A hangover from the history of isolation has left South Africans with an unfortunate habit of not paying enough attention to those who make it in the far more competitive international arena. Pretoria Boys High matriculant Elon Musk, rated by many as one of America’s top living entrepreneurs, is an obvious example. Durban-based film-maker Anant Singh another. At the SA box office, Singh’s movies trailed far behind local funny-man Leon Schuster. But in the international market, Singh is revered as a giant – long string of honours include winning a Crystal Award from the World Economic Forum (Charlize Theron followed up last year). Singh’s epic on Nelson Mandela, made locally and with a largely local or relatively unknown cast, has been hailed by critics worldwide. Judging by the latest reports, the critical commercial side looks like being just as successful. After being treated to a short preview in Davos last year, FirstRand chairman Laurie Dippenaar raved at what he had seen but  lamented his group passed by the opportunity to invest. Singh and his backers like SA’s Industrial Development Corporation look set to reap a handsome bounty. – AH Â
From the SA Press Association:
The film Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom opened in Britain and Ireland and was expected to make over R26 million in its first three days of release, its producers said on Sunday.
“It is also expected to be one of the top 10 performers at the UK box office this weekend,” the film producers said in a statement.
“The strong box office performance comes on the back of positive reviews from UK critics.”
The film is based on former president Nelson Mandela’s autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom.
It opened in Britain and Ireland on Friday.
“This is indeed a formidable opening. The UK audience is a diverse one and the strong box office performance shows the wide appeal of the film, especially as it opened bigger than Ali, Munch and The Last King Of Scotland,” said producer Anant Singh.
The film stars British actors Idris Elba and Naomie Harris, South African actors Tony Kgoroge, Riaad Moosa, Lindiwe Matshikiza, Terry Pheto, Jamie Bartlett, and Deon Lotz.
Last month, the film was nominated for three Golden Globe awards.
Elba received the nomination for best actor for his role as Nelson Mandela, Alex Heffes received the nomination for Best Original Score and U2 was nominated for the Best Original Song – “Ordinary Love” which was written for the film.
The Golden Globe Awards ceremony would take place on Sunday in Los Angeles, USA. – SAPA
