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The Mothers’ House
A film about being a daughter in an imperfect world
| Length: | 76 min |
| Released: | 2006 |
| Ages: |
College Adult |
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Astonishingly intimate, this festival film is a record of four years in the life of Miche, a charming and precocious teenager growing into womanhood in a township outside Cape Town. She has to face not only life in a “colored” community beset by gangsterism and drug abuse, but also the toughness and anger within her own family : three generations of women who have survived the struggle against Apartheid, the lack of supportive men, the threat of HIV and dim prospects for a better life.
The film is honest without being maudlin. Miche is in many ways an ordinary high school girl: she has her ears pierced for the first time, hosts her first dancing party, and finds her first boyfriend. But having to bear responsibility for her HIV positive mother, and the well-being of her younger siblings ,forces her to be strong beyond her years. When the pressure becomes too great she leaves home, but finally realizes the love that binds them, and returns.
The film is honest without being maudlin. Miche is in many ways an ordinary high school girl: she has her ears pierced for the first time, hosts her first dancing party, and finds her first boyfriend. But having to bear responsibility for her HIV positive mother, and the well-being of her younger siblings ,forces her to be strong beyond her years. When the pressure becomes too great she leaves home, but finally realizes the love that binds them, and returns.
"It is easy to tell stories that dance around on the surface of human existence. It is much harder to delve into our complexities with honesty and dignity...This film succeeds in this...African storytelling at its finest."
Sylvia Vollenhoven, Head of SABC Factual
"Remarkable...An incredible visual experience providing a glimpse into an unusual family."
Sybrandus Adema, Die Son
Sylvia Vollenhoven, Head of SABC Factual
"Remarkable...An incredible visual experience providing a glimpse into an unusual family."
Sybrandus Adema, Die Son
HotDocs, Toronto, 2006
Silverdocs, 2006
African Film Festival, Cologne, 2006
One World Festival, Prague, 2006
Best Documentary, Cape Town World Cinema Festival, 2005
Silverdocs, 2006
African Film Festival, Cologne, 2006
One World Festival, Prague, 2006
Best Documentary, Cape Town World Cinema Festival, 2005
