DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT: JAMES HERSOV
The film was inspired by the book, "The Abundant Herds", by Dr Marguerite Poland and she together with Professor Benedict Carton introduced me to the key characters, locations and issues.
We interview Professor Ntuli, but he is also our narrator telling his own very remarkable story. He herded cattle in Zululand as a boy and only went to school in his mid-teens. Now an acknowledged academic, sculptor and a poet, he claims that Nguni cattle have been one of the great inspirations in his life. He has a wonderful, lyrical use of language.
In telling the story of the Nguni cattle and people, various fascinating and sometimes controversial issues arise particularly around the topic of modernity versus tradition such as cattle as bride wealth, polygamy, the status of women, stick-fighting and Zulu masculinity, HIV/AIDS, the value of virginity, cattle rustling, witchcraft and the ceremonial killing of animals.
Filming started in September 2004 and ended in March 2005, amassing a total of 12 weeks of shooting. The crew shot primarily in KwaZulu-Natal South Africa and in Swaziland.
We were well received everywhere as everyone seemed to love the idea of the film. Bulls have an amazing reputation for fighting and mounting but we spent an inordinate amount of time waiting for either of these activities to happen. We also spent a lot of time filming the traditional martial art form of stick-fighting which is very much a right of passage for Zulu men. We got right into the action of numerous bouts and only narrowly missed being hit about the heads ourselves, so high was the tension.
Footage was shot on a Sony D50 camera docked onto a Panasonic DVCPro 50 recorder with a Fujinon 4.8 wide angle zoom lens in 16:9 aspect ratio, while the Swaziland sequence was filmed on Sony HDV. There is also a small bit of Sony PD 170 footage.
Music plays a big role in Heaven's Herds. We were adamant that we didn't want the standard "African documentary type music" so we approached Sue Grealy who is classically trained yet who understands traditional African music. Sue composed an emotive score that draws from but also transcends cultural boundaries.
The majority of South Africa's population have a huge affinity with the subject of cattle and especially Nguni cattle. In addition, there is a strong groundswell of new interest in these indigenous cattle that are a proud part of South Africa's heritage - from rural people (including commercial farmers) and urbanites alike. The popularity of Leigh Voigt's cattle paintings, Marguerite Poland's book, Nguni hides as furnishings, wire/beaded Nguni cows and painted ceramic Nguni cows are both a response to and an impetus for a broad interest in these special cattle. This film will both ride and also contribute to the current wave of interest in a subject, which is at the very heart of South African culture. This is an important and fascinating South African film which deserves the widest possible distribution in Africa and internationally.

PRODUCTION NOTES
"Inspiration and Narrator's Comments"
The South African Oppenheimer family approached local filmmaker James Hersov (Executive Producer of the multi-award-winning film "The Great Dance - a hunter's story") to make a film about this iconic breed of cattle and of the people who herd them. Mrs. Strilli Oppenheimer is a great enthusiast of this indigenous southern African breed and was, herself, a breeder of stud Nguni cattle for many years.
According to Professor Ntuli, the role played by cattle in indigenous SA culture is seminal and very powerful. "There are many emotional and spiritual ramifications of the relationship between cattle and the Nguni people. Cattle are of course also used for commerce but they are very central to traditional life and are a metaphor for existence in African societies."
"Working on this film was a way of retracing my own past and revisiting my childhood. To this day I am always profoundly moved whenever I see cattle and they feature a lot in my poetry. The filmmakers have shown a great sensitivity in making this film. Colour, form and shape are all interwoven beautifully," says Ntuli.
What the film stresses is that the Nguni cattle were nearly made extinct through colonial prejudice. After the Zulu War, the British slaughtered thousands of cattle. It was a way of saying 'what is important to you is inferior to us'. This was carried through with the Apartheid government's ban on the breeding of Nguni cattle.

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