The Last Victims
The Last Victims is a 2019 political drama film directed by Maynard Kraak. The film was filmed entirely on location in KwaZulu-Natal South Africa and world premiered at the Pan African Film Festival (PAFF) on 8 February 2019. The film then opened the Rapid Lion - South African International Film Festival at the historic Market Theater in Johannesburg, South Africa on 1 March 2019. It screened "in competition" with three nominations: Best Feature Film, Best Cinematography (Meekaaeel Adam) and Best Actor in a Leading Role (Sean Cameron Michael). The film was then selected at 40th Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), Durban South Africa. The film is now selected in competition at Knysna Film Festival, Knysna, South Africa & African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) in Nigeria. The film is nominated in 3 different section at AMAA viz. Best Screenplay (Sean Robert Daniels), Best Editing (Terwadkar Rajiv & Cohen Lorenzo Davids) & Best Sound (Janno Muller).
| The Last Victims | |
|---|---|
 The Official Poster of The Last Victims. | |
| Directed by | Maynard Kraak |
| Produced by | Maynard Kraak Terwadkar Rajiv |
| Written by | Sean Robert Daniels |
| Story by | Sean Robert Daniels Terwadkar Rajiv |
| Starring | Sean Cameron Michael Kurt Egelhof Wilson Dunster Baby Cele Gustav Gerdener Ashish Gangapersad Marno van der Merwe Hayley Owen |
| Music by | Geo Höhn |
| Cinematography | Meekaaeel Adam |
| Edited by | Terwadkar Rajiv Cohen Lorenzo Davids |
Release date |
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Running time | 125 minutes |
| Country | South Africa |
| Language | English |
Plot
The film follows Dawid, a former member of South Africa's infamous C1 Counter Insurgency death squad, who must atone for his past when he helps one survivor Pravesh search for the bodies of a missing anti-apartheid cell. Unaware that as they hunt for answers, they too are being hunted.
"Notwithstanding that this film is based on real events, it is definitely a uniquely South African story because it’s about a fractured search for reconciliation in the face of a harrowing past that refuses to die out", says Rapid Lion festival director, Eric Miyeni,"It is a great metaphor for today’s South Africa".
Main cast
- Sean Cameron Michael - Dawid
- Kurt Egelhof - Pravesh
- Marno van der Merwe - Young Dawid
- Ashish Gangapersad - Young Pravesh
- Grant Swanby - Warren
- Wilson Dunster - Francois
- Mark Mulder - Wouter
- Deon Coetzee - Viaan
- Kobus Van Heerden - Young Wouter
- Tumie Ngumla - Young Lwazi
- Baby Cele - Old Lwazi
- Kira Wilkinson - Alice
- Shelley Meskin - Martha
- Sasha Stroebel - Luzanne
- Caitlin Clerk - Phoebe
- Ferdinand Gernandt - De Beer
- Sam Phillips - TRC Committee Chair
Accolades
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RapidLion - The South African International Film Festival | 1 March 2019 | Best Actor | Sean Cameron Michael | Nominated | |
| Best Cinematographer | Meekaaeel Adam | Nominated | |||
| Best of South Africa | Terwadkar Rajiv & Maynard Kraak | Nominated | |||
| Knysna Film Festival | 30 October 2019 | Best Film Finalist | Terwadkar Rajiv & Maynard Kraak | Nominated | |
| Best Supporting Actor | Kurt Egelhof | Won | |||
| African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) | 27 October 2019 | Best Screenplay | Sean Robert Daniels | Nominated | |
| Best Editing | Terwadkar Rajiv & Cohen Lorenzo Davids | Nominated | |||
| Best Sound Design | Janno Muller | Nominated | |||
| Uganda Film Festival | 1 December 2019 | Best International Feature Film | Terwadkar Rajiv & Maynard Kraak | Won | |
| South Film and Arts Academy Festival (SFAAF) | Best Lead Actor | Sean Cameron Michael | Won | ||
| Best Director in Feature Film | Maynard Kraak | Won | |||
| Best Screenplay in Feature Film | Sean Robert Daniels | Won | |||
| Best Supporting Actor in Feature Film | Marno van der Merwe | Won | |||
| Best Sound Design in Feature Film | Janno Muller | Won | |||
| Best Make up in a Feature Film | Cindi Jane Laird | Won | |||
| Cinematography Honorable Mention in Feature Film | Meekaaeel Adam | Won | |||
| Editing Honorable Mention in Feature Film | Terwadkar Rajiv & Cohen Lorenzo Davids | Won | |||
| Production Honorable Mention In A Feature Film | Terwadkar Rajiv & Maynard Kraak | Won | |||
| Feature Film of the Month | Terwadkar Rajiv & Maynard Kraak | Won | |||
| Best Thriller Feature | Terwadkar Rajiv & Maynard Kraak | Won | |||
| Five Continents International Film Festival (FCIFF) | 3 February 2020 | Best Thriller Film | Terwadkar Rajiv & Maynard Kraak | Won | |
| Best Make Up | Cindi Jane Laird | Won | |||
| Special Mention Sound Design | Janno Muller | Won | |||
| Best Screenplay | Sean Robert Daniels | Nominated | |||
| International Screen Awards | Best International Film | Terwadkar Rajiv & Maynard Kraak | Won | ||
References
External links
- The Last Victims at IMDb
- The Last Victims at PAFF
- The Last Victims premiere at Pan African Film Festival
- The Last Victims premieres at PAFF - Artsvark Presser
- Mystery Thrilled to be filmed in KZN at Press Reader
- Step aside Hollywood, enter KZN’s Dollywood at Film Contact
- SA film The Last Victims to premiere at US film festival at BizCommunity
- SA Movie set for LA festival at Press Reader / Cape Times newspaper
- RapidLion Awards Ceremony Returns To The Festival at Asempa News
- Entertainment: The Last Victims (film) - Cape Talk
- Entertainment: The Last Victims (film) - Talk 702 Radio
- Acclaimed SA film comes to the screen at Durban International Film Festival
- The Last Victims wins Best International Film at the Uganda Film Festival
- Screening of ‘The Last Victims’ at popular film festival - Rising Sun
- Maynard Kraak’s latest film, The Last Victims, to open RapidLion 2019
- Sydney South African Film Festival goes Online
- We are Moving Stories "Tokyo Lift-Off Film Festival" 2020 – The Last Victims