A Family Affair

Charlie Vundla has stepped out of his famous father Mfundi’s shadow thanks to his new movie, The Tribe.

- Hopewell Mpapu

IT’S a classic case of like father like son: They’re both in the business of storytelling and together the dynamic duo keep millions of viewers glued to their screens, both big and small.

Mfundi Vundla (70) is a veteran TV producer and the creator of the country’s most-watched soapie, Generations: The Legacy, while Charlie (34) is cementing his place as a rising star with his new big-screen film, The Tribe.

In the movie, Charlie teams up with acclaimed actress Terry Pheto – who he directed in the film How to Steal 2 Million – and plays Smanga, a young professor with fertility problems whose life falls apart when his wife (played by Terry) leaves him for another man.

Unemployed, thanks to alcoholism, he takes in a homeless man who becomes his friend – until his wife returns to their family home and more drama ensues.

It was a personal project for Charlie, who says he started working on the script after failing to get another film off the ground. “I was in the same mental state as Smanga, so I channelled my energy into the script,” he told Screen Africa recently.

The movie, produced on a small budget in association with the department of trade and industry and shot on 5th Street in Melville, Johannesburg, was well-received at film festivals across the world, including the New York African Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival and the Africa International Film Festival.