! Flashback to 2006 >>
The year that TVSA was founded.
And the year that the Heartlines project first appeared on TV as an eight film series.
16 years later and it's back for a new series titled Fathers Matter.
It premieres on SABC2 on Saturday 17 September at 20h30 and has three nostalgic elements:
1. It's produced by the same production company Quizzical Pictures, who were known as Curious Pictures at the time of the first series.
2. It's also an anthology film series, with six 25-minute movies.
3. It's about core values.
To put you in the loop... Heartlines is a non-profit spin-off of the Soul City project, which, as you probably know, also had its own TV series that ran for an iconic 12 seasons.
According to the Heartlines project, their mission is to promote positive values and encourage people to live them in real life.
Here's a refresh of what the first series was about:
Heartlines is based on the assumption that the promotion of values is the most effective way to deal with major social problems. Therefore, by looking at the issues that face South Africa today, Heartlines chose the values they believe would best address these.
South Africa's current reality includes high levels of HIV & AIDS, violence, corruption, drug abuse, family breakdown and unemployment.
The films deal with eight core values which aim to take the viewer to the heart of the matter. These values are:
- Accepting Difference
- Responsibility
- Forgiveness
- Perseverance
- Self-Control
- Honesty
- Compassion
- Second Chances
From the TVSA Heartlines Show Page
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These ideas were also at the centre of their other TV project Hopeville, which aired on SABC2 back in 2009.
It was a co-production between the SABC and Heartlines and followed the story of a recovering alcoholic who moved to the dusty town of Hopeville where he tried to start a new life for him and his estranged son.
This theme is extended in their new series Fathers Matter, as interpreted by six different writers and directors.
According to the official synopsis, the films aim to inspire and encourage men - and society at large - to be part of a movement of fathers who are positively involved in the lives of children.
How many such fathers do you know?
The cast includes a mix of well known actors and newcomers and these are the stories each week:
Family Portrait
Saturday 17 September 2022
Ayize (Ebenhaezer Dibakwane) is a struggling artist who becomes a new father when his girlfriend Nomvula (Lebohang Mthunzi) has a baby.
He is devoted to both her and their baby girl, Zenzile. But he must prove to his rather terrifying and tough mother-in-law Cecelia (Pascaline Phale) that he is good enough to be a good dad, even though he can’t provide financially.
The film is in Sesotho and isiZulu, with English subtitles.
Written by: Salah Sabiti
Director: Twiggy Matiwana
Starring cast: Ebenhaezer Dibakwane, Lebohang Mthunzi, Pascaline Phale, John Ncamane, Sello Motloung
In Time
Saturday 24 September 2022
Lerumo (Aubrey Mmakola) is a gold miner who works on a mine far away from his wife Amanda and daughter Bokamoso (Mpule Matlhola). But he is a loving father who spares nothing to show up for his child.
When his daughter is offered an opportunity to race in front of top university recruiters for an athletics scholarship, he is determined to do anything he can to be on the side-lines cheering her on.
But many obstacles threaten to throw him off track. Can he make it in time?
This film is in Sepedi and Sesotho, with English subtitles.
Written by: Zolisa Sigwanda
Director: Rea Rangaka
Starring cast: Mpule Matlhola, Aubrey Mmakola, Miles Petzer, Charles Baloi, Thandi Makhubele
Everything a Boy Could Want
Saturday 1 October 2022
Martin (Jacques Blignaut) is a rich businessman who financially provides everything his family needs. But he is emotionally cruel, impossible to please and hardly ever there for his son, Lester (Jordan Brown).
Lester has everything money can buy, except what he longs for the most - the love and approval of his father.
When Martin insists that his son go to boarding school so he can follow in his father’s rugby footsteps, they are forced to take a bumpy road trip together which threatens to break them apart forever.
This film is in English and Afrikaans, with English subtitles.
Written by: Michéle Rowe
Director: Zane Meas
Starring cast: Jacques Blignaut, Jordan Brown, Tracey-Lee Oliver, Kelsie Basson, Sive Matiwane, Seth Francesco
Melodi
8 October 2022
Melodi (Thuli Nduvane) is a successful banker who was raised by a loving single mother, Sesi (Unati Guma).
She is about to be married to Liyanda (Lulama Nyembezi). Wedding plans are underway and lobola negotiations are about to start. But all this brings back old wounds and deep feelings of abandonment.
Why did her father, Mojalefa (Tshepo Maseko), abandon her as a baby?
Melodi decides to deal with the pain of her past by searching for a father she never knew, before making a commitment of her own.
This film is in isiXhosa and Sesotho, with subtitles in English.
Written by: Nonzi Bogatsu
Director: Zamo Mkhwanazi
Starring: Tshepo Maseko, Thuli Nduvane, Unati Guma, Thandy Matlaila, Luluma Nyembezi, Mannini Mokhothu
Airwalker
Saturday 15 October 2022
Zoë (Amelie Pienaar) is a gifted young skateboarder whose talent earns her a spot in a promo for her favourite skate park. But her parents, Bridget (Jana Strydom Kruger) and Mike (Paul Du Toit) are separated, and their continual fighting affects her deeply.
Zoë finds herself a continual pawn in their conflict. Caught between their lies and constant arguments, a frustrated Zoë lands up in a life-threatening situation. But is this enough to give her parents a reality check?
This film is in English.
Written by: Tim Greene
Director: Tim Greene
Starring: Amelie Pienaar, Jana Strydom Kruger, Paul Du Toit
Manscap
Saturday 22 October 2022
Kyle (Melick Gould) is a troubled but promising young man - unemployed, fatherless, and raised by a single mother Sandra (Lorcia Cooper-Kumalo).
With nothing much to keep him motivated besides his love for cars, Kyle finds himself in the clutches of a powerful local gang leader, Rooi (Jerome du Plooy).
When another father figure steps in to offer him a new sense of direction, Kyle must make a choice.
Can Bra Warren (Bradley Olivier) help Kyle find a different path in his life? Does Kyle want it badly enough?
This film is in Afrikaans, with English subtitles.
Written by: Zaba LeRoto Hlatshwayo
Director: Eric Mogale
Starring: Melick Gould, Lorcia Cooper-Kumalo, Jerome Du Plooy, Bradley Olivier, Edwin Mathews, Kevin Narain, Liam Lincolin Isaacs
The Big Question: What type of father do you
have?