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A documentary on former public protector Thuli Madonsela will premiere at the prestigious Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival in Toronto, Canada, in May.
The documentary, titled Whispering Words to Power, is a portrait of Madonsela in her various roles and is not limited to her position as the former public protector of South Africa.
“She is ombud, mother, mediator and public hero. The film tells a gripping story about the public protector’s fight as an institution against corruption amid deepening societal rifts in South Africa,” said producer Neil Brandt.
Starting with the landmark February 2016 Constitutional Court case on the powers of the public protector, the film charts the mounting stress on Madonsela as her seven-year term was drawing to a close and at the end of that year – marked by student unrest, heightened pressure to deal with inequalities and a new investigation involving then president Jacob Zuma.
Asked to predict how international audiences will react to Madonsela’s heroism on screen, director Shameela Seedat said they would love to see Madonsela in action.
“I am keen to bring another type of African character to the international documentary audience. A strong, super-lawyer-woman in a position of power. But, to be honest, I am not sure how they will respond to the film as a whole.
“Post-apartheid South Africa has thrown out a messy and complex reality that we, here at home, are keen to confront, but I am not sure how easy it will sit with international audiences.”
She said she also hoped the film would get more people to know more about the Public Protector’s office as an institution and how it could strengthen constitutional democracy.
The documentary is Seedat’s first full-length feature after years of working in the field of human rights law, reflecting her passion for human rights topics.
She has been involved in the film industry since 2010.
“I graduated with law degrees from UCT and Columbia University in New York and then worked for the Constitutional Court, the UN Development Programme, the Institute for Democratic Alternatives in South Africa and a law firm,” she said, adding that she was struck by the need for personal change and the film seemed like a reasonable choice.
“I was intrigued by the person at its helm – a lawyer, an activist, a black woman – who had fought a massive battle to see that the institution had real teeth, at great personal costs,” she said.
Madonsela was unavailable for comment. Seedat said Madonsela was sent the film a while back. But she had not responded.
“I presume she has watched it and so I assume that she does not want to interfere,” Seedat said, adding her compliments to Madonsela by saying she was an “intriguing subject on which to focus”.
“I found her to be a mix of intriguing characteristics – humble, extremely confident, a workaholic with a photographic memory and a great sense of purpose.”
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