FILM: Dying to be human
Review by ELEJHA-ZE GENGAN
As you sit, entirely encased by darkness, it is just you and your lost sense of sight and the feeling of anticipation coursing through your veins. Everything feels empty, and before the darkness fully wraps itself around you, it is broken by the sounds of an individual struggling, fighting to make their way out of the deep ocean.
Every day we are exposed to an array of difficulties that can feel like waves crashing onto us, one after another. Our world becomes an ocean which can drown us or those around us. Being human can feel like a beautiful and chaotic mess.
Dying to be human is a short film that illuminates the universal experience of struggling for survival, though told through a uniquely South African lens. Symbolism and minimal dialogue convey messages of love, hurt, loneliness and fear. From the suffering of suicidal ideation to the tolls of migrants and the overconsumption of earth’s resources, Stacey van Schalkwyk’s visually rich production reflects on the varied and common human experience.
When immersed in the film, there is not a second you want to miss. Point-of-view shots, long shots, close-ups, over-the-shoulders and many remarkably unique scenes come together to create a mesmerising cinematic experience.
It leaves us reflecting on a fundamental question: What does it mean to be human, and what do we have to do to survive?
Catch Dying to be Human at Olive Schreiner June 30 14:00 – 14:15, July 01 18:30 – 18:45, July 02 18:30 – 18:45.
