The World Unseen | |
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Directed by | Shamim Sarif |
Screenplay by | Shamim Sarif |
Based on | The World Unseen by Shamim Sarif |
Produced by | Hanan Kattan |
Starring | Lisa Ray Sheetal Sheth |
Cinematography | Michael Downie |
Edited by | David Martin |
Music by | Richard Blackford |
Distributed by | Enlightenment Productions Regent Releasing |
Release date |
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Running time | 94 minutes |
Countries | South Africa United Kingdom |
Language | English |
The World Unseen is a 2007 historical drama film, written and directed by Shamim Sarif, adapted from her own novel. The film is set in 1950s Cape Town, South Africa during the beginning of apartheid. The film stars Lisa Ray and Sheetal Sheth as two Indian South African women who fall in love in a racist, sexist, and homophobic society.
Ray and Sheth also star together in another Shamim Sarif movie, I Can't Think Straight , released in November 2008.
The World Unseen was made with the assistance of the National Film and Video Foundation of South Africa, which took a minority equity stake in the film.
In 1950s South Africa, a land torn apart by apartheid, Amina epitomizes individuality and freedom. She runs the Location Café, a haven of fun, food, and festivities open to all. Amina defines her own laws and lives on her own terms, undeterred by the reproving police and the disparaging Indian community.
Miriam demurely follows conventions and makes no demands on life. Her world is confined to being a doting mother to her three children and a subservient wife to her chauvinistic husband Omar.
Amina has a covert business partner, Jacob, who is barred from owning a business because the State considers him to be 'coloured'. He is attracted to Madeleine, a local white postmistress, but the indignities and injustices of the prevalent law thwart their desire to pursue a relationship.
Omar's sister Rehmat married a white man, against rules that forbid mixed marriages. When she needs protection from police, Amina shelters her, and her charm and strength of character captivate Miriam, who secretly rejoices when Amina accepts a farming job in her backyard. Amina notices Miriam's inherent kindness and silent dedication, and the mutual attraction between them grows. They bare their hearts to each other and their emotions get entangled. They contrive another reason to meet: driving lessons.
The inescapable social distance between them makes them question their feelings, but, in the midst of hatred and oppression, their only refuge is love.
In the resplendent South African landscape, with retro music strewn in the background, The World Unseen explores Miriam's relationship with Amina and how it empowers her to make personal choices that change her world.
The film was positively reviewed by the gay and lesbian media, with AfterEllen calling it "one of the best-conceived queer films of the past year – a sincere, beautifully realized vision of love and resistance in an intolerant world." [1] On Rotten Tomatoes the film has a 30% rotten rating from 27 reviews, with an average score of 4.5/10. [2]
Awards | |||
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Award | Category | Name | Outcome |
South African Film and Television Awards 2009 [3] [4] | Best Director | Shamim Sarif | Won |
Best Cinematographer | Mike Downie | Won | |
Best Supporting Actor | David Dennis | Won | |
Best Supporting Actress | Natalie Becker | Won | |
Best Ensemble Cast | The World Unseen | Won | |
Best Writing | Shamim Sarif | Won | |
Best Editor | Ronelle Loots, David Martin | Won | |
Best Production Designer | Tanya van Tonder | Won | |
Best Costume Designer | Danielle Knox | Won | |
Best Make Up/Hair Stylist | Caera O'Shaughneey | Won | |
Best Sound Designer | Barry Donnelly | Won | |
Phoenix International Film Festival [5] | World Cinema Best Director | Shamim Sarif | Won |
Clip Film Festival, USA [5] | Best Director, Feature | Shamim Sarif | Won |
Grand Canarias G&L International Film Festival [5] | Best Actress | Sheetal Sheth | Won |
Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival [5] | Audience Award, Best Feature | The World Unseen | Won |
Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival [5] | Best Debut Feature | The World Unseen | Won |
Paris Lesbian and Feminist Film Festival [5] | Audience Award, Best Feature | The World Unseen | Won |
Dallas OUT TAKES | Best Actress | Sheetal Sheth | Won |
Verzaubert - International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival [5] | Silver Medal | The World Unseen | Won |
Best Picture | The World Unseen | Nominated | |
Tampa International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival | Audience Award for Best Film | The World Unseen | Won |
Best Director | Shamim Sarif | Won |
Zenzile Miriam Makeba, nicknamed Mama Africa, was a South African singer, songwriter, actress, and civil rights activist. Associated with musical genres including Afropop, jazz, and world music, she was an advocate against apartheid and white-minority government in South Africa.
Mark Mathabane is a South African author, lecturer, and a former collegiate tennis player and college professor.
Steve Hofmeyr is a South African singer, songwriter, writer, actor and former TV presenter.
Fatima Meer was a South African writer, academic, screenwriter, and prominent anti-apartheid activist.
Lisa Rani Ray is a Canadian actress. She began her modelling career in India in the early 1990s, appearing for leading Indian brands like Bombay Dyeing and Lakmé. She made her acting debut in 1994 in the film Hanste Khelte. Through her acting career, Ray has demonstrated a penchant for issue-oriented portrayals, most notably in the 2005 Oscar-nominated Canadian film Water and the award-winning South African feature The World Unseen, described by a reviewer as "one of the best-conceived queer films of the past year."
Sheetal Sheth is an American actress, author, producer, and activist of Indian descent.
Catch a Fire is a 2006 biographical thriller film about activists against apartheid in South Africa. The film was directed by Phillip Noyce, from a screenplay written by Shawn Slovo. Slovo's father, Joe Slovo, and mother Ruth First, leaders of the South African Communist Party and activists in the Anti-Apartheid Movement, appear as characters in the film, while her sister, Robyn Slovo, is one of the film's producers and also plays their mother Ruth First. Catch a Fire was filmed on location in South Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique.
Shamim Sarif is a British novelist, screenwriter, and film director of South Asian and South African heritage. Sarif is best known for her work in writing and directing films with themes that often explore issues of identity and cultural diversity.
I Can't Think Straight is a 2008 British romantic drama film directed by Shamim Sarif. Based on Sarif's 2008 novel of the same name, the film tells the story of a London-based Jordanian of Palestinian descent, Tala, who is preparing for an elaborate wedding when a turn of events causes her to have an affair, and subsequently fall in love, with another woman, Leyla, a British Indian. The film stars Lisa Ray and Sheetal Sheth.
David Dennis is a South African actor. He is best known for his role as Sol in the SABC 1 TV series Soul City. Dennis also played a significant role in the TV series Charlie Jade, as police detective Sew Sew Tukarrs. Dennis also played a terrorist Abasi Sawalha in Strike Back: Project Dawn - Season 2. In total, Dennis has had roles in thirteen different television series.
Sarafina! is a 1992 musical drama film based on Mbongeni Ngema's 1987 musical of the same name. The film was directed by Darrell Roodt and written by Ngema Mbongeni and William Nicholson, and stars Leleti Khumalo, Miriam Makeba, John Kani, Ngema, and Whoopi Goldberg; Khumalo reprises her role from the stage performance.
Hanan Fuad Tewfic Kattan is a Jordanian-born, British-based film producer of Palestinian origin. She is also co-owner of multi-media entertainment company Enlightenment Productions.
Amina CachaliaOLB was a South African anti-Apartheid activist, women's rights activist, and politician. She was a longtime friend and ally of former President Nelson Mandela.
Despite the Falling Snow is a 2004 book by Shamim Sarif. It was first published on May 4, 2004 through Headline Book Publishing and is set during two different time periods. One part of the story is set in 1950s Moscow, Russia during the Cold War years, while the other follows the story of 1992 Moscow and London in the period after the collapse of USSR.
Enlightenment Productions is multi-media entertainment company based in London and founded in partnership between producer Hanan Kattan and writer and director Shamim Sarif in 2001.
Despite the Falling Snow is a 2016 British Cold War espionage film directed by Shamim Sarif, adapted from her novel of the same name. Starring Rebecca Ferguson, Sam Reid, Charles Dance, Antje Traue, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Thure Lindhardt and Anthony Head, the film was released in the United Kingdom on 15 April 2016.
Vinette Ebrahim is a South African actress and playwright known for her role as Charmaine Meintjies in the SABC 2 soap opera 7de Laan. She is the sister of actor Vincent Ebrahim.
I Can't Think Straight is a 2008 novel by Shamim Sarif. Sarif directed a 2008 film of the same name. The novel and film are semi-autobiographical.
The World Unseen is a 2008 novel written by Shamim Sarif.
Violation is a 2020 Canadian horror drama film directed and written by Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli. It is the feature film debut of the two directors, who have collaborated on several short films displayed at film festivals worldwide. The plot follows Miriam, who seeks revenge on her brother-in-law after a traumatic incident. The film stars Madeleine Sims-Fewer, Anna Maguire, Jesse LaVercombe, Obi Abili, Jasmin Geljo, and Cynthia Ashperger.