Cape Town - A Cape Town-based short film has won the Best Short Film award at an international premiere at the Beyond the International Curve Film Festival, in Paris.
The short movie Two Hues, the script for which was written by Cape Town- based writer and director Weeam Williams, tells the story of a Muslim woman, Natasha, who is a bipolar photographer, and a silent victim of rape, who lives with her parents.
Williams, co-director of the film, said: “Two Hues is an exceptional movie that has garnered so much love and praise internationally, and we couldn’t be more happier. The movie looks at life from the gaze of a manic depressive, and articulates the struggles of Muslim women and South African women using tones of two colours, warm and cold.
“It’s amazing that we won, really mind-blowing because I was not expecting it at all based on the disappointing reception at the world premier; however that just makes the win that much more sweeter,” said Williams.
The movie also features Williams’s debut as an actor. “I have never been passionate about acting, even though I am professionally trained, because of how women are portrayed in movies and in the media. A burden most women have to live and deal with in society.
“The movie was inspired by Three Colours: Blue, a cinematic piece which has had a big impact on me, and it made sense to follow the simplistic aesthetics and wardrobe of this film, given that Two Hues is an independent short film with a similar theme, ‘the suppression of trauma’. However, the movie is completely South African through and through; it’s set in Bo-Kaap and has so many elements that showcase South African traditions,” said Williams.
Watch the movie here.
Cape Argus