South African filmmaker Teboho Edkins’s crossgenre documentary Western, Days of Cannibalism has been nominated for a Best Documentary Award at the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival which takes place in February.

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Days of Cannibalism, which has its world premiere at the Festival, is set in the rugged terrain of a remote rural region in the mountain kingdom of Lesotho, Southern Africa. Here modern-day pioneers are met with unease by local communities, and self-made Chinese merchants negotiate their place alongside traditional Basotho cattle breeders.

‘The film, like a classical Western, takes place in a universal frontier space in which the laws of society are in a state of flux,” explains Edkins.

“I am fascinated by the notion of settlers moving into new spaces, and what this does to the status quo, especially within the context of globalisation and capitalist forces. The arrival of new settlers in Lesotho  – economic migrants from China – has upset the balance of power. Old laws and old gods are being called into question. Against the backdrop of a newly emerging China-Africa relationshipDays of Cannibalism explores the complexities and the latent tensions this encounter gives rise to.”

The film avoids central characters or an overarching plot; instead strained moments and small gestures between the newly arrived pioneers and local communities unfold against a vast and harsh landscape.

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