Darrell James Roodt (born in Johannesburg, 28 April 1962) is a
South African film director
A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...
,
screenwriter
A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...
and producer. He is probably most well known for his 1992 film ''
Sarafina!'' which starred actress
Whoopi Goldberg
Caryn Elaine Johnson (born November 13, 1955), known professionally as Whoopi Goldberg (), is an American actor, comedian, author, and television personality.Kuchwara, Michael (AP Drama Writer)"Whoopi Goldberg: A One-Woman Character Parade". ...
. Roodt has worked with
Patrick Swayze
Patrick Wayne Swayze ( ; August 18, 1952 – September 14, 2009) was an American actor, singer, songwriter, and dancer. Known for his romantic, tough, and comedic roles in blockbusters and cult films, Swayze was nominated for three Golden Glob ...
in ''
Father Hood'',
James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones (January 17, 1931 – September 9, 2024) was an American actor. A pioneer for black actors in the entertainment industry, Jones is known for his extensive and acclaimed roles on stage and screen. Jones is one of the few perfor ...
in ''
Cry, the Beloved Country'' and
Ice Cube
O'Shea Jackson Sr. (born June 15, 1969), known professionally as Ice Cube, is an American rapper, songwriter, actor, and film producer. His lyrics on N.W.A's 1989 album '' Straight Outta Compton'' contributed to gangsta rap's widespread popu ...
in ''
Dangerous Ground''.
Early life
Born in Johannesburg,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
, Darrell James Roodt grew up during the height of apartheid-era
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
. His early films like ''Place of Weeping'' strongly condemned apartheid. Roodt was astounded that no one was addressing the conditions of apartheid through the medium of film, thus ''Place of Weeping'' is considered to be the first overtly anti-apartheid film made by a
South African. Roodt is quoted as saying, "I didn’t do it from a leftist, agit-prop point of view, rather, I tried to explore characters caught up in quagmire of those turbulent times. Consequently I was never celebrated (for want of a better word) as a leftist film-maker."
Awards and festivals
His film ''
Sarafina!'' was screened out of competition at the
1992 Cannes Film Festival.
His 2012 film ''
Little One'' was selected as the South African entry for the
Best Foreign Language Oscar at the
85th Academy Awards
The 85th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2012 and took place on February 24, 2013, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, beginning at 5:30 p ...
, but it did not make the final shortlist.
His 2007 film ''Meisie'' won best film at the KKNK film festival in March 2008.
Roodt has won an EIUC Award at the Venice Film Festival (2004) and the Taormina Arte Award at the Taormina International Film Festival (2000)
His film ''
Yesterday'' (2004) was nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...
as well as the Independent Spirit Awards for Best Foreign Film (2005).
Filmography
As director
*''City of Blood'' (1983)
*''Place of Weeping'' (1986)
*''The Stick'' (1987)
*''Tenth of a Second'' (1987)
*''Jobman'' (1990)
*''
Sarafina!'' (1992)
*''
Father Hood'' (1993)
*''To the Death'' (1993)
*''
Cry, the Beloved Country'' (1995)
*''
Dangerous Ground'' (1997)
*''Second Skin'' (2000)
*''Witness to a Kill'' (2001)
*''Pavement'' (2002)
*''
Sumuru'' (2003)
*''
Dracula 3000'' (2004) TV film
*''
Yesterday'' (2004)
[
* "Dirty Laundry" (2005) episode of the TV series '']Charlie Jade
''Charlie Jade'' is a science fiction television series filmed mainly in Cape Town, South Africa. It stars Jeffrey Pierce in the title role, as a detective from a parallel universe who finds himself trapped in our universe. This is a Canadian and ...
''
*''Faith's Corner'' (2005)
*''Cryptid'' (2006)
*''Number 10'' (2006)
*''Lullaby'' (2008)
*''Meisie'' (2007)
*''Prey
Predation is a biological interaction in which one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not ki ...
'' (2007)
*''Ella Blue'' (2008) TV mini-series
*''Zimbabwe'' (2008)
*''Jakhalsdans'' (2010)[
*'']Winnie Mandela
Winnie Nomzamo Madikizela-Mandela (born Nomzamo Winifred Zanyiwe Madikizela; 26 September 1936 – 2 April 2018), also known as Winnie Mandela, was a South African politician and anti-apartheid activist, second wife of Nelson Mandela. During ...
'' (2011)[
*'' Little One'' (2012))][
*''The Little Kings'' (2012)
*''Stilte'' (2012))]
References
External links
*
Darrell Roodt on Channel24
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roodt, Darrell
South African film directors
South African science fiction film directors
South African screenwriters
South African film producers
1962 births
Living people