BY PHUMZILE NDLOVU
MBABANE – Another milestone for Ayeye Entertainment!
Just like the title of the feature film, A Dream – “Liphupho”, it is indeed a dream come true for the entertainment stable to finally produce a feature film. Ayeye Entertainment has produced at least four short films before.
Ayeye Entertainment, in association with Luda Films Production, Bigtime Beats, Lenscope_ISP, and Silverstone’s Pictures, released the feature film on Tuesday. The entertainment stable also gave special thanks to the Alliance Française de Mbabane for their great collaboration and support of the film.
A Dream – “Liphupho” is a story that follows a doubtful boy’s dream of becoming a professional actor while facing the difficult reality of his life. Despite being confined under dire conditions, he remains hopeful and perseverant.
When reached for comment, Ayeye Entertainment Director and Producer Siphosethu Sibandze shared with this publication that the film was shot around Mantjolo in Mbabane and also at Hilltop in Mahwalala, Mbabane. He said: “The duration of the film is one hour, which makes it a feature film. We had a wide cast of about 18 actors, and although I cannot recall all their names at the moment, I will touch on a few, which are in the poster: namely; Akahle Ntjalintjili, Gift Shongwe, Nqobile, Mavuso, and myself.”
He added: “In April and May 2023, we hosted an acting master class, which made our work easy; we didn’t have auditions, and after, we used actors who were in the master class. We had 15 participants, and half of the class is part of this film. And we hope the rest will also get opportunities in other projects that will be soon produced by us,” said the director.
According to Sibandze, they had a small crew because of transportation and some other changes. The film is written and directed by Sibandze and Sibusile Dlamini is the assistant director. The cinematographer is Luyanda Motsa, while Sanele Mazibuko is the second camera operator. The sound is Bahle Shongwe and the gaffer is Clifford Dludlu.
“We have produced a couple of short films before. In 2022, ‘Lifa Lami’ was the first short film that drew a lot of interest from a lot of emaSwati who love films. We also produced ‘New Problem in Town’ with Luyanda Motsa, ‘Dear Jesus’, and ‘Emuva’. This is our first feature film, as we have been known for producing the best work in short films, and people have wanted more of our work,” Sibandze concluded.
