Freedom follows the journey of Freedom (played by Mamabolo), a disillusioned and desperate university student, clinging to an impossible existence in the inner-city Johannesburg.
Burdened by the weight of expectation and pretence, Freedom pawns his coveted text books to an amoral loan-shark, Alina, in order to find money to write his exams whilst at the same time taking care of his rural family.
But when a change of mind finds him burdened with guilt and conflict, he turns to an old friends as he learns that Johannesburg is a city that does not let you go so easily, life is a vicious cycle, and despite his noble efforts his fate is destined to a tragic ending.
Mamabolo says his “aim in creating this film was to shed some light on the current state of youth affairs in post-Apartheid South Africa”.
“The film probes the meaning of freedom in the new South Africa. Are we truly a free nation if South Africa’s masses still don’t have full access to their human rights as enshrined in our world-class constitution? I don’t deign to have those answers but I believe that the conversation must be heard nonetheless,” said Mamabolo.
Set in contemporary Johannesburg, against the backdrop of the #FEESMUSTFALL movement, Freedom is inspired by Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment and was conceptualized in 2014 with the screenplay written over four months by Mamabolo.
The story was captured in Johannesburg’s hustle and bustle streets of Yeoville, Hillbrow and Newtown over a period of six weeks in 2017, with post-production taking place in Los Angeles.
It features a star-studded cast including the late Mary Twala (This Is Not A Burial, It’s A Resurrection), two-time SAFTA award winner Mandla Gaduka (District 9, Generations), Kenneth Nkosi (White Wedding, District 9, Jerusalema), Samkelo Ndlovu (Rhythm City) and introduces newcomer Nicole Mathope as Sonia.
Image (Actor-cum writer Jafta Mamabolo, the producer of Freedom that focuses on current state of youth in SA post Apartheid).
