
Stella Murders': Double murder of teen friends a must-watch doccie Devilsdorp' director David Enright delves into the chilling Stella High School deaths in the true-crime documentary Stella Murders'.
by Cornelia Le Roux
27-02-2023 11:00
in Entertainment
Stella Murders' revisits the chilling murders of Sharnelle Hough (left) and her roommate Marna Engelbrecht at the hands of Sharnelle's ex-boyfriend Xander Bylsma in 2018. Images via Instagram
Showmax has released the first trailer for Stella Murders, a new true-crime documentary from David Enright and IdeaCandy, the director and production company respectively behind the breakout hit Devilsdorp, one of Showmax's 10 most streamed titles of 2021, which sold internationally and won the 2022 SAFTA for Best Made for TV Documentary.
--
Premiering on 17 March, Stella Murders investigates the deaths of best friends Sharnelle Hough,17, and Marna Engelbrecht, 16, at their hostel at Stella High School, in North West.
ALSO READ: Devilsdorp' breaks Showmax records and launches companion podcast
Stella Murders': Horror hostel discovery On Saturday morning 26 May 2018, Sharnelle was found hanging from a rope tied to a guardrail on the stairs of her room and Marna was discovered in a bathroom with the strap of a backpack tied tightly around her neck.. Both deaths were initially believed to be suicide.
--
Best friends Sharnelle Hough and Marna Engelbrecht's deaths sent a shockwave through Stella High School in 2018. The true-crime documentary Stella Murders' premieres on Showmax on 17 March. Image: Supplied/ Showmax Fatal attraction: Ex-boyfriend guilty of two counts of murder Sharnelle's ex-boyfriend Xander Bylsma, 19, later confessed that he strangled the girls and tried to make their deaths look like suicide.
In August 2020, News24 reported that Bylsma was found guilty on two counts of murder and given two life sentences in the North West High Court in Mahikeng.
Bylsma was filmed speaking to his parents, moments after the judgment was delivered in February 2020. Take a look.
--
19 year old Xander Bylsma has been found guilty by the NW High court, for the murder of two Stella high school girls in May 2018 #sabcnews pic.twitter.com/OI63piD1GV
Bafedile Moerane (@moeraneb14) February 17, 2020
ALSO READ: Xander Bylsma: What we know so far about the Stella High School murder suspect
True crime: Stella Murders' tells heart-wrenching' story Stella Murders is a heart-wrenching story, Showmax and Connected Video at MultiChoice CEO Yolisa Phahle said.
It deals with every parent's worst fear. The production was made with cooperation from Sharnelle and Marna's families, who hope their story will prevent similar tragedies.
The 90-minute Showmax Original features interviews with Ronnie and Sonja Hough, Sharnelle's parents; Stefaans, Rianet, and Rian Engelbrecht, Marna's father, mother and sister; Captain Zagaries Human, the Stella South African Police Services station commander Captain Markus Ferreira, the investigating officer; private investigator Chris Saunders; and Advocate Johan Smit, the state prosecutor, now retired.
Also look out for Marizka Coetzer from Devilsdorp, who covered the Stella Murders case for Huisgenoot.
WATCH: First-look trailer of Stella Murders'
Danger doesn't come exclusively from the outside' Home to just over 4 000 people, Stella is a small, quiet cattle-farming dorpie near Vryburg, in North West.
In such a close-knit community, danger is expected to come from the outside, says clinical psychologist Elmarie Claassens in the documentary. But the thing about danger is: It doesn't come exclusively from the outside.
The documentary makes it clear that the town is still processing the deaths.
While working on Stella Murders, it became important for us to understand if there was any form of emotional healing for the families and community that experienced this trauma, explained Enright.
ALSO READ: Girl, Taken': Riveting doccie relives Zephany Nurse heartbreak
Spotlight on culture of gender-based violence The death of the teen girls has again shone a spotlight on commonplace femicide in the country, with weekly reports of women being killed by a husband or boyfriend.
It became clear that the impact of this tragic event was far-reaching and calls for important reflection on the culture that cultivates gender-based violence, Enright said.
Hopefully this documentary will not only highlight some of the red flags to look out for, but will also become part of the nationwide conversation about the shameful levels of violence against women in South Africa.
David Enright And the shock statistics tell a deeply disturbing tale of our society: Between the first quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022, there was a 52% increase in the murder of women, and 46% increase in the number of children murdered.
ALSO READ: #TogetherForHer: Charlize Theron's rallying cry against lockdown GBV
UCT Online High School Creates The ConnectED' Mobile App for Parents. READ MORE HERE!
Most recent headlines
13/12/2025
Powering Client Growth: Horizon Deepens Nielsen Partnership, Enabling More Effic...
13/12/2025
In a move that will help it offer more flexible and less costly programming options, YouTube TV has announced that it will be launching YouTube TV Plans with mo...
13/12/2025
SINGAPORE Magna Systems has designed, built and completed what is believed to be the first full UHD and IP-based OB truck in Southeast Asia for a Singapore medi...
12/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Everything You Need to Know for Next Week's Big Sho...
12/12/2025
Hailey Gates at the Atropia premiere (photo by George Pimentel / Shutterstock for Sundance Film Festival)...
12/12/2025
Last month, Spotify announced a new collaboration with the ATP Tour, the global governing body of men's professional tennis, aimed at bringing the next gene...
12/12/2025
CONWAY, Ark. In a notable example of how the elimination of Federal federal funding is forcing public stations to make massive cuts and changes in the way they...
12/12/2025
Wisycom and DPA Microphones announce the appointment of Ren Moerch as Group Product Director, Wireless, a strategic leadership role that will guide the combine...
12/12/2025
SMPTE , the home of media professionals, technologists, and engineers, in conjuncture with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the Entertainment Technolog...
12/12/2025
Keepit, the vendor-independent, cloud-native data protection provider, today announced a strategic go-to-market relationship in Poland with Ingram Micro, a lead...
12/12/2025
Atomos announced the immediate availability of a new firmware update for its Ninja TX GO and Ninja TX monitor-recorders, unlocking Open Gate 48P RAW recording w...
12/12/2025
Professional Wireless Systems (PWS) once again played a critical role in delivering flawless wireless coordination and support at the 2025 Latin Grammy Awards a...
12/12/2025
The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS), together with the Video Services Forum (VSF), the Advanced Media Workflow Association (AMWA) and the European Broadc...
12/12/2025
DHD audio will demonstrate the latest additions to its range of digital audio production solutions on Booth 321 in Hall B6 at Hamburg Open 2026. The show will b...
12/12/2025
Chaos today announces the release of V-Ray for Blender, update 2, bringing its award-winning rendering technology to even more Blender users by adding support f...
12/12/2025
Lighting specialist UltraLEDs has launched Precision LED Tape, a high-CRI lighting solution designed specifically for professional film, TV, and studio use.
P...
12/12/2025
Zixi, the Emmy Award-winning leader in live broadcast-quality video over IP, today announced that Roi Sasson has joined the company as Vice President, Engineer...
12/12/2025
BitFire (bitfire.tv), the leader in software-defined live production and IP transmission, today announced a strategic partnership with Appear, a leader in high-...
12/12/2025
LOS ANGELES The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) today said futurist Robert Tercek, creative technologist Jessie Hughes from Leonardo.AI and Emmy-winnin...
12/12/2025
HUDSON, Mass. BitFire and Appear have struck a strategic partnership aimed at offering broadcasters, sports leagues and streaming platforms a faster, more flexi...
12/12/2025
The broadcast industry is evolving faster than ever. #IPWorkflows #remoteproduction, and next-gen audio systems are reshaping how teams design, deliver, and sca...
12/12/2025
LOS ANGELES The payroll and production accounting platform Wrapbook has announced the acquisition of Cinapse, a modern scheduling platform for film and televisi...
12/12/2025
DEHLI Ross Video has announced that it is expanding and restructuring its commercial and technical teams in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation...
12/12/2025
LONDON Following the success of its UK launch in January 2025, Rise AV, the global not-for-profit initiative dedicated to supporting and advancing women in the ...
12/12/2025
SAN FRANCISCO Ad-supported streaming service Tubi next week will launch Matter Casting, a new casting standard that will enable seamless mobile-to-TV viewing di...
12/12/2025
LOS ANGELES The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) today said futurist Robert Tercek, creative technologist Jessie Hughes from Leonardo.AI and Emmy-winnin...
12/12/2025
Friday 12 December 2025
Ted is back! Seth MacFarlane's live-action comedic ...
12/12/2025
In Las Vegas's T-Mobile Arena, fans of the Golden Knights are getting more than just hockey - they're getting a taste of the future. ADAM, a robot devel...
12/12/2025
Uachtar n na h ireann, Catherine Connolly visited RT Raidi na Gaeltachta's...
12/12/2025
Ireland AM host Eric Roberts has been revealed as the sixth contestant taking to...
12/12/2025
Scripps Research team pioneers an efficient way to stereoselectively add fluorine to drug-like molecules A new method uses a novel catalyst and inexpensive fluo...
11/12/2025
Thomson and the Center for News, Technology and Innovation (CNTI) convened a two-day workshop in Sarajevo bringing together more than 35 journalists, editors, p...
11/12/2025
ESPN's Aims for Spectacular With Heisman Trophy ShowEvent firsts include 1080p HDR production airing on both national broadcast and cableBy Dan Daley, Audio...
11/12/2025
SVG Students To Watch: Frankie Patton, University of ColoradoThe 2025 grad is hitting the ground running as a PA on national broadcastsBy Brandon Costa, Directo...
11/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Technology Exhibits Preview, Part 3By SVG Staff
Thursday, December 11, 2025 - 7:24 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
The 2...
11/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: What Makes Gen Z, X, and Y Fans Tick? Dave Gavant of WSC Sports Go...
11/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: 5G, MXL, Spectrum Loss, and Outerspace on Tap for Tues...
11/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: David Levy, Turner Titan and Master of Al...
11/12/2025
SVG Launches Follow the Money' Podcast: Go Inside the Sports Media Biz with...
11/12/2025
A Deep Dive Inside Game Creek Video's Bird and Magic Mobile Units, Home to A...
11/12/2025
How Sound Effects for Monsters Funday Football' Emulated the Sonic Soul of ...
11/12/2025
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: CSP Mobile Productions' Len Chase on Upgrading Tr...
11/12/2025
Having the right song soundtrack your moves can make all the difference when gam...
11/12/2025
It's been a big year for Taylor Swift. Her highly anticipated album The Life...
11/12/2025
New satellites for the SDA Tranche 1 Tracking program in production at L3Harris&...
11/12/2025
The Meadowlands system, a compact and mobile version of the CCS, uses ground-based radio frequency units to disrupt satellite communications....
11/12/2025
The L3Harris demonstration united tactical communications devices, counter-UAS c...
11/12/2025
Throughout 2025, L3Harris delivered innovative solutions to U.S. and allied warfighters across every domain.
With an unrelenting commitment to excellence, our...
11/12/2025
A Majority of the World's Population (51%) Identify As Soccer Fans
The 2025 MLB postseason notched 58.2 billion viewing minutes, up +24% from the prior y...
11/12/2025
WALTHAM, Mass. Video-over-IP software provider Zixi said Roi Sasson has joined the company as vice president, engineering....