If you haven’t yet planned an outing for Mother’s Day, then a great option would be to visit the Joburg Theatre, where they will be screening a personal family story about the tender bonds between mothers and their daughters.
Filmed during the pandemic and titled “uNobuntu”, it is written by filmmaker, author and host of S3’s “The Ultimate Book Show“, Sihle-isipho Nontshokweni, and it has won an international award at the Silicon Valley African Film Festival.
The documentary is named after Nontshokweni’s mother’s first-born child, whom she lost.
Nontshokweni said: “My siblings and I discovered that after our mother lost her first child, uNobuntu, in 1983, she started writing poetry in isiXhosa to allay her grief.
“She continued writing over the past 25 years but was unable to find a publisher for her collection of poetry.”
During the pandemic, Nontshokweni worked with a development editor to go through the manuscript, and in September 2022, the documentary was filmed.
It captures the moment when Nontshokweni’s mother, Nombeko, discovers the completed book for the first time in front of the camera.
Nontshokweni added that she admires and is inspired by the “black men and women who, despite the absence of enabling structures to support their writing, ideas and literary contributions, continue(d) writing their stories”.
“These stories urgently need to be told. These conversations with several black women writers on ‘The Ultimate Book Show’ opened my eyes so I would see my mother’s story more clearly.
“I sincerely hope that more young Africans will ‘go in search of our mothers’ gardens’, trace their giftedness and appreciate that we come from a lineage of intellectual and creative wealth.
“To understand that, though, we are born free. We are not a new burst of brilliance. We come from it.”
This heart-warming and emotional film is fitting for Mother’s Day and is a must-see for anyone who appreciates the beauty of family connections.
“uNobuntu” will screen on May 14 at the Joburg Theatre. Tickets can be purchased via Computicket.