An inspirational, powerful story of three young activists struggling to save their homes in the shack settlements of Durban, South Africa. For this feature documentary, my goal was to enhance the vivid, highly cinematic film with music that would subtly underline the characters’ arcs and emphasize both the universality of the story of young activists working for a better life and the unique strangeness of life in South Africa’s informal settlements. I also wanted to make music that would feel appropriate for the African setting without sounding like fake African music. The end result is more like music for a science fiction film than a standard documentary – a blend of ambient electronic textures, electric guitars and strings recorded both in my own studio and at WGBH’s beautiful studio in Boston.
Dear Mandela premiered at the Durban International Film Festival in South Africa on July 26, 2011 and will continue to show at international film festivals.