KZNSA’S CINEMA THURSDAY

“12 and Holding” for KZNSA Gallery picnic screening on August 19.

Following the hugely successful first season of Cinema Thursday, the Durban Film Society will continue with these outdoor screenings. Every first and third Thursday of the month, the KZNSA Gallery lawn transforms into a picnic theatre with a selection of international art-house, classic, foreign, experimental and generally interesting films.

Once again the programme offers an eclectic mix of memorable films from across space and time for those who have a taste for the alternative. The goal of Cinema Thursday Picnic Screenings is to contribute to the development of a culture of film appreciation and filmmaking in Durban, and not for the financial gain of the organisers. However, there are running costs incurred by the KZNSA Gallery which they need help in covering, such as set-up costs and the security guard. A collection box will be passed around at the screenings for those who wish to place a donation.

12 and Holding directed by Michael Cuesta in 2005 is the movie to be screened on August 19. With three united but unique narrative threads, it tells the story of young twins Rudy and Jacon, and their friends Leonard and Malee, as a dark event thrusts them into adulthood for the first time. According to an LA Times reviewer, “Arresting in its use of suspense, humor and finely observed character details, the film homes in on an especially treacherous part of childhood, the passage into adolescence. Cuesta and screenwriter Anthony S. Cipriano consistently keep the audience on edge as a group of tweens are thrust from the comfort of innocence into the darkness of experience.”

12 and Holding can be regarded as an example of truly sensitive filmmaking. NB: There is some violence, language and sexual content involving minors.

Bring blankets, snacks and vino, and relive the era of the drive-in as the screen flickers under the starry sky. If the temperamental Durban weather threatens to rain on the parade, the screening will move inside to the tiered café seating.