
John Trengove
1978 (47 лет)John Trengove was born in Johannesburg in 1978. Trengove is the son of famous South African advocate, Wim Trengove. He attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. In 2010 he directed the miniseries Hopeville, which was nominated for an international Emmy and received the prestigious Rose d'Or for drama. It was also released as a 92-minute feature film. His short film, The Goat, premiered at the Berlinale Film festival in 2014 and screened at over 40 film festivals worldwide. In 2017, The Wound was releases, which is a controversial film which tracks a closeted relationship between two men in the context of the Xhosa initiation ritual. The film premiered at the Sundance film festival, and won best feature at Frameline, Sarasota, Valencia and Taipei Film Festivals. In 2023, he directed Manodrome, which has been labeled as a serious movie that may not appeal to everyone.
Hopeville
John Trengove
Themba Ndaba, Junior Singo
Hopeville tells the story of Amos, a reformed alcoholic on a mission to forge a relationship with his estranged son, Themba. When father and son arrive in the dusty town of Hopeville, they discover a mean little community where apathy, fear and suspicion are the order of the day. When Amos decides to restore the public swimming pool so that his son can purse a swimming career, he is met with skepticism and resistance from the town's authorities and its inhabitants. Through patience, determination and above all courage, Amos' selfless acts ripples through Hopeville, inspiring others to take action and to do what they know is right. Slowly but surely, good ripples through Hopeville, transforming the town and its inhabitants for good.
Hopeville
The Wound
John Trengove
Nakhane Touré, Bongile Mantsai
Eastern Cape, South Africa. A lonely factory worker, Xolani, takes time off his job to assist during an annual Xhosa circumcision initiation into manhood. In a remote mountain camp that is off limits to women, young men, painted in white ochre, recuperate as they learn the masculine codes of their culture. In this environment of machismo and aggression, Xolani cares for a defiant initiate from Johannesburg, Kwanda, who quickly learns Xolani's best kept secret, that he is in love with another man.
The Wound
IBhokhwe
John Trengove
Thando Mhlontlo, Nkosipendule Cengani
Ukwaluka is an ancient circumcision ritual for young men still widely practiced by the Xhosa in South Africa. It marks the transition from youth to manhood. A boy who has just undergone circumcision sits in semi-darkness in a simple hut on a hill, far away from the village, as prescribed by the initiation ritual. He is covered from head to toe with a paint made from clay which makes him look as white as a goat. This should be a period of healing, but he is cold and in pain. His grandfather, who is supposed to induct him into his new life, has not yet appeared. According to the belief system of the Xhosa, Ukwaluka also purges the boy from homosexual desires, for which there is no place in the world of adults.
The Goat