The innovative Mzansi telenovela, Lockdown Heights, has garnered audiences from all over Africa and other parts of the world since it began airing a couple of weeks ago.
The brainchild of Ayanda Makayi, the popular actor known for his role as “Sol” on HIV and Aids drama series MTV Shuga Down South, the making of Lockdown Heights is unlike anything ever done for an on-screen audience.
The online series can be viewed on IGTV and Facebook and as the title indicates, it's all about the experiences of a group of individuals living in an apartment block during lockdown – and being a telenovela - over the top drama, scandals and intrigue are what keep the viewers coming back for more. The series is co-written by Ayanda Makayi, Bradley Olivier, Kirsten Mohammad and Letuka Dlamini.
So, how does it all come together? Makayi told iol that, "Actors shoot their part of the scene at home and then we put it together to look like they are in the same space. It is something that has to continue on a bigger scale. More than anything, like the president said, things will never be the same from here onwards. This is a new era we are heading into, a whole new canvas for South Africa to paint on. So the show should capture that going forward. If lockdown ends and we continue, the characters will enter this new South Africa and how do they then adapt. There is potential for us to continue and reflect what is currently going on.”
Makayi went on to tell iol, "Initially my plan was that everyone would hand in footage by midday so I can start editing and have it up by 8.30 pm. But the problem is because we haven’t had funding I can’t force people to hand in footage at that time, there is no contract, they aren’t getting paid. So we have to adapt around their daily routine and the shooting off of different phones and different sounds."
Once shooting is complete for the day, the scenes are then edited to create a10-minute episode. In the cast are Schelaine Bennett, Clint Brink, Kay Sibiya, Camilla Waldman, Steven John Ward, Siphesihle Vazi, Nicole Bessick, Candice Modiselle, Sandile Mkhize and Valerie Joy Robinson.
Although production houses are allowed to shoot again at level four, it seems that such is the success of this series, it will continue to be shot ‘at a distance’. Just yesterday news broke that actress and television presenter, Mbonisi Mahonondo, aka Mbo Mahocs, has just joined the cast of Lockdown Heights and will be playing the character of Lucille. Mahoc’s will be familiar to SA audiences, having played the role of “Chichi” on ETV’s soapie Scandal.
If you are intrigued, and you are not one of the estimated 1.5 million South Africans who headed back to work today, you can catch all the episodes by following the link below.
https://www.instagram.com/lockdown_heights_sa/channel/
Or, to whet your appetite, you can watch the first episode right here!
