Border Farm (2011) is a docudrama about a group of Zimbabwean “border jumpers” who make their way across the Limpopo River to seek work on the farms in the far north of South Africa.
This film is part of a larger project conceived by director and project co-ordinator Thenjiwe Nkosi. Working with a group of migrant farmworkers living on the South African/Zimbabwean border, the project offered a space for the group to speak about their experiences of “border jumping” through photography, writing, performance and film. Through a series of workshops, the group formed an acting troupe called the Dulibadzimu Theatre Group and shaped a script (written primarily by Meza Weza) to speak about their own experiences of crossing the border. The film is one of the key outcomes of the workshopping process.
Written, performed and crewed in part by the Dulibadzimu Theatre Group, Border Farm portrays the many-layered drama of forced migration. The script that the group wrote is threaded through with interviews with group members and footage of the rehearsal and filming process. Border Farm raises questions about national borders and their impact on individuals and communities. It is also a testament to the courage and inventiveness of a group of people living under the pressures of dislocation.
The project was directed and produced by Thenjiwe Nkosi (A.D. Daniel Browde and Tapiwa Marovatsanga) with the Dulibadzimu Theatre Group. Running time 32 mins. Shot in HDV (NTSC).