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During the 1890s some anti-apartheid activists were looking for a unique way to communicate their demands for racial equality. Some turned to an ancient method of story-telling: puppetry.
Puns en Doedie – Puppets Against Apartheid was one such show. Puppeteer Gary Friedman began performing on the streets of Cape Town in 1980, as a protest to the South African apartheid regime. He was following the traditions of the 18th century British ‘Punch and Judy’ protest theatre against the monarchy. Puppets became a powerful voice against the South African apartheid regime.
Given the significance of puppetry in South African history, and specifically during the anti-apartheid movement, we thought it would be a great way to depict the re-enactment scenes and to tell the story of this group of amazing people.
We are honored that puppeteer Jill Joubert, a founder of Handspring Puppet Company, has agreed to create puppets for us. Handspring Puppet Company, founded in 1981, was another major player in South African puppet theater. While they began as a children’s puppet theater, some of their most important work was in response to the anti-apartheid movement. Their contribution to the art has continued until today, with their current production of Warhorse at the National Theatre in London.
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Joubert is beginning with Helen Suzman. Jill is a master puppet-maker, but she told us that creating the Helen Suzman puppet was a huge undertaking. “Is it possible to put the wholeness and richness of a person into one small figure – especially a person of the stature of Helen Suzman?” To prepare, Jill read Suzman’s memoirs and analyzed photographs. Each photo displayed various facets of Helen’s personality. A big decision Jill had to make was which photo to use. “After making drawings from some of the pictures, I found about three images that I mainly worked with, one being a profile which proved most useful.”
Jill’s next challenge came from creating Suzman’s head, which was eventually created from paper pulp after she realized clay would not allow her the level of detail she was looking for. The face really came alive after adding Helen’s make-up and hair, made of mohair dyed in onion skins.
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Joubert created the body from foam rubber and leather joints. After consulting the photos again, she dressed Suzman in a charcoal skirt and a white cotton blouse which was buttoned to her neck – just as Helen used to wear it. Of course, no Helen Suzman puppet would be complete without a string of pearls.
After assembling the various pieces, Joubert made sure to add one more thing that brought the puppet to life: two grey-blue beads that brought the sparkle to Helen’s eyes.
Says Joubert, “A puppet is neither a doll nor a sculpture…[but] a spirit figure with an uncanny sense of life…There is a presence of Helen in the puppet which dictates how it can and can’t be moved or treated… I feel deeply privileged to have gotten to know Helen Suzman through this strangely intimate way of creating a spirit puppet figure of her. I wonder what she would have said about it?”
We’ve just created a fanpage on Facebook for our feature documentary, Breaking the Rules.
Please become a fan today http://bit.ly/46KpE5
Great first week in SA getting ready to shoot again with Albie Sachs and for the first time with Max du Preez. Samora and I did some very interesting reccies (location scouting trips for those who don’t speak South African English) this week.
We went to the Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria which is devoted to the “pioneering history” of the Afrikaner people. As a descendant of Paul Kruger, the famous and powerful 19th century president of South Africa, Max du Preez is uniquely positioned to help viewers of Breaking the Rules understand not only the history but hopefully the psychology of his people. How did a fundamentally decent, hardworking “God-fearing” people end up inventing, presiding over and defending for decades one of the most unjust, illogical and cruel systems of government ever created?
We got a short glimpse of Vlakplaas, the infamous farm where the apartheid government ran a top secret (and illegal) “death squad” that resorted to detaining, torturing and assassinating numerous enemies of the regime (aka ANC freedom fighters). In a place like that, I certainly understood the meaning of the phrase “the banality of evil.” The farm is now home to a very ordinary and peaceful South African family. There were dogs lolling in the sunshine, beautiful pet parrots chattering in their cages, and ducks and geese meandering about. Enough said for now.
Visiting Soweto was quite an experience! Checking out the various locations where the events of June 16, 1976 took place — where students mounted what is now famously known as the “Soweto Uprising” — went according to plan. We’ll be shooting outside the Protea Glen police station where Max and the other white reporters were sent to get the official story after the riots broke out. We’ll also shoot at Orlando West High School, one of the most significant sites of confrontation between the police and students on that fateful day. We want Max to narrate what he saw, heard and felt about it. These descriptions and our visuals shot on location will be intercut with archival footage as well as, hopefully, commentary by one of the former students.
I have enjoyed my last several visits to Soweto, feeling more comfortable there the more I go. There’s so much development going on – it’s wonderful to see. And we stumbled upon a really nice “cultural village” where we might take the crew for lunch the day we shoot. But what was most remarkable about the afternoon was what happened when we were leaving – we got hit with one of Joburg’s famous loud and powerful thunderstorms! It was a “doozy” including a massive downpouring of rain and hail that left the surrounding hillsides white! I’ve never seen Johannesburg in a snowstorm before and certainly wouldn’t have expected that on what had been a balmy spring day!!
Now I am back to my computer screen toiling to prepare for the interviews.
The following appeared in Realscreen’s Magazine (online) this week! I think it’s a great article. I just wish they’d put the film’s website address at the end: www.breakingtherulesmovie.com.
‘Breaking the Rules’ looks at white activists’ role in ending apartheid
by: Lindsay Gibb Oct 19, 2009
When Carolyn Projansky was living, working and studying in South Africa, she came upon the stories of white activists who were part of the struggle against apartheid. At the time, it wasn’t a story that other filmmakers seemed interested in telling, so Projansky decided to go it alone.
Projansky decided to start work on the documentary Breaking the Rules five years ago when she heard the story of Helen Suzman, a former opposition MP in South Africa who opposed and fought against apartheid. What struck Projansky about Suzman’s story was that, though the MP opposed apartheid and participated in the efforts to end the system, she was not considered fundamental in the fight because she was simply a reformer and not looking for radical change such as the transformation of government to a majority black-ruled structure.
Working in production while studying history in South Africa, Projansky saw that her filmmaking colleagues in the region weren’t going to pick up the story of white activists anytime soon. “There was a very strong push, rightly so, to tell the black stories of the struggle,” remembers Projansky, who says it wasn’t considered politically correct to do a story about white activists when she started out. “But I felt it was not only a story that hasn’t been told, but it was also a story that could eliminate some of the same issues they were dealing with from another angle, because the white activists were motivated by the principles of non-racialism.”
The project has been in an out of production for the past five years, but Projansky and her prodco, Maryland-based Five Star Films, recently received a grant from The Atlantic Philanthropies which will support filming the main characters, which include Constitutional Court Justice Albie Sachs, dissident Afrikaner journalist Max du Preez and former student activist Kate Philip.
“It’s one thing to have opposed apartheid or thought it was a bad system, it was another thing to actually step in and take action and make the choice to dedicate your own life to it,” says Projansky of her subjects.
When the film is finished, Projansky has plans to create an interactive website that will make primary historical research available to students and researchers in future. The site will feature an online version of the film where viewers can delve into different time periods and stories, enabling users to explore 45 years of history in their own ways. She is still looking for funding for the post-production phase of the project and for the website.
Breaking the Rules will be a 90-minute documentary and is anticipated to be released in late 2010.
As a footnote to my last post, I discovered this morning that nearly 30 people started following me overnight (@carolynbtrmovie). I posted three new tweets in the evening — but which one generated so much interest??? I haven’t a clue and wish I did because I’d love to add 30 followers every day.
Hope the next time I ask for support for Breaking the Rules, our feature documentary in production (www.breakingtherulesmovie.com) that I will get a bigger response. “Some” response would be bigger.
I was asked by Docs in Progress (www.docsinprogress.org) to answer the question “What did you do on your summer vacation?” for publishing on their blog. Docs in Progress assists documentary filmmakers with resources, advice and most importantly a venue for showing their work in progress to audiences for critique and feedback.
Here’s what I wrote:
What did I do on my summer vacation? I tweeted!
Motivated by anecdotes about doc makers raising their budgets 140 characters at a time, I joined Twitter (@carolynbtrmovie) and updated our experiences going back into production in South Africa.
I tweeted from my laptop PC and from my cell phone (via a phone number in the UK). I discovered hashtags, learned the art of “re-tweeting” and downloaded TweetDeck. (Are you lost yet?) I’m up to 95 tweets but only 45 “followers” (no 43, I lost two overnight!) and definitely no new donations.
I tried being pithy (Looking at shooting locations in Joburg for Albie Sachs) … colorful (Spectacular 7- meter high waves at Clifton Beach. White caps as far as the eye can see.)… current (Shooting at KAYA-FM. Great dialogue on race relations in SA today.) … and witty (Buried in books. History never gets old).
I tried asking outright for money. (Pls RT: Help us build 10,000 strong community for social justice films! Docu-twits where are you?) I tried again. (In production in South Africa. Documentary on nonracialism needs yr support. Pls join our community & help us grow #film #documentary). No matter what I’ve done, the followers only trickle in. And trickle out again.
So what’s the point? Not sure yet. I’ve calculated that I need at least 10,000 followers to make the effort worthwhile for fundraising or audience outreach. And I’m a long way from that goal. But it’s also kind of fun. It’s quick and easy to update – much faster than blogging. (I’ve just tweeted about this article (Writing about my Twitter experience for a doc maker website www.docsinprogress.org). (How’s that for self-referential absurdity?) Honestly, I find the whole social networking world a bit ridiculous sometimes. But it’s called progress. So follow me! I’m at @carolynbtrmovie.
See our latest production photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/btrmovie/
This week’s “reccies” (location scouting) took me first to Cape Town and then to Mozambique. I’m writing from Maputo – a colorful, vibrant and culturally fascinating place. I only wish I could speak Portuguese.
I came here to look at the site where, in 1988, Constitutional Court Justice Albie Sachs was nearly murdered by a car bomb planted by the apartheid regime. He lost an arm and an eye but survived to see his dreams realized in the “new South Africa.” The government did succeed in killing Ruth First in 1982 at the university here. There is a small stone monument in her honor in the courtyard below her office at the African Studies Center where she opened a letterbomb and died instantly.
Both Ruth and Albie dedicated their lives to the struggle for racial justice in South Africa and paid a very high price. I am humbled by their commitment and wonder whether I could have show the same degree of courage in their shoes. That’s what drives me forward to make this film, Breaking the Rules. A desire to understand them and their fellow anti-apartheid activists. And to push myself towards more principled political action in my own life. Don’t know if I’ll get there but this project helps me think about what I have done and what I haven’t yet had the courage to do.
In Cape Town I had a gorgeous day visiting Clifton Beach where Albie grew up. What a spectacular setting and so far from the impoverished townships where most South Africans live, even today. The contrast in economic circumstances and privilege makes all the more dramatic his decision to commit his life to justice for all. Again, I greatly admire his choices, his stamina and of course his instinct for survival. Earlier in the day I had visited the small, grim jail where Sachs was held in isolation for nearly 90 days (he was moved to another jail to serve another 86 days) for refusing to answer questions that might implicate other activists.
Heroes abound in this film, just as there are so many other “unsung heroes” working and living quietly in South Africa today. I wish I could make a film about all of them.
It’s been a long time coming … but we’re back! Thanks to a generous grant from The Atlantic Philanthropies, our feature documentary film, Breaking the Rules, is back in production after a two year hiatus. And this time we have the funding to film all of our main characters in many locations, conduct “commentator” interviews and hopefully get to a rough cut of the film. That would be awesome.
We still need more funding for post-production (editing) but there’s no question now in my mind that additional funding will be found from individual donors, foundations and broadcasters. If you can support the film, please please do. Anyone who makes a contribution (single or cumulative) of $1000 or more will get screen credit. But even if all you can afford is $15 today, please give what you can because every penny really will help us complete this important film. You can contribute at our website: www.breakingtherulesmovie.com via Pay Pal. Thanks SO much!!
I have been planning and researching this film since 2003. The basic concept and vision for the film has remained constant – it’s the story of four white South Africans who dedicated their lives to “the struggle.” They fought for an end to apartheid and a future of racial harmony and justice. The term used here in SA is “nonracialism.”
We’ve made some changes recently to the lineup of main characters in the film. The most prominent was and still is Helen Suzman, the renowned liberal who for many years was the courageous lone voice of opposition in the apartheid parliament. Helen passed away January 1st this year. We completed filming with Helen last December, thanks to small grants from South African sources and the MacArthur Foundation. Thankfully, we did our last interview with her a month before she died.
The second “character” is now Albie Sachs, member of South Africa’s Constitutional Court. Sachs has been a key ANC strategist and “freedom fighter” since the mid ’50s. On Wednesday this week we filmed Sachs at Kliptown, Soweto, at the site where the Freedom Charter was enacted in 1955 by a multi-racial “Congress of the People.” Sachs was there, among thousands of delegates who declared themselves in favor of a South Africa that “belongs to all who live in it, black and white.” It was an amazing and prophetic document that inspired generations of activists and formed the core of the nation’s future Bill of Rights and Constitution — of which Albie Sachs was a key drafter.
But Sachs is best known for the assassination attempt in 1988 in Maputo that nearly took his life – a car bomb planted by the “Special Branch” of the SA police. He lost an arm and an eye. Over the years, Sachs has written many books – deeply insightful, personal and very powerful accounts of his experiences in the struggle and in the legal profession – first as a lawyer, then as a “detainee without trial,” next a law professor in the UK and Mozambique (in exile) and lastly as a justice on the newly formed Constitutional Court. Quite a life’s work.
We also filmed Albie Sachs at the Court. It’s a magnificent room with symbols of the struggle and the new realities of freedom in every corner. From the exposed bricks that used to be part of a notorious apartheid prison … to a ribbon of window that runs across one wall (providing “transparency” in the judicial process) …to a floor plan that puts advocates at eye level with the justices on the dais. Justice Sachs himself was deeply involved in the selection of art and the architecture of the court.
Our third character is Max du Preez, a muckraking investigative journalist and a prolific author in his own right. Born in 1951, Max grew up in a traditional Afrikaner community, believing in the values and policies of the architects of apartheid, the Nationalist Party. But in 1976 du Preez’s eyes were opened to the oppression and suffering of the black majority by the Soweto uprising. That’s when thousands of township schoolchildren mounted a sustained protest against their inferior apartheid education. As an apartheid opponent, du Preez worked diligently to uncover numerous covert (and illegal) operations conducted by the apartheid state. In 1988 he launched the first anti-apartheid newspaper in Afrikaans. Today du Preez remains a courageous and insightful journalist who never hesitates to attack hypocrisy and injustice wherever he finds it. He works in print, TV and film.
Our fourth character was Kate Philip, a student activist in the 1980s but we are making a change because we really need to feature someone who was a member of the armed wing of the ANC, Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK). Philip’s replacement is undecided at this writing. We have someone in mind and will hopefully confirm her next week.
The film will span the entire apartheid era and “then some. ” Particularly now that we have Albie Sachs in the film and he continues to play a prominent role in South African life today — we will continue our historical story up until close to the present day. I can see the structure in my mind’s eye — the four character stories interweaving and the key historical events providing anchor points throughout the narrative. I really think it will work!!
More on our continuing production plans soon. And I will post pics from this week’s shoot with Albie Sachs as soon as possible.
Breaking the Rules, our feature documentary about white anti-apartheid activists, is in production in South Africa right now! Follow our crew and get our latest news on Twitter at www.twitter.com/carolynbtrmovie.
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