Five of the best: Joburg Film Festival highlights [watch]With 60 top films to choose from, it's a no-brainer as to why the Joburg Film Festival is recognised as Africa's premier film festival.
by Cornelia Le Roux
30-01-2023 21:59
in Entertainment
The award-winning documentary on Ladysmith Black Mambazo's Joseph Shabalala, Music is My Life' is one of the Joburg Film Festival's highlights. Image: Supplied
The fifth edition of the popular Joburg Film Festival (JFF) runs from Tuesday 31 January to Sunday 5 February. The annual film festival, presented by Multichoice and which takes place in various venues in Johannesburg, will be showcasing some of the finest films from more than 35 countries across the globe, including 20 African and 27 South African premieres.
--
The festival provides young and emerging filmmakers with various opportunities for development, training, skills transfer, and networking.
ALSO READ: 2023 Oscar nominations: Here is the full list of nominees
Take a look at our top-five round-up of the Joburg Film Festival offering with the award-winning documentary Music is My Life about the late Joseph Shabalala from Ladysmith Black Mambazo topping the list.
--
The gripping doccie includes interviews with the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Paul Simon and Whoopi Goldberg. Not to be missed!
Five Joburg Film Festival highlights Music is my Life' Music is My Life provides an engaging account of the life of Joseph Shabalala and his rise to international fame with Ladysmith Black Mambazo, including the group's contributions to Paul Simon's Graceland, which, despite breaking defying the cultural boycott, went on to become one of South Africa's most-loved albums.
Filmed over five years, the documentary gives unprecedented access to the singer's life and creative process.
--
The film details Shabalala's life, from his early years in rural South Africa to Ladysmith Black Mambazo's global success, as a multi Grammy award-winning music group.
Grammy winners: Joseph Shabalala, centre, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Image via Twitter @RockersMovement He rose to international stardom with his band Ladysmith Black Mambazo, following the band's contributions to Paul Simon's massively successful Graceland album.
Shabalala passed away in 2020 at the age of 79.
The film also documents the history of the isicathamiya' genre of music, and the man who took it to the world's stage.
In 2022, the film walked away with second prize in the Best Music and Dance film category at Art & Tur International Tourism Film Festival in Portugal, according to 702.
ALSO READ: Burna Boy teams up with Ladysmith Black Mambazo on upcoming album
Utama' In Utama, an elderly Quechua couple live a tranquil life in the arid Bolivian highlands. While Virginio takes their small herd of llamas out to graze, Sisa keeps house and walks for miles to fetch precious water.
When an uncommonly long drought threatens everything they know, they must decide whether to stay and maintain their traditional way of life or admit defeat and move in with family members in the city.
ALSO READ: Angela Basset gets an Oscar nomination for role on Black Panther'
Silence in the Dust' After being diagnosed with advanced staged pneumoconiosis from working in a quartz powder factory in Guangdong, Dazhang returns to his hometown and shares the suffering with his entire family.
Silence in the Dust, directed by Li Wei, won the 2022 Special Jury Prize and Visionary Award at the Taiwan International Documentary Festival.
Shimoni' Shimoni examines the life of a teacher who is sent back to the village where he was raised after being released from prison. He's forced to re-jig his life in a community that he left behind, doing manual jobs that are alien to him.
ALSO READ: Rihanna to Lady Gaga: Oscars Best Original Song playlist [watch]
The Cloud & The Man' Shot in soulful black and white, The Cloud and the Man explores Manik's uneventful life. His father passes away one day and he is served a month's notice to vacate the rented house. Just when the world around him starts to fall apart, Manik meets someone that would change his life for good a cloud.
A unique love story unfolds, propelling Manik on a rollercoaster journey of faith, betrayal, belief and warmth.
Get more information on the Joburg Film Festival and where to buy tickets HERE.
READ MORE STORIES BY CORNELIA LE ROUX
SOAPIE QUIZ: How well do you know Uzalo'? WIN R1 000 in cash! ENTER HERE
Africa Stories
23/09/2026
1. ABOUT THE PROGRAMME
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites applications from experienced producers who own or manage a South African product...
23/09/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce the opening...
17/09/2026
The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), in partnership with the Nation...
16/09/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites eligible South African pro...
09/09/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites eligible Tier 1 and 2 South African production companies to submit proposals to serve as the Facilitating ...
05/09/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
18/08/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
15/08/2026
14 August 2026 | Johannesburg - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), a...
14/08/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Ar...
08/08/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
28/07/2026
27 July 2026, Johannesburg - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an a...
20/07/2026
The NFVF, an agency of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture, has released t...
09/07/2026
08 July 2026, Johannesburg - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an a...
06/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
01/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
10/06/2026
Production and Development Funding supports the creation of compelling, commercially viable, artistic and culturally relevant South African screen content. Deve...
09/06/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is a statutory body mandated to spearhead the equitable growth and development of the South African film and video...
19/05/2026
Press Release
18 May 2026, Johannesburg South Africa has been selected as the...
24/04/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/04/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
26/03/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), has been tasked with administering the Sixth Presi...
24/03/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites eligible Tier 1 and 2 South African production companies to submit proposals to serve as the Facilitating ...
15/03/2026
Johannesburg, 14 March 2026 - On 13 and 14 March 2026, the 19th Annual South Afr...
12/03/2026
Johannesburg, 11 March 2026 - The 19th Annual South African Film and Television ...
03/03/2026
Click here for isiXhosa version.
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites aspiring and emerging filmmakers from Matatiele and surrounding areas to...
17/02/2026
Johannesburg, 17 February 2026 - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), ...
09/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sport, Arts, and Culture and custodian of the SAFTAs, is calling on all South Afri...
09/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
09/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the call for training provider submissions is open. This funding aims to award grants ...
06/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
04/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites final-year animation students to participate in an exclusive creative showcase at the Annecy International...
02/02/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), in partnership with the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS), is calling for applications from experienced Sou...
29/01/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), in collaboration with a distribut...
28/01/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), in partnership with the Oudtshoorn Municipality, invites aspiring and emerging filmmakers to apply for the Sediba...
20/01/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
07/01/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), in collaboration with a distributor, is commissioning new micro-budget fiction feature films and invites eligible...
31/10/2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
30 October 2025
It is with great sadness that we mourn the passing of Segomotso Keorapetse, an award- winning South African television d...
29/10/2025
It's not the wonders of the world that make a place; it's the people. As...
07/10/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
02/10/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce the opening...
30/09/2025
Johannesburg, South Africa, 29 September 2025: The National Film and Video Found...
26/09/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation, an agency of the Department of Sport, Ar...
26/09/2025
https://www.nfvf.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/fully-Inclusive-nfvf-invitatio...
29/08/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
27/08/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
25/08/2025
Theme: One Story. One Industry. One Future. - Celebrating South Africa's Screen Legacy, Together
Johannesburg - The National Film and Video Foundation (N...
04/08/2025
S o Paulo Film and Audiovisual Company (Spcine) and the National Film and Video ...
Five of the best: Joburg Film Festival highlights [watch]With 60 top films to choose from, it's a no-brainer as to why the Joburg Film Festival is recognised as Africa's premier film festival.
