M-Net’s local content investment strategy
paid off when its channels collectively won 36 Golden Horns, scooping some of
the biggest awards - Most Popular Soap, Best Soap, Best
Feature Film, Best Documentary Feature, Best Achievement in Scriptwriting, and
Best Achievement in Directing-Feature Film - at the 11th South African
Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs) held at the Sun City Super Bowl on March 18.
Isibaya,
Mzansi Magic's flagship soap, won Most Popular Soap and The Road was
awarded Best TV Soap. kykNET won Best Feature Film for Sink, Best
Documentary Feature for Nobody's Died Laughing, and Best Achievement in
Scriptwriting for Die Boekklub. M-Net 101 won Best Achievement in
Directing-Feature Film for its original film, Shepherds and Butchers.
Thembisa Mdoda, presenter of Mzansi Magic's
popular reality show, Our Perfect Wedding won Best TV Presenter and Greed
and Desire's Linda Sebezo in the category Best Supporting Actress- TV
Soap/Telenovela.
kykNET (DStv channel 144) won a total of 26
awards including Best Supporting Actress-TV Drama for Die Boekklub won by
Jana Cilliers, taking Best Actor- TV Comedy was James Borthwick as well as the
19 Golden Horns from the technical awards evening.
M-Net's (DStv channel 101) original
film, Shepherds and Butchers directed by Oliver Schmitz won
the Best Achievement in Directing in the Feature Film category. A South African
story set in the 1980’s focuses on the skewed judicial system of the time. A
second win for M-Net was for its ultimate talent contest The Voice South
Africa, which won its very first Golden Horn for Best
International Format Show.
Voted for by adoring fans, Isibaya
(on DStv channel 161), is a proudly South African story that has captured the
hearts of Mzansi. It depicts the battle for wealth and power between rival taxi
families, a reality that many South Africans can relate with. Isibaya also
won for its brilliant production value in the category Best Achievement in Post
Production-Original Music/Score-TV Soap/Telenovela.
Sink, a
kykNET original production, is based on the journey of a mother, who needs to
make devastating choices. Nobody’s Died Laughing, is a biographic
feature documentary, an exploration of the life and times of satirist Pieter-Dirk
Uys.
M-Net CEO Yolisa Phahle stated that, ‘From
audience approvals to awards, our local content focus is about creating
memorable and empowering television, which has allowed our M-Net magic to
spread across the continent’. Phahle continued to say that, ‘Our successes are
based on the winning partnerships with powerhouse production companies, actors
and our employees, who share the M-Net vision of creating local stories that
are transformational and entertaining.’ Phahle congratulated all nominees and
winners honoured on the evening.