Blindelings: Famous filmmaking couple Ivan Botha and Donnalee Roberts venture into a new genre
Ivan Botha and Donnalee Roberts touched the hearts of local moviegoers with their romantic comedy box office hits Pad na jou hart and Vir altyd. Their latest film, Blindelings, aims straight at our tickers again. However, this time we’re talking about the type of cardiac action induced by the fight-or-flight adrenaline pumping in your veins during life-threatening events.
Blindelings sees Ivan and Donnalee venturing into a genre they haven’t tackled before: a psychological thriller.
The movie is about a blind pianist with synesthesia who experiences a frightening attack backstage after a performance. Her nightmare continues when she visits a farm in the sticks.
Donnalee delivers an electrifying performance as the blind René, and Ivan moves into the director’s chair.
They tell us more about the plot, themes and characters that make Blindelings a nail-biting film and share how they approached the storytelling.
- What inspired you to create Blindelings? Why did you decide to tell this story in this genre?
As storytellers, we always dream of exploring different genres. People might not know, but we love watching psychological thrillers.
The film and its story developed organically, and we worked with screenwriters Liani Jansen van Rensburg and Ernst van Wyk to pen down the kind of plot and characters that would gradually build the suspense to a point where the audience wouldn’t know which characters can be trusted.
The message and themes of our films are hugely important to us. What is the deeper meaning? We often chat about the dangers of trusting people blindly – especially these days when it’s so easy to befriend people on social media, for example, without knowing much about your new “friend”. Blindelings takes the theme of trust into a different, frightening direction in an ideally suited genre.
- What is synesthesia, and how does it contribute to the suspense in the film?
There are numerous documented accounts and forms of synesthesia. Blind, deaf or mute people, but also those without any disabilities, experience a blending of the senses. In other words, stimulating one sense causes sensations and experiences in another. People with synesthesia might hear sounds, smell words or feel colours.
In René’s case, her emotional reactions to sounds, makes her see coloured spots. This helps her judge situations.
Ivan: The coloured spots René sees in response to music and people’s voices, brought a wonderful visual element to the film which I used to depict her anxiety and fear. As a director, I could allow the viewer to experience events and characters from Rene’s perspective.
Donnalee: René is finely attuned to how people express themselves. She sees what she hears, based on the energy and emotions she picks up. Her synesthesia allowed us to create multi-dimensional characters and many story layers. Within the theme of blind faith, it provided many opportunities for storytelling.
- Donnalee, it’s a challenging role. What did Blindelings teach you?
For over a month, I was literally blind on set for eleven hours of the day. I wore special contact lenses designed for Rene’s condition and the shape of my eyes. It was the first time in my career I played a blind character, and I started appreciating my various senses more than ever before. It’s remarkable how the human body reacts when one of its senses is removed. I became extraordinarily sound-sensitive and started assessing distance through the sounds I heard.
When acting, it’s essential to read the eyes of other actors and to respond to what you see. That’s why my fellow actors in Blindelings deserve much praise. They had to give so much more of themselves on different levels for me to respond appropriately to what I could only feel and hear. They were phenomenal, and I saw their performances for the first time in the editing suite.
To play the part of René also required extensive research. I spent days at the Cape Town Society for the Blind, learning skills like navigating my way with a walking stick. I can go on for hours about how blind people overcome obstacles created by their disability.
- Tell us more about the other characters in Blindelings and how they fit into the theme.
We don’t want to reveal too much, as it will spoil it for the viewer in terms of why none of them can be trusted.
Jacques Bessenger plays René’s husband, Paul, a real estate agent whose ship never came in. His intentions are mostly not bad, but his actions shine the spotlight on trust in the sense that one is often hurt by the people closest to you.
Ludwig Binge brings a mysteriousness to Albert, a musician who used to perform alongside René. He is consumed by his blind ambition and desire to return to the music stage with René at his side.
And then there is Steyn, portrayed by Wilhelm van der Walt. He is a master manipulator pretending to be an affluent businessman.
- Ivan, if you weren’t directing, which of these parts would you have loved to play? And how did you approach the directing?
Definitely Steyn. But I can only disclose why after you have seen Blindelings.
From a creative point of view, I just wanted to be honest and stay true to the genre. As blindness is essential to the story, I tried to simulate a blind person’s experience for the audience. Instead of using the usual film lighting, we played with natural light and darkness to accentuate character traits. Handheld cameras were used to amplify fear and anxiety. All my choices were made to serve the theme and visual storytelling.
I was also blessed with a remarkable crew. Everyone – from make-up artists to production designers – poured their time and passion into creating the film’s mood. Charl-Johan Lingenvelder’s music rounds off the film beautifully, and with a DOP like Tom Marais, you know every frame will be a piece of art. Then we also had the incredible editor and Silwerskerm Film Festival Award winner Leon Visser. He adores the genre and took the movie to a next level.
Blindelings is screened at the festival on Thursday 24 Augustus at 20:00 and will be available on DStv BoxOffice from 29 September.