From Hollywood to Pollsmoor
14 October 2007, 09:10
South African-born movie star Alice Krige is in the Mother City to shoot and act in a film at Pollsmoor, Cape Town's infamous prison.
Inmates will get the chance to work alongside the likes of British actors Sir Derek Jacobi and Richard Clifford, veteran South African actor John Kani, Warren Adler and Bo Petersen.
Krige, an award-winning actress who appeared in movies such as Star Trek: First Contact, King David and Chariots of Fire, told Weekend Argus that the film, written and directed by her husband Paul Schoolman, was about the early life of Julius Caesar and had been in the making for more than two decades.
She described it as a straightforward story about a kid growing up in difficult times. "Caesar was a laughing stock, a joke, who came from a family on the way down. He was imprisoned by circumstances," she said.
But it will have a modern-day feel with "not a toga in sight" and the prisoners taking part won't just be wallpaper - they'll have real roles to play.
Krige said that Schoolman thought people in prison would relate to Caesar's story because they were often regarded as being at the "bottom of the bin" yet were as motivated by dreams just as others were.
Scenes from the film, called StringCaesar, have been shot in Cardiff Prison in Wales, while shooting begins at Pollsmoor in just over a week.
Krige said that after Schoolman wrote the script in the early 1980s the two of them went to Dartmoor Prison in the United Kingdom to shoot it.
"We thought we would have a movie six months later but it didn't happen."
Instead the couple landed up working with prisoners, running acting and writing workshops for the next eight years.
The film was put on the back-burner but was resurrected in the late 1990s when a South African director friend suggested they shoot it here.
Krige said they presented their project to the Department of Correctional Services, bringing in hours of archival footage from Cardiff, and it was very well received.
The couple also intend setting up a foundation whereby actors will run workshops and training programmes at the prison.
Krige says working with prisoners was exhilarating.
"It's wildly exciting but heartbreaking too, because when we leave they are still shut in."
She said the prisoners worked with "breathtaking candour. They give everything they have to offer. I've never not come away dumbfounded by their passion and commitment."
Krige said she knew people might think drama was simply "airy fairy". "And I know that behaviour is one of the hardest things to shift, but I believe what we do is a means of helping people perceive that they might be something other than what they have been."
The project is looking for participants to help with the workshops and the filming, and for trade exchanges to assist the actors.
Inmates will get the chance to work alongside the likes of British actors Sir Derek Jacobi and Richard Clifford, veteran South African actor John Kani, Warren Adler and Bo Petersen.
Krige, an award-winning actress who appeared in movies such as Star Trek: First Contact, King David and Chariots of Fire, told Weekend Argus that the film, written and directed by her husband Paul Schoolman, was about the early life of Julius Caesar and had been in the making for more than two decades.
She described it as a straightforward story about a kid growing up in difficult times. "Caesar was a laughing stock, a joke, who came from a family on the way down. He was imprisoned by circumstances," she said.
But it will have a modern-day feel with "not a toga in sight" and the prisoners taking part won't just be wallpaper - they'll have real roles to play.
Krige said that Schoolman thought people in prison would relate to Caesar's story because they were often regarded as being at the "bottom of the bin" yet were as motivated by dreams just as others were.
Scenes from the film, called StringCaesar, have been shot in Cardiff Prison in Wales, while shooting begins at Pollsmoor in just over a week.
Krige said that after Schoolman wrote the script in the early 1980s the two of them went to Dartmoor Prison in the United Kingdom to shoot it.
"We thought we would have a movie six months later but it didn't happen."
Instead the couple landed up working with prisoners, running acting and writing workshops for the next eight years.
The film was put on the back-burner but was resurrected in the late 1990s when a South African director friend suggested they shoot it here.
Krige said they presented their project to the Department of Correctional Services, bringing in hours of archival footage from Cardiff, and it was very well received.
The couple also intend setting up a foundation whereby actors will run workshops and training programmes at the prison.
Krige says working with prisoners was exhilarating.
"It's wildly exciting but heartbreaking too, because when we leave they are still shut in."
She said the prisoners worked with "breathtaking candour. They give everything they have to offer. I've never not come away dumbfounded by their passion and commitment."
Krige said she knew people might think drama was simply "airy fairy". "And I know that behaviour is one of the hardest things to shift, but I believe what we do is a means of helping people perceive that they might be something other than what they have been."
- This article was originally published on page 3 of The Cape Argus on October 14, 2007
Pretoria
