The feature film Otelo Burning ( 2011) tells the story of black youth ‘tasting freedom’ by surfing waves in late apartheid South Africa and reflects on the emergence of a new national order by drawing Nelson Mandela's release from prison into its plot. Opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author and the NRF accepts no liability whatsoever in this regard. This work is based on the research supported in part by the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa (Grant Number 87809). Whereas the companion piece by Thompson contextualizes the film within histories and documentaries of surfing and the beach in South Africa, this article seeks to locate it in relation to international surf fiction and film, on the one hand, and South African textual and (audio)visual culture, on the other. This article is informed by these discussions, edited versions of which are included in this special section.
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† During August 2013, Glen Thompson and I interviewed director and producer Sara Blecher and actor and waterman Sihle Xaba (who performs the role of Mandla in the film, while aspects of both Otelo and New Year's stories are loosely based on his experiences) and held a series of screenings and Q&As with audiences at the University of Cape Town, Muizenberg, and Khayelitsha. Contemporary Conversations: Otelo Burning Re-telling freedom in Otelo Burning: the beach, surf noir, and Bildung at the Lamontville pool