Darrell James Roodt (born in Johannesburg, 28 April 1962) is a South African

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

and producer. He is probably most well known for his 1992 film '' Sarafina!'' which starred actress

Whoopi Goldberg Caryn Elaine Johnson (born November 13, 1955), known professionally as Whoopi Goldberg (), is an American actor, comedian, author, and television personality.Kuchwara, Michael (AP Drama Writer)"Whoopi Goldberg: A One-Woman Character Parade". ' ...

. Also regarded as South Africa's most prolific film director, Roodt has worked with the late

Patrick Swayze Patrick Wayne Swayze (; August 18, 1952 – September 14, 2009) was an American actor, dancer, and singer known for playing distinctive lead roles, particularly romantic, tough, and comedic characters. He was also known for his media image and ...

in ''

Father Hood ''Father Hood'' is a 1993 American adventure comedy-drama film directed by Darrell Roodt, from a screenplay by Scott Spencer (of '' Endless Love'' fame). The movie stars Patrick Swayze and Halle Berry. Plot Siblings Kelly and Eddie Charles e ...

'',

James Earl Jones James Earl Jones (born January 17, 1931) is an American actor. He has been described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances in film, television, and theater, and "one of the greatest actors in America ...

in ''

Cry, the Beloved Country ''Cry, the Beloved Country'' is a 1948 novel by South African writer Alan Paton. Set in the prelude to apartheid in South Africa, it follows a black village priest and a white farmer who must deal with news of a murder. American publisher Benn ...

'' and

Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be produc ...

in '' Dangerous Ground''.

Early life

Born in Johannesburg,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, Darrell James Roodt grew up during the height of apartheid-era

. His early films like ''Place of Weeping'' strongly condemned apartheid. Roodt was astounded that no one was addressing the conditions of apartheid through the medium of film, thus ''Place of Weeping'' is considered to be the first overtly anti-apartheid film made by a South African. Roodt is quoted as saying ''"I didn’t do it from a leftist, agit-prop point of view, rather, I tried to explore characters caught up in quagmire of those turbulent times. Consequently I was never celebrated (for want of a better word) as a leftist film-maker."''

Awards and festivals

His film '' Sarafina!'' was screened out of competition at the 1992 Cannes Film Festival. His 2012 film '' Little One'' was selected as the South African entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar at the

85th Academy Awards The 85th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best 2012 in film, films of 2012 and took place on February 24, 2013, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, ...

, but it did not make the final shortlist. His 2007 film Meisie won best film at the KKNK film festival in March 2008. Roodt has won an EIUC Award at the Venice Film Festival (2004) and the Taormina Arte Award at the Taormina International Film Festival (2000) His film '' Yesterday'' (2004) was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

as well as the Independent Spirit Awards for Best Foreign Film (2005).

Filmography

As director

*''City of Blood'' (1983) *''Place of Weeping'' (1986) *''The Stick'' (1987) *''Tenth of a Second'' (1987) *''Jobman'' (1990) *'' Sarafina!'' (1992) *''

'' (1993) *''To the Death'' (1993) *''

'' (1995) *'' Dangerous Ground'' (1997) *''Second Skin'' (2000) *''Witness to a Kill'' (2001) *''Pavement'' (2002) *''

Sumuru (2003) ''Sumuru'', or ''Sax Rohmer's Sumuru'', is a 2003 pulp science fiction film directed by Darrell Roodt and starring Alexandra Kamp and Michael Shanks. It is an update of the character Sumuru created by pulp novelist Sax Rohmer. It was the first ...

'' *''

Dracula 3000 ''Dracula 3000'' (stylized as ''DRACULA.3000'', and also known as ''Dracula 3000: Infinite Darkness'') is a 2004 made-for-television science fiction horror film directed by Darrell Roodt. An international co-production of the United States and ...

'' (2004) TV film *'' Yesterday'' (2004) * "Dirty Laundry" (2005) episode of the TV series ''

Charlie Jade ''Charlie Jade'' is a science fiction television series filmed mainly in Cape Town, South Africa. It stars Jeffrey Pierce in the title role, as a detective from a parallel universe (fiction), parallel universe who finds himself trapped in our univ ...

'' *''Faith's Corner'' (2005) *''Cryptid'' (2006) *''Number 10'' (2006) *''Lullaby'' (2008) *''Meisie'' (2007) *''

Prey Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill the ...

'' (2007) *''Ella Blue'' (2008) TV mini-series *''Zimbabwe'' (2008) *''Jakhalsdans'' (2010) *''

Winnie Mandela Winnie Madikizela-Mandela (born Nomzamo Winifred Zanyiwe Madikizela; 26 September 1936 – 2 April 2018), also known as Winnie Mandela, was a South African anti-apartheid activist and politician, and the second wife of Nelson Mandela. She se ...

'' (2011) *'' Little One'' (2012)) *''The Little Kings'' (2012) *''Stilte'' (2012)) *''Room9'' (TV Series) (2012) *''Little One'' (2013) *''Stealing Time'' (2013) *''Die Ballade Van Robbie de Wee'' (2013) *''Safari'' (2013) *''Snake Park'' TV Series (13 Episode) (2014) *''Alles Wat Mal Is'' (2014) *''Seun: 81457397BG'' (2014) *''Treurgrond'' (2015) *''Trouvoete'' (2015) *''

Skorokoro ''Skorokoro'' is a 2016 South African TV Film directed by Darrell Roodt. It was nominated for a Golden Horn award in 2017. The film was produced by Phoenix films in South Africa. The movie was originally planned as a big screen production but ...

'' (2016) *''Verskietende Ster'' (2016) *'' Lake Placid: Legacy'' (2018) *'' The Lullabye'' (2018) *''The Furnace'' (2019)

References

External links

*
Darrell Roodt on Channel24
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roodt, Darrell South African film directors South African screenwriters South African film producers 1962 births Living people