21 May 2014
South African comedian David Kau clinched a deal with US company Archstone Distribution for his upcoming movie Sekwankwetla at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday.
Sekwankwetla tells the story of a South African township superhero whose super powers enable him to fly – but no more than 10 centimetres high.
Kau signed the deal with Archstone Companies founders and partners Scott Martin and Michael Slifkin at the South Africa Pavilion at Cannes, the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) said in a statement on Tuesday.
Archstone Distribution has gained a reputation as a filmmaker-friendly distribution and sales company, with nearly 100 titles in their current library. Archstone Pictures currently produces and co-produces between three and five films a year. It has already completed production on two films this year – action/thriller Awaken and action/adventure Out of the Burning Blue, both currently selling at the Cannes market.
According to the NFVF, Sekwankwetla will be directed by award-winning South African director Teboho Mahlatsi, and co-produced by Archstone Pictures, David Kau’s Disadvantaged Background Productions and Mahlatsi’s The Bomb Shelter.
“We plan to shoot the film on location in KwaZulu-Natal, and have already started negotiations with the newly established KwaZulu-Natal Film Commission representatives, who are also attending the festival to market the province as a best location,” Kau told the NFVF.
South Africa’s participation at Cannes Film Festival is facilitated by the NFVF in partnership with the KwaZulu-Natal Film Commission, the Durban Film Office and Western Cape destination marketing organisation Wesgro. Kau is a member of the Association for Transformation in Film and Television, which is sponsored by the Department of Trade and Industry.
SAinfo reporter
