Filmmakers from around the globe are flocking to this beautiful country so they can have a million dollar background- whether that’ll be the scenic beauty of Cape Town or the bustling cityscape of Johannesburg.
For us South Africans that’s not much of a surprise- we are fully aware of how inspiring this place is.
Let’s get right into it.
Blood Diamond, Film, 2006
This film, starring headliner Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Connelly, is set during the Sierra Leone Civil War in 1996–2001. The main storyline focused on the actual ‘blood diamonds’ which are diamonds mined in African war zones and sold to finance conflicts, and thereby profit warlords and diamond companies across the world.
It was nominated for 5 Oscars, and shot in Cape Town- including the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, Port Edward, and KwaZulu-Natal. Local actors Kagiso Kuypers, David Harewood, Marius Weyers, Grant Swanby, and SA ex-pat Arnold Vosloo also made appearances.
The Giver, Film, 2014
This Sci-Fi drama tells the story of a seemingly perfect community, without war, pain, suffering, differences or choice, and a young boy chosen to learn from an elderly man about the true pain and pleasure of the “real” world. It is based on Lois Lowry’s novel of the same name.
It stars Jeff Bridges and Meryl Streep, and was shot almost in its entirety in Cape Town, Paarl, and Johannesburg.
Homeland, TV Series, 2011+
This is a television series, about a bipolar CIA operations officer, played by Claire Danes, who has to deal with national challenges and terrorism regarding her homeland, the United States.
The entire fourth season, based in Islamabad and surroundings, is currently still shooting in Cape Town. It is also airing right now on DSTV, on channel 101.
A slew of local actors have made appearances, including Fiona Ramsey, Nick Boraine, James Alexander, Armand Aucamp, and Aidan Whytock.