The Writers’ Guild of South Africa (WGSA) and M-Net take great pleasure in announcing the nominees for the WGSA Muse Awards 2014/15, set for late April 2015. At the event, performance writers in film, television, radio, stage and new media industries will gather to recognise and celebrate the integral role played by their peers in the South African entertainment industry.
On this, the second annual WGSA Muse Awards, WGSA is elated to have M-Net as a headline sponsor for the prestigious competition and glamorous awards ceremony, which honours the best local performance writers in the industry.
M-Net Corporate Affairs Director, Kershnee Govender, commented on M-Net’s support of the event: “For the past 29 years, M-Net has remained a proud sponsor of local arts and culture initiatives. This event confirms our belief in the very important and often undervalued role which writers in various disciplines play in South Africa. These writers bring the many diverse stories of our multi-faceted society to life, in so doing enriching the lives and cultural fabric of all who come into contact with their work.”“A substantial number of entries were received for the WGSA Muse Awards, and we would like to thank all the writers who submitted their scripts for consideration. The judging benchmark for this year has been set high, and entries have now been evaluated by the first round judges,” said Harriet Meier, the chairperson of WGSA.
“The top three scripts reaching or surpassing the standard set by the minimum judging criteria will make up the nominees. These screenplays will proceed to the next phase, where the winners will be selected by a new set of judges, which include big name international writers, agents and Writers’ Guild representatives from around the world.”
The nominees for the WGSA Muse Awards 2014/15 are (in no specific order):
Animation:
1) Tracy Eccles: Wheelin’
Documentary:
1) David Forbes: The Cradock Four
2) Meg Richards: 1994: The Bloody Miracle
3) Peter Goldsmid: Dance Up From The Street
TV Comedy / Sitcom:
1) Fidel Namisi: Call Centre
2) Joshua Rous: By the Numbers
TV Drama:
1) Amor Tredoux: Danz! Episode 6
2) Marina Bekker: Thola Episode 1
3) Shirley Johnston: Traffic: Episode 25
TV Drama:
1) Amor Tredoux: Danz! Episode 6
2) Marina Bekker: Thola Episode 1
3) Shirley Johnston: Traffic: Episode 25
Stage Play:
1) Janet van Eeden: A Matter of Time
2) Janet van Eeden: In-Gene-Uity
3) Janet van Eeden: The Savage Sisters
Spec Script:
1) Fidel Namisi: Bring Back Lost Lover
2) Hanneke Schutte: Meerkat Moonship
3) Zamo Mkhwanazi: The Good Doctor
No nominations were made for Radio Plays, and the over 100 Feature Film entries received were all for unproduced screenplays. As such, it was decided by the organisers to dedicate the Spec Script in Any Genre category this year solely to Feature Films, and to include unproduced work in other genres in their own genre categories.
Judges from all industry sectors, who participated in this extensive first round:
Animation
Albert Du Plessis, Julie Hall , Yolanda Lindeque-Strauss
Documentary
Carolyn Carew, Veronica Stewart, Vlokkie Gordon
TV Comedy/Sitcom
Harriet Meier, Nim Geva, Theoline Maphutha, Tracey-Lee Dearham, Yolanda Lindeque-Strauss
TV Drama
Anna-Marie Janse van Vuuren, Dorette Nel, Eubulus Timothy, Harriet Meier, Jacqui Achilleas, Saskia Schiel, Theoline Maphutha
Spec Script: Feature Film
Adze Ugah, Amor Tredoux, Anneke Villet, Dan Jawitz, Dorette Nel, Elsa van Schalkwyk, Harriet Meier, Jan Engelen, John Hill, Joy Sapieka, Marc Nekaitar, Matthew Kalil, Quanita Adams, Robert De Mezieres, Sam Phillips, Thandi Brewer, Victor Molele, Yolanda Mogatusi
Radio Play
Harriet Meier, Lelia Etsebeth, Veronica Stewart
Stage Play
Karen Jeynes, Paulette Reynecke, Sam Phillips
The WGSA gratefully acknowledges the hard work of the judges and wish all the nominees the best.
