Stand-up comedian and actor Kagiso Lediga’s film ‘Catching Feelings’ will premiere locally at the Cape Town Film festival on 17 October.
Lediga has come a long way since his SABC TV show, Pure Monate. Not only has he been busy with stand-up comedy, but he has also caught the directing bug. Catching Feelings is his debut film as a director.
The movie, which has premiered at the Urban World Film festival in New York and at the Los Angeles Film Festival, was written by Lediga and he stars in it.
Set in a chic and middle-class part of Johannesburg, Catching Feelings is a tale of how life, love and art intersect in uncontrollable ways. It’s the story of a jaded academic (Lediga) and his journalist wife (Pearl Thusi), whose lives are turned upside-down when a celebrated and hedonistic, older writer (Andrew Buckland) unexpectedly moves in with them.
Despite their love for each other, their relationship is no longer exciting. Max now spends his time at dinner parties and other social events, musing over his frustrations with his key conspirator and sounding board, Joel (Akin Omotoso), who has his hands full with an illicit affair.
Speaking about the movie Lediga says: “I wanted to make a fun film about Johannesburg. It is a place full of contradictions. It is Africa’s business capital and culturally diverse with a very messy recent history. I find it fascinating that the 30-something, black, middle-class characters portrayed in this film never existed 20 years ago because it was essentially illegal to be black and middle class and I guess it would also be impossible to engage in angst-ridden, existential navel gazing when you’re fleeing tear gas and rubber bullets from the Apartheid cops – although it is rumoured that the 30-something-year-olds of Apartheid times had a greater sense of purpose.”
The film also features Zandi Tisani, Precious Makgaretsa and Kate Liquorish.
Lediga’s second film, Matwetwe Wizard, will be premiering on 18 October.
Source: Destiny Connect