weekend Argus.

‘The Human Factor’ is a movie about South Africa winning the Rugby World Cup in 1995, and will star Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon.   It is based on the book ‘The Human Factor: Nelson Mandela and the Game that changed the world’.   Damon plays Francois Pienaar, then Springbok rugby team captain.  

‘Heaven and Earth’ will feature Pierce Brosnan, playing Lord Charles Somerset, the Cape’s first governor.   The Castle will be used as one of the locations for the shoot.

Seven international movies will commence shooting in Cape Town in the next three months.

The Cape Town Film Office, which has received negative publicity from industry players for its administrative inefficiency, causing shoots to be moved to Johannesburg, should be investigated, the Western Cape MEC for Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Garth Strachan, has announced.

According to Screen Africa, Strachan said: “The film industry is up in arms that the Cape Town Film Permit Office is effectively sinking the sector in bureaucratic quicksand. I am mindful of the fact that regulating these activities - including the location and control of shoots and the system of providing permits - is a local council function. However, I cannot simply shrug my shoulders at the numerous complaints from companies trying to do business in the City. News reports in the weekend press confirm numerous complaints and anecdotal evidence that filming in Cape Town, in the view of private sector companies, is very difficult.

“I understand that the Permit Office is facing challenges and is under-resourced. We need a system in place that is 2010 capable in terms of being able to handle media and media tourism groups that are small and travel through locations much faster than commercial or feature productions. However, the City has been aware of these challenges for some time and I would expect them to be further down the road in facing them than we are at present.

“Cape Town is competing in terms of film locations with countries such as Argentina and Australia. Right now with our exchange gives us an advantage over these countries. But the inefficiencies in the City are damaging our reputation and constitute a clear and damaging binding constraint on growing the industry.”

Strachan has requested that Mayor Helen Zille investigate the operations of the Cape Town Film Permit Office and to take immediate steps to rectify the problem. “In circumstances of a global economic downturn, we can ill afford to lose this business and the strong job creation potential of this sector”.

The Western Cape Provincial Government is committed to the film industry, according to Strachan.  ‘We co-fund the Cape Film Commission and have invested R30-million in the Cape Town Film Studios. We need to work together for this industry to flourish, and not hinder its development. Hence the need for strong partnerships to build a competitive film sector. The Provincial Department of Economic Development and Tourism stands ready to assist if it requested to do so.”