Witness, Surfer, Dreamer and the Taliban from Afghanistan
The mystery of a burnt-out car, abandoned off Long Street in the heart of
Cape Town’s CBD, sparked the imagination and commentary of passers by.
In this short film, we encounter, as we do in everyday life: members of
secret societies, ex-cons, betrayed girlfriends and recreational
forensic experts.
Through the tapestry of their narratives and theories, a social portrait
of colloquial rationale evolves, at times both comical and surprising in
content. Yudelman returned to the car periodically, always expecting to
find it gone - but thanks to the inefficiency of local authorities, was
able to continue filming over a period of three weeks.
On each visit he met up with characters willing to mediate the spaces
between fact and fiction - thereby offering the structure for this film,
with anecdotes ranging from plausible to the down-right absurd. In this
piece, Yudelman examines the ambivalent nature of personal truth and
shared reality, by scrutinizing the paradoxes and ironies of daily life.
(simone tredoux)
‘Post Mortem 2010’
During a morning talk show on a leading national radio station SAFM -
three South Africans - Fanie, Robert and Angela call in to voice their
opinion on the news of South Africa winning the Soccer World Cup
2010 bid.
What emerges is an unselfconscious social portrait as conversations
illuminate some of the misgivings, old fears and hidden agendas that
lurk within. Yet in spite of prejudice – an innocent and bold optimism
reveals itself in the passionate way South Africans participate and
relate to matters of national pride.
Run time - 5 min.
i am …
CONSTRUCT: Beyond the Documentary Photograph,
at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum
Reviewed by Kin Bentley (Arts Correspondent) - The Herald Newspaper
Until you‘ve seen Dale Yudelman‘s video presentation on this exhibition,
you probably have yet to appreciate the severity of the mass migration
of refugees to this country.
Indeed, Yudelman‘s contribution is by far the most impressive on this show,
which doesn‘t mean the work by the other 10 artists is not good. It‘s just
that Yudelman takes the difficult paths, and the result is work that covers
new ground.
Yudelman‘s video and photographic installation, I am … shows just how
South Africa has attracted both political and economic refugees from across
the continent. In the nine-minute black and white film, we find ourselves
beneath flyovers as hundreds of migrants, sleeping in the open, rise and
then congregate for a government official to take their names and give
each a number, written on their hands.
There are nasty echoes here of those old nazi Germany films, where people
are herded about like cattle. Here, the lucky ones are somehow chosen to
get on a bus to the home affairs department, where they might secure
temporary asylum. These are people from Zambia, Zimbabwe, the DRC, Kenya,
Burundi … As one refugee says, “I am the people; Africa is one”.