‘Hello Obakeng’ is the latest short film from young South African filmmaker Tsholofelo Tselaemang, a 25-year-old Journalism and Politics graduate now working as Head of Creative Research and a junior director at Groundglass in Cape Town.

The film was made as part of a new mentorship programme at the company, overseen by Janette de Villiers and Laurence Hamburger.

Delicately made in the tradition of Slow Cinema, the film is a taut and cleverly devised drama in which we observe an ex-soldier as he anxiously attempts to make a return to swimming, while recalling a voice message left for him by his estranged daughter. With a deft cinematic maturity, the filmmaker draws these two characters – one only seen, the other only heard – into a brief but emotionally charged confluence of familial alienation and personal turbulence.

‘Hello Obakeng’ is a sincere and beautifully considered realisation that the reconciling of our political selves is probably to be found in our personal pasts.

The film was shot by Pierre de Villiers and stars Apollo Ntshoko and Sive Gubangxa, with an equisite soundtrack from jazz pianist, Thandi Ntuli.

‘Hello Obakeng’ has been entered for this year’s Young Directors Awards (YDA) in Cannes. To brief Tsholofelo for commercials work contact Janette at Groundglass.