29 July, 2016 - 07:55
Anthrax, tick bite fever, a broken foot, a narrow escape from an injured rhino, searing heat, feisty cows and escaped lion cubs it's not an easy life being a frontier vet, as a group of young vets discovered while working at the deeply rural Hluvukani Animal Clinic on the border of the Kruger National Park.
But such action makes for great television, so it was just as well that these incidents, and many more, were filmed during the production of a new documentary/reality series, aptly titled Frontier Vets, currently being screened on SABC3.
Producer and director of the show, Jonty Acton, went to school with Dr Greg Simpson, the man who runs the Hluvukani clinic.
The clinic is the first of its kind in South Africa, where a community vet clinic has been established both as a training facility for young vets as well as a centre to provide animal health care to an area which previously had no formal vet clinic. It was a unique partnership between the University of Pretoria and local government, Acton explains. Dr Greg approached me about a possible TV series based around the clinic. We had been friends at school and had kept in touch over the years. He knew that I was in the film business and looking to develop new projects.
Acton says what made the idea so strong for Dr Greg was how much students learned in their time at the clinic, not just about vet science, but about themselves.
Having met with Dr Greg, what attracted me most to the idea of making the series was the journey potential of the students. How they go from a definite point A in their professional and personal lives at the beginning of the series, to a point Z at the end? The dramatic potential of this important life stage of any person going into the workplace for the first time was what really interested me - that time of change from one state of being to another, a time of both personal and professional growth, which has great dramatic potential, says Acton.
And, of course, how would the students behave when their jobs involved life and death on a daily basis. Who really knows how they will react when faced with having to take a life for the first time? How personally involved are you going to allow yourself to get when treating a patient who's owner has no money and there is little chance of a recovery? When do you stop protecting the animal and start protecting yourself emotionally?
The books say one thing, but the reality is something different as emotion, people skills, personality and self-discovery are all intertwined in a fascinating complexity. That journey can be one of personal enrichment and a growing self confidence or one of cynicism and detachment, he says.
Acton says for him, the strength of the series is its character-based nature. Of course the animals were an extra drawcard, the wild animals in particular. And the unique nature and positioning of the clinic and the culture-rich community added extra layers to what I felt was a strong foundation for a story of learning and self-discovery. I also knew that the charismatic and empathetic Dr Greg would make a great show host.
Of course, the danger the students and crew faced was an element of the production too. The danger element was always there, and there was one moment when capturing and trans-locating a rhino that it nearly fell on one of the students. Had that happened, it would have been a very serious incident. But besides the wild animals, the cows in that part of the world are pretty feisty, and the students were often kicked, and horns were flying around. Zebra bites and Reedbuck kicks that can disfigure your face were other things the students needed to be on the look out for. And handling an operation on a Cape Cobra. So not for the faint-hearted! Acton says.
Acton has experience in low-budget filmmaking, and says he and his crew made very little .
We wanted to make it happen. Filmmaking is a passion. And so we kept the production budget relatively low. We managed to find private investors to raise the production budget, based on a promo I shot and edited. The costs escalated in post-production, as our local post option fell by the wayside, and we looked overseas for a partner to post-produce the series. And that's really where the costs shot up, he says. This has been a labour of love from beginning to end, both for myself and Greg. Its taken seven years to get this far as I shot the promo in 2009.
It was worth the wait and the challenges the faced in shooting in such circumstances. Acton says working within the unpredictable nature of the environment was tough. And from a filming point of view, they couldn't predict what kind of cases the students and Dr Greg would deal with daily.
We put feelers out to the local game farms, to say if there was any wild animal cases that came up, please give us a shout. And we did get lucky. On the students' first night a lion cub escaped through a park fence and the students had to go stumbling around in the dark trying to find it.
And near the end we had a great rhino case fall into our laps. But from a creative side, the challenge was making the right choices in terms of which cases to follow, never knowing where they might potentially lead, or not lead. We knew we couldn't follow too many cattle cases, or too many dog cases, so we had to be selective. Luckily Greg's experience in handling cases meant we had some inkling of which cases would have more of a through line than others, he says.
The students faced major challenges too. It was hot, no one was getting any sleep, the students were under constant pressure. Not only did they have to handle being a vet for the first time, but then they had to be in front of the cameras telling us about it until 2am in the morning. And then they were up again at 4.30am to do vet work
Africa Stories
19/04/2024
Tonight on House of Zwide: Faith refuses to talk to Zola and to discuss the matt...
19/04/2024
Skeem Saam: Thursday's episode, 18 April 2024 [video]Missed an episode of Skeem Saam? No problem! Watch the latest episode of your favourite South African s...
19/04/2024
Prison Journalism: Tragic story of Jerry's life and crimesDavid van Nek was incarcerated in Pollsmoor Prison from 2013 until 2015 and participated in the re...
19/04/2024
House of Zwide' Spoiler: Soka dates Mampho and OnaThe House of Zwide' May teasers reveal that Soka will date both Ona and Mampho and get caught. Will h...
19/04/2024
Beer: Seven celebrities talk about their loveBeer is one of the world's most popular beverages. We asked several celebrities about their favourite brews or ...
19/04/2024
Tonight on Scandal: Tlhogi cannot believe what she hears from TapsDon't miss Friday, 19 April's riveting episode of South African soapie Scandal! on e.t...
18/04/2024
Tonight on Smoke and Mirrors: Caesar almost finds Thandiswa with the bloody wedd...
18/04/2024
Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department' set to drop on FRIDAYTaylor Swift will release her highly anticipated record The Tortured Poets Departme...
18/04/2024
Tonight on Skeem Saam: Lehasa puts his plan to eliminate Khwezi in motionDon't miss Thursday, 18 April's riveting episode of South African soapie Skeem ...
18/04/2024
Prison Journalism: April's experiences of black boudoirThabo Mthembu was incarcerated in Pollsmoor Prison from 2014 to 2019. Read Thabo's story
by Tha...
18/04/2024
Prison Journalism: Can gangsterism and violence be reduced in prison?Dean Mashimbwe, a Zimbabwean migrant residing in Cape Town, was incarcerated at Pollsmoor C...
18/04/2024
Software making music: How DJs are doing itSoftware plays a big part in music production, recording, and performances. Here's what DJs are using, and how yo...
18/04/2024
Tonight on House of Zwide: Zanele later blindsides an unwitting Faith into meeti...
18/04/2024
Debut author stuns with international bestselling thriller Anna O'Matthew Blake burst onto the book scene with his bestseller Anna O', a deliciously d...
18/04/2024
Skeem Saam: Wednesday's episode, 17 April 2024 [video]Missed an episode of Skeem Saam? No problem! Watch the latest episode of your favourite South African ...
18/04/2024
Watch: Trailers for the best Afrikaans movies ever madeDon't know what to watch? Here are some of the best Afrikaans movie trailers ever made, including Too...
17/04/2024
Tonight on Scandal: Dintle reels in the line but it seems she's the only one...
17/04/2024
Trailer debate: What's the BEST South African movie?The trailer debate is on! We'd like to spark the debate What's your favourite South African mov...
17/04/2024
Tonight on Skeem Saam: Lewatle and Pax are punished for their misdeedsDon't miss Wednesday, 17 April's riveting episode of South African soapie Skeem Sa...
17/04/2024
Tonight on House of Zwide: Isaac tells Funani he has no leads on Nkosi's hij...
17/04/2024
Ster-Kinekor to cut 236 jobs, close THESE nine cinemas in South AfricaSter-Kinekor has announced plans to lay off almost a third of its 728 employees and close ...
17/04/2024
Disney and National Geographic celebrate Earth MonthDisney's storytelling prowess merged with National Geographic's legacy of exploration to celebrate E...
17/04/2024
Prison Journalism: How have you changed as a person while in prison?Jeffrey Shockley is a writer serving a life sentence in the State Correctional Institution-F...
17/04/2024
Tonight on Smoke and Mirrors: Thandiswa is determined to solve Dikeledi's su...
17/04/2024
Smoke and Mirrors: Tuesday's episode, 16 April 2024 [VIDEO]Stay up to date with the latest episodes of your favourite South African soapie on The South Afri...
17/04/2024
Skeem Saam: Tuesday's episode, 16 April 2024 [video]Missed an episode of Skeem Saam? No problem! Watch the latest episode of your favourite South African so...
17/04/2024
Scandal!: Tuesday's episode, 16 April 2024 [video]Stay up to date with the latest episodes of your favourite South African soapie on The South African websi...
17/04/2024
Sibongile and The Dlaminis' gains first position on DStvRhythm World's popular telenovela Sibongile and The Dlaminis' is the most-watched TV show o...
17/04/2024
House of Zwide: Tuesday's episode, 16 April 2024 [VIDEO]Stay up to date with the latest episode of South African soapie House of Zwide on The South African ...
16/04/2024
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
16/04/2024
Tonight on House of Zwide: Zanele feels Sandile's not a true friend anyway i...
16/04/2024
Tonight on Skeem Saam: Evelyn learns about the full scale of her son's troub...
16/04/2024
Tonight on Smoke and Mirrors: Caesar and Jaxon finally receive the moment they h...
16/04/2024
Smoke and Mirrors: Monday's episode, 15 April 2024 [VIDEO]Stay up to date with the latest episodes of your favourite South African soapie on The South Afric...
16/04/2024
Skeem Saam: Monday's episode, 15 April 2024 [video]Missed an episode of Skeem Saam? No problem! Watch the latest episode of your favourite South African soa...
16/04/2024
Historic: House of Zwide' is the most-watched TV show on e.tvE.tv's fashion telenovela House of Zwide' beat Scandal!' for the first time sinc...
16/04/2024
Tonight on Scandal: Jojo's doing his best to make amends, but Phakamile worr...
15/04/2024
Scandal!: Monday's episode, 15 April 2024 [video]Stay up to date with the latest episodes of your favourite South African soapie on The South African websit...
15/04/2024
Tonight on House of Zwide: Isaac asks Bra Zakes for help with any information he...
15/04/2024
Tonight on Skeem Saam: Phomolo threatens Pretty in an attempt to save LehasaDon't miss Monday, 15 April's riveting episode of South African soapie Skeem...
15/04/2024
Tonight on Scandal: Dintle turns to an old friend to assist with her missionDon't miss Monday, 15 April's riveting episode of South African soapie Scand...
15/04/2024
Christianity: Four people who claimed to be JesusChristianity is one of the world's dominant religions, with more than 80% of South Africans following this ...
15/04/2024
House of Zwide: Monday's episode, 15 April 2024 [VIDEO]Stay up to date with the latest episode of South African soapie House of Zwide on The South African w...
15/04/2024
Die Antwoord's collaborators: What they're doing nowDie Antwoord is a controversial hip-hop group founded in 2008. As a duo, they've also collaborat...
15/04/2024
Tonight on Smoke and Mirrors: Thandiswa hides her turmoil and goes through with ...
14/04/2024
Afrikaans television shows make a comebackClassic Afrikaans television shows are making a comeback, according to the streaming service AfriForumTV. Here's w...
12/04/2024
Scandal!: Friday's episode, 12 April 2024 [video]Stay up to date with the latest episodes of your favourite South African soapie on The South African websit...
12/04/2024
Skeem Saam: Friday's episode, 12 April 2024 [video]Missed an episode of Skeem Saam? No problem! Watch the latest episode of your favourite South African soa...
12/04/2024
House of Zwide: Friday's episode, 12 April 2024 [VIDEO]Stay up to date with the latest episode of South African soapie House of Zwide on The South African w...
29 July, 2016 - 07:55 
