His James, a film by local writer/filmmaker Joe Spirit which highlights challenges faced by the LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex) community is racking up accolades and attention.
The film stars Mlungisi Ndebele (Isibaya, Uzalo, House of Zwide), Sithandiwe Kgoroge (Generations, MTV Shuga, Yizo Yizo)) and Samantha Govender (Imbewu:The Seed)
His James has been nominated for numerous awards. The most recent being six nominations in the African Emerging Filmmakers Awards 2022, where Spirit bagged the top two awards - Vest Screenplay and Best Feature Film.
His James will premiere in Nigeria’s Accelerate TV Plus, a subscription video on demand service, in June this year.
In an interview with POST, Spirit said His James is a tribute to the LGBTI community.
“It is for youngsters and older folk, who have been forced by societal “norms” to be who they are not. It is for the parents of gay children who dare to hate their children for being who they are meant to be. It is also for the past laws that separated lovers and people, according to colour and gender. It is a story of giving and theft, and the story of maintaining hope for a brighter morning even during our darkest nights.”
Spirit was born and raised in Hammarsdale, KwaZulu Natal. He has published a number of award-winning fictional works, both in isiZulu and English. In 2015 he trained as a scriptwriter and then began to develop film scripts, producing them under his production company.
The 46-year-old said he attended Sukuma Comprehensive School in Imbali, Pietermaritzburg. After finishing matric in 1995, he went on to study for a diploma in Nursing at Addington Hospital in Durban.
One of his earliest influences in story telling was his grandmother.
“I remember, quite vividly, us as kids sitting every night before bed and listening to my grandmother, Khilala Latha, recite old African folklore in such a dramatic fashion. She was a great storyteller that could hold your attention and keep you entranced from beginning to end,” he said.
But it wasn’t until 2004 that Spirit took the plunge into writing.
“I was working in theatre at the St Anne’s Hospital. I happened to work with a surgeon on one particular day, and his name was Mr Ferhsen. I told him that my English teacher, Mrs Elizabeth Ferhsen, back in boarding school had the same name, and he candidly told me that was his wife.
“He instantly remembered my name when I told him who I was and, after lunch that day, told me that his wife used to talk about me and had sent a message asking what I’m doing working in hospital! I then remembered her telling me back in high school that, despite my excelling in the sciences, I should really consider going into dramatic arts. I wanted to be a doctor so I never took her seriously.
“She kept sending messages via her husband that she was disappointed that I didn’t take her advice. This was a major turning point in my life as the guilt ate me up when I realised that she’d spotted my talent 12 years earlier. I quit nursing after a month following her persistent messages and decided to go into writing,” said Spirit.
He said he started by pulling out, “old yellowing papers where he’d scribbled true stories of my life while I was in high school.”
“I entered my first story in The Witness True Stories of KZN in 2012 and won the top award. I was a runner up the following year with my piece titled Darkest Noon. I was a runner up in the same competition for many years thereafter, and bagged the top award again in 2017 with my piece, A Servant’s Daughter, a story about my mother which was based on her childhood as a domestic worker’s child in the 40s.
“I have since published three full length novels both in English and isiZulu; Umthwalo Wezimfihlo (2016), The Book Of Jane (2018), Phungukani Mazulu (2020) and I am working on my fourth novel Ubumnyama Bufikile. During the time I was writing novels I happened to teach myself writing screenplays and succeeded in writing and directing my first short film in 2018 titled “3 am”.”
His James is Spirit’s second film which he wrote and produced.
“By this time I’d done a short course in screenwriting that was sponsored by the KwaZulu Natal Film Commission. His James was born from a short story with the same title which I wrote and submitted to the Commonwealth Writers competition in 2011.
“My lecturer in the screenwriting course, the famous scriptwriter, Julie Hall, took a liking to my ability to come up with riveting stories at a drop of a pin and we ended up being a writing team; I’d come up with stories, get funding to write and she’d be my script editor. We’ve travelled together to New York and the UK to exhibit my work and seek co-productions.
“I have since written so many screenplays with the assistance of both the KZN Film Commission and the National Film and Video Foundation and also been selected into the top three in Jayan Moodley’s film slates.
“I am also busy producing three more of my films this year alone, alongside my new producing partner Bonie Sithebe and, another feature film with Jayan Moodley,” he said.
Samantha Govender plays a personal assistant to a powerful attorney who owns a law practice.
“I am organised, tactful and know how to get things done efficiently. I have developed a close relationship with my boss which is nurturing. I am always looking out for the best interest of him and the company. I have a close relationship with his family. My aim is to keep everything together even if it means keeping secrets to protect loved ones.
“My boss has everything, a prestigious lifestyle and the 'perfect' family but the cracks show when the story unfolds. He confides in me and I provide him support to face his inner demons from his childhood because it is affecting him deeply,” she said.
Govender said she found His James to be a script with a purpose of raising pertinent issues prevalent in society.
“One of the central themes is the need to feel 'accepted' in society. Another theme is the inner conflict that takes place with the construction of identity and gender based roles in our LGBTI community. The writing was tastefully done, as I am thrown into the world of the central character and the inner turmoil he faces and how his actions impact his external world.
“As an artist who studied her craft and put years of experience into it, I am in search of meaningful scripts, like His James, that provide a radical awakening where we become critical thinkers when watching a film.
“It is raising awareness that there are people out there entrapped by following societies norms. Raising awareness about LGBTI issues is imperative.If you are not following norms, you are identified as an outcast and even abused. People need to be educated that everyone has feelings and not live in ignorance. Treat each person with love and kindness.”
*The film can be viewed on YouTube.
POST