Bringing Promised Land to screen has been a long and hard-fought battle for producer Moonyeenn Lee who acquired the rights to Schoeman's acclaimed novel, "Na Die Geliefcle Land," in the late 80's.

Lee met Jason Xenopoulos prior to his departure for New York University (NYLI) to study for a Masters in Film, and introduced him to the book. He set about adapting the novel whilst in his third year at NYU and on his return to South Africa, producer David Wicht entered the frame and they began to set up the film.

In April 2001, Xenopoulos left the interactive company he was heading, Metropolis Transactive, and revisited Promised Land. He pulled together the team of Moonyeenn Lee and David Wicht, and decided to just go ahead and make the film by "any means necessary".

When Lee first read Schoeman's novel she was totally "blown away." I found it very easy to visualise the characters, and particularly the desolate and austere landscape, which was a character itself. Karel evoked this incredible sadness of a people incapable of changing. Here was a community handing down hatred from father to son".

"I became involved in Promised Land because I believe that it is a project that has the ability to re-ignite the voice of South African cinema internationally," says Wicht. It is a small film, a contained psychological drama that is driven by the quality of the performances of an all-star South African cast and offers wonderful insights into the psyche of a nation in transition."

Jason Xenopoulos had been attached to the project for many years and had drafted a wonderful script for the film. "He is one of our most dynamic young directors and brings an exciting, contemporary and individualistic cinematic style to the film," comments Wicht.

The challenge was to find a means of financing the film locally and so avoid the need to use foreign actors playing quintessentially South African roles. To that end the producers structured a deal that made it possible for industry suppliers and crew to co-finance the film alongside equity investors. The end result is that the film is owned collectively by those participating in the film.

The decision to shoot Promised Land on Hi-Definition format was driven both by economics and by the filmmakers belief that this new technology was perfectly suited to the type of story they were telling. It also enabled them to create a particular non-realist look for the film and so express a great deal more about the landscape that the characters inhabit.

"On the surface, Promised Land is a classical story of love and betrayal, of jealousy and murder," says Director Jason Xenopoulos. "But beneath this traditional facade lies the tale of one's man's quest to define his identity."

Though the film crosses genres and draws on a wide and eclectic range of influences it is, in its rhythm and pace, more akin to the psychological thriller than any other genre. "While the film attempts to portray the emotional and psychological landscape of the characters, it is structured to create a sense of rising tension, like a coil being wound continually tighter, until the story reaches its bloody and irrevocable end," adds Xenopoulos.

In order to ensure the film's ability to explore existential truths while spinning a contemporary yarn, the filmmakers employed a cinematic style which is best described as "expressionist"; a style designed to depict not only the physical landscape that the characters inhabit but their emotional landscape as well.

"Although this may sound like a somewhat ethereal concept, it is one that we were able to translate onto the screen through the use of specific cinematic devices, "`explains Xenopoulos. "Camera movement, composition, colour and lighting were all used to create a cinematic subtext through which to explore the underlying psychology of any given moment." Avoiding "form over substance" as a rule, the filmmakers focused instead on identifying the psychological dynamics within each scene and it was from this emotional subtext that the film's visual style was born.

"The theme of memories, dreams and secrets that lies at the heart of George's journey to define his identity was achieved by creating a constant sense of voyeurism," says Xenopoulos. "Seemingly subjective camera movement and foregrounding within the frame suggest the presence of a third, unseen eye... an invisible character that embodies both the resurfacing of George's past as well as the skeleton's in the closet of Pieter's death."

Similarly, the use of chiaroscuro lighting was used to enhance George's sense of unease and disorientation. Undulating bands of light are employed to distort and warp objects within the frame, blurring the line between reality and the imagination. This visual style was augmented by an audio treatment designed to track and echo George's journey through his emotional landscape. The disorientation that dominates the first half of the film is portrayed through a dissonant and atonal soundscape, while the emerging intimacy between George and Carla is accentuated by the emergence of an increasingly melodious score.

Although Promised Land portrays an expressionistic world as viewed through the psychological filters of George's mind's-eye it is a story that revolves around the very real and tactile relationships that emerge between the three lead characters. It was vital, therefore, that the expressionist style employed to find its counterpoint in performances of a highly naturalist nature. It is this combination of expressionist style and naturalist substance that gives Promised Land its unique stylistic identity.

"In order to protect the integrity of the story, it was important that we cast South African actors," insists Lee of the filmmakers' quest to find the actors who would bring life to Schoeman's poignant characters.

lan Roberts was cast as Gerhardt Snyman, the hard-nosed leader of a marginalized Afrikaans community, armed with a merciless agenda to reclaim his people's independence. "The first thing that struck me about Gerhardt, was the way he seemed to almost magically materialise at key intervals throughout the story," says Roberts. "He had this understated quality that made him menacing and calculated." Gerhardt knows and is passionate about his land. "What is strange about him is that he takes the shape of a villain, but still has all these noble qualities. The problem is he's blinded by a lost cause and is not the type of character to acknowledge defeat."

Nick Boraine was surprised at being cast as George Neethling. I normally play the psychopath, drag queen, drug user or the bisexual. For the first time I was offered the part of a character that observes for most of the story. George is re-active to the events that unfold within the course of the narrative." Boraine sees George as a character caught between two worlds. "He doesn't seem to fit in London and he doesn't fit in South Africa," says Nick Boraine of his character. "He identifies with certain ideologies, but in a sense he's got no roots. There's this sense of reluctant disassociation from the world."

Daniel Browde was plucked from relative obscurity to round out the cast as Paul, Caria's repressed brother. Lee had seen him performing on stage in a university production and was immediately impressed by the depth of his talent. "I think that Daniel is one of the most exciting actors to have emerged from South Africa," enthuses Lee. Browde was cast in the role of Paul after just one reading with Jason. I was terrified," recalls Browde of his first day on set. "I had never acted in front of a camera before and the first 20 minutes of my first scene felt like swimming up shit-creek without a paddle." However the young actor soon settled into the role and had both his fellow cast and the crew spellbound by his performance.

"Paul has always been a victim of circumstance, desperately looking for a way to escape this tortured existence," says Browde of his character. "One of his means of escape is slipping into a fantasy world when all becomes too much for him to bear. It's a real and symbolic space for him - a place in his mind where he finds peace and sanctuary amid this harsh environment. He's a vanquished figure. I used all these elements to immerse myself in the role, and hopefully it rings true".

Yvonne van den Bergh was cast as CARLA after an arduous search. She had the right quality both physically and mentally, says Lee. Yvonne sees her character as one that has to make choice, a person caught between two worlds - that of her repressive, dysfunctional family and a world of freedom. " I had to be able to show Caria's yearning to escape, and also her love for the children who would remain. Carla had an interesting sexuality that I could inhabit; female but also strongly masculine, due to her hard and rugged life on the male dominated farm".

The filmmakers

jason xenopoulos (WriterlDirector) has made several short fiction films for which he has garnered a host of international awards. Jason graduated summa cum laude from New York University's Tisch School of Arts, one of the world's leading film schools. Over the past five years he has played a prominent role in the South African media and entertainment industry as founder and MD of V~ Interactice, Strategic Development Director of Primedia Entertainment and CEO of listed Internet Media company, Metropolis Transactive. As Chief Executive Officer of Primedia Pictures between 1997 - 1998, Jason was involved in the development and production of various film and television projects including the feature film Boesman and Lena, a Primedia/Pathe co-production starring Danny Glover and Angela Basset.

david wicht (Producer) is a film producer and financier based in Cape Town, South Africa. He started in the film industry as a writer and director of feature films, television drama, documentaries, commercials and music videos. His first screenplay "The Native Who Caused All The Trouble" went on to become an award-winning stage play. His last feature as writer/director, "Windprints", with John Hurt and Sean Bean, was nominated for Best Script, Best Director and Best Film in SA and enjoyed much critical success. Since 1995 he has been involved in a large body of work, including: "Promised Land" starring Nick Boraine and Yvonne van den Bergh, "Borderline" starring Gina Gershon and Sean Patrick Flanery, "The Piano Player" starring Christopher Lambert and Dennis Hopper, "Second Skin" starring Peter Fonda, Natasha Henstridge for HBO/Alliance Atlantis, "STYX" starring Peter Weller, Brian Brown for HBO/Promark Entertainment, Wilbur Smith's "Diamond Hunters" mini series with Roy Scheider, Alyssa Milano and Sean Patrick Flanery, "Mandela and De Klerk" starring Sidney Poitier and Michael Caine for Showtime, Inside" starring Nigel Hawthorne, Erie Stoltz and Lou Gossett Jr.

moonyeenn lee (Producer) was trained as an agent representing actors, writers and directors by James (Jimmy) Fraser (then head of Fraser and Dunlop, London). Lee has gone on to become the leading casting director in Africa and her agency MLA is the most successful and prolific in South Africa, representing over two hundred artists. Her impressive list of clients includes John Kani, Vusi Kunene, Winston Ntshona and Marius Weyers. She has cast films in South Africa for Arthur Penn and Joe Sargeant. Other casting credits include notable features such as The King Is Alive, The Air Up There, Reasonable Man and Jump The Gun.

jeremy nathan (Associate Producer) Jeremy has over 15 years experience in the film and television industries in South Africa. As a producer, he was responsible for some of South Africa's most successful feature films. These include Boesman and Lena starring Danny Glover and Angela Bassett, Jump The Gun by Les Blair for Fi;m Four, The Quarry by Marion Hansel, and Shotclown by Andrew Worsdale. He has produced over fifteen short films, including the historic Africa Dreaming and The South African Short and Curlies, garnering two winners of the Venice Best Short Film Lion Award. The controversial television drama series, The Line (aka In A Time Of Violence) garnered the highest audience rating in South Africa when it was screened in 1993.

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