Latest news with #Hermanus
The South African
a day ago
- The South African
R100 000 reward offered after Mfuleni taxi rank shooting
Western Cape police have launched an urgent investigation into a deadly shooting that left four people dead, and three others injured at the Mfuleni taxi rank in Cape Town on Friday morning. Authorities believe the incident, which took place when unknown gunmen stormed the taxi rank office and opened fire, is linked to ongoing taxi-related tensions. The province's deputy police commissioner for crime detection, Bongani Maqhashalala, confirmed the case has been escalated to specialised units. 'This investigation has been taken over by the Serious and Violent Crimes Investigation, the Taxi Violence Unit,' he said. 'We are also offering a reward of up to R100 000 to any person who can provide any information that can lead to the arrest and conviction of anyone responsible for this.' The South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) in the Western Cape has strongly condemned the attack and called for calm within the taxi community. Moreover, Chairperson Mandla Hermanus described the shooting as a senseless act of violence. 'We condemn this brutal and criminal act in the strongest possible terms,' he said. Furthermore, Hermanus also warned against allowing the incident to reignite tensions in the industry. 'We urge all operators to remain calm and exercise maximum restraint. This incident must not be allowed to derail the efforts underway to build peace and unity within the taxi industry across the province.' Taxi Industry Urged to Maintain Peace Additionally, SANTACO has announced plans to meet with the taxi associations affected by the incident to uncover the circumstances surrounding the shooting. Hermanus said they would look at ways to contribute to restoring calm. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The Citizen
2 days ago
- The Citizen
Santaco condemns Mfuleni taxi rank shooting that killed four
Chairperson Hermanus emphasised the importance of stability within the industry and urged taxi operators to remain calm. A deadly shooting at the Mfuleni taxi rank in Cape Town claimed four lives in the early hours of Friday morning. According to the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) Western Cape chairperson, Mandla Hermanus, three other individuals were rushed to the hospital. They sustained serious injuries. The incident has sparked outrage across the taxi industry, with Santaco condemning the act as 'brutal and criminal'. 'We understand four people died at the scene. [Additionally], three were rushed to the hospital for urgent medical care,' said Hermanus on Friday. Call for swift arrests Santaco has urged law enforcement agencies to act swiftly to bring the perpetrators to justice. 'We call on law enforcement agencies to act swiftly and decisively to identify and arrest those responsible. There can be no tolerance for violence in our industry or communities,' said Hermanus. While the details of the shooting are still inadequate, it is believed that gunmen entered the taxi rank office and opened fire on the people inside. Police spokesperson Brigadier Novela Potelwa said further details will be provided. The taxi rank has been cordoned off. ALSO READ: Police recover 10 AK-47s at Meyerton taxi rank after shooting Appeal for calm Hermanus emphasised the importance of stability within the taxi industry and urged taxi operators to remain calm. 'We urge all operators to remain calm and exercise maximum restraint. This incident must not be allowed to derail the efforts underway to build peace and unity within the taxi industry across the province,' he said. Santaco will be meeting with the relevant taxi association to establish what led to the incident and how to prevent future outbreaks of violence. NOW READ: Four killed, three others injured at Mfuleni taxi rank in Cape Town
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Paul Mescal, Josh O'Connor's ‘The History of Sound' earns 6-minute standing ovation at Cannes
and received a lot of praise and love at their film premiere at the . The actors' gay romance, titled ' ', received a lot of love and praise at its' premiere at the festival and even ended up receiving a 6-minute long standing ovation from the attendees, making it a historical moment for the actors as well as the creators of the film. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now 'History of Sound' gets 6-minute standing ovation, leaves fans weeping 'The History of Sound', made by Oliver Hermanus, South African film director and writer, received a long 6-minute standing ovation from the attendees of the movie premiere. The premiere was attended by , as O'Connor had to miss the event to film his part in Steven Spielberg's latest project, as per reports from Variety. The film brought fans and attendees of the event down to weeping and crying and managed to get its message across in the most beautiful way. The end of the premiere brought an emotional wave across the crowd as the director and the cast went on stage after the ending credits rolled in. Director Hermanus shared his thoughts on stage, stating that 'This has been one of the most wonderful creative collaborations of my very, very short career, but this has been a testament to the genius of Paul Mescal.' About 'The History of Sound' that drew emotions from the crowd Hermanus's 'The History of Sound' has been receiving a lot of critical praise. The film revolves around a short story of the same name written by screenwriter . The story is set in the year 1919 and revolves around the lives of two men (Paul Mescal and Josh O'Connor) who are dating one another and travel all the way to New England. Their journey begins with the idea of recording and making folk music and songs of their rural countrymen. The event was attended by fans and celebs alike. Some of the names that were present there in support of the film were , who is Paul Mescal's girlfriend, Jenny Slate, wife of Ben Shattuck; Michelle Rodriguez; Cara Delevingne; and John C. Reilly.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Paul Mescal Seduces Cannes With Gay Romance ‘The History of Sound'
Paul Mescal came to seduce Cannes, and it appears to be working. The red-hot young star of The History of Sound received a warm welcome from the festival audience for the world premiere of Oliver Hermanus' new film, in competition, in Cannes on Wednesday night. More from The Hollywood Reporter 'Fuori' Review: A Writer's Wild Life Gets Tame Treatment in a Serviceable Italian Biopic Cannes: Neon Picks Up Wagner Moura's 'The Secret Agent' Political Thriller 'A Useful Ghost' Review: Dead Spirits Inhabit the Appliances of Their Living Loved Ones in a Delightfully Absurd Thai Sex Comedy Hermanus and Mescal walked the red-carpet while co-star Josh O'Conner didn't make it to the Croisette for the History of Sound debut but is expected Friday for the premiere of Kelly Reichardt's The Mastermind, in which he also stars. Also walking the History of Sound carpet were castmembers Raphael Sbarge, Molly Price, Hadley Robinson, Emma Canning and Peter Mark Kendall as well as Fast & Furious star Michelle Rodriguez; John C. Reilly and Italian actor Alessandro Borghi, here with the neo-Western Heads or Tails? playing in Un Certain Regard; and Julian Assange, in town for the premiere of The 6 Billion Dollar Man, director Eugene Jarecki's documentary on the WikiLeaks founder. The historical romantic drama follows David (O'Connor) and Lionel (Mescal), two young men who meet in 1917 at the Boston Music Conservatory and later travel through rural Maine recording American folk songs in the aftermath of World War I. The History of Sound is based on the short story of the same name by Ben Shattuck, who adapted his tale for the screen. Hermanus is known for his 2011 feature Beauty, which won the Queer Palm in Cannes; the BAFTA-nomineed South African LGBTQ drama drama Moffie (2019); and the 2022 feature Living starring Bill Nighy. Mubi will release The History of Sound in North America, with Universal Pictures International handling international territories. The film was greeted with warm, enthusiastic applause as Mescal and the director embraced. Taking the mic, Hermanus thanked his 'brother-in-arms that could not be here, Josh O'Connor,' who is currently shooting a film, but 'we miss him, we love him.' The director said the project had been 'one of the great creative collaborations of my very short career' and thanked his star for making it happen. 'We would have never got this movie done (without him),' he said. 'This is a testament to the genius of Paul Mescal.' Best of The Hollywood Reporter 'The Goonies' Cast, Then and Now "A Nutless Monkey Could Do Your Job": From Abusive to Angst-Ridden, 16 Memorable Studio Exec Portrayals in Film and TV The 10 Best Baseball Movies of All Time, Ranked
Japan Today
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Japan Today
Cannes, the global Colosseum of film, readies for 78th edition with new challenges on horizon
By JAKE COYLE Nowhere is the border-crossing nature of cinema more evident than the Cannes Film Festival, which kicks off Tuesday in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's vow to enact tariffs on international films. Cannes, where filmmakers, sales agents and journalists gather from around the world, is the Olympics of the big screen, with its own golden prize, the Palme d'Or, to give out at the end. Filmmakers come from nearly every corner of the globe to showcase their films while dealmakers work through the night to sell finished films or packaged productions to various territories. 'You release a film into that Colosseum-like situation,' says Brazilian director Kleber Mendonça Filho, who's returning to Cannes with 'The Secret Agent,' a thriller set during Brazil's dictatorship. 'You've got to really prepare for the whole experience because it's quite intense — not very far from the feeling of approaching a roller coaster as you go up the steps at the Palais.' Perhaps as much as ever, all eyes in the movie world will be on the 78th Cannes Film Festival when it gets underway this week. That's not just because of the long list of anticipated films set to premiere at the Cote d'Azur festival (including films from Spike Lee, Wes Anderson, Lynne Ramsay, Richard Linklater and Ari Aster) and the extensive coterie of stars set to walk the fabled red carpet (Jennifer Lawrence, Denzel Washington, Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart among them). As the movies, and the Oscar race, have grown more international, the global launchpad of Cannes has become only more central to the larger film ecosystem — even with the ongoing absence of Netflix. Recent editions of Cannes have produced a string of Academy Awards contenders, including this year's best-picture winner, 'Anora.' At the same time, geopolitics course through Cannes unlike any other festival. The Cannes red carpet can be as much a platform for political protest as it is for glamour. This year's festival will include a dissident Iranian filmmaker (Jafar Panahi), a Ukrainian filmmaker (Sergei Loznitsa) and the first Nigerian production in the official selection (Akinola Davies Jr.'s 'My Father's Shadow'). In the run-up to the festival, three filmmakers from different corners of the world spoke about their roads to the Cannes competition lineup. For many directors, reaching the Cannes competition — this year, that's 22 movies vying for the Palme d'Or — is career milestone. 'It's meaningful for me. It's meaningful for the country,' says Oliver Hermanus, speaking from outside Cape Town. Hermanus, the South African filmmaker of 'Moffie' and 'Living,' is in competition for the first time with 'The History of Sound,' a period love story starring Paul Mescal and Josh O'Connor. 'I was born here and made movies here for most of my career, so I still see myself as a South African filmmaker who's interested in the South African perspective on things and South African representation,' adds Hermanus. 'The competition is something I've always wanted to be part of.' Chie Hayakawa, the Japanese filmmaker of 2022's 'Plan 75,' is also in competition for the first time. She first came to Cannes with a student film that she never expected to make it into the festival's shorts program. This week, she'll debut 'Renoir,' a semiautobiographical tale about an 11-year-old girl with a father who has terminal cancer. 'It gives me a huge encouragement and keeps me motivated to making films,' Hayakawa said from Tokyo. 'I don't feel like I'm going to compete with other films. But it meaningful. I know how prestigious and meaningful it is to be in competition.' 'Film is global and easily crosses the borders of any country or culture,' she adds. 'That's what special about Cannes.' Cannes' global approach is part of what makes this year more complicated than usual. Trump sent shock waves through Hollywood and the international film community when he announced on May 4 that all movies 'produced in Foreign Lands' will face 100% tariffs. The White House has said no final decisions have been made. Options being explored include federal incentives for U.S.-based productions, rather than tariffs. But the announcement was a reminder of how international tensions can destabilize even the oldest cultural institutions. Filho first attended Cannes as a critic. Once he began making movies, the allure of the festival remained. To him, participating in Cannes means joining a timeline of cinema history. 'The Secret Agent' marks his third time in competition. 'I have always felt that there was a seriousness that I appreciated,' Filho says. 'For example, I will be attending a 2 a.m. test for sound and picture. This is done with scientist types who will take care of the projection and how everything will go.' As to the threat of tariffs? He shrugs. 'I have been trained by Brazil, because we had a very strange and weird historic moment under (former president Jair) Bolsonaro,' Filho said. 'I used my training to say: This is probably some bad idea or misunderstanding that will be corrected in the coming days or weeks. Even for leaders like them, Bolsonaro and Trump, it makes no sense whatsoever.' The Cannes Film Festival originally emerged in the World War II years, when the rise of fascism in Italy led to the founding of an alternative to the then-government controlled Venice Film Festival. In the time since, Cannes' resolute commitment to cinema has made it a beacon to filmmakers. Countless directors have come to make their name. This year is no different, though some of the first-time filmmakers at Cannes are already particularly well-known. Stewart ('The Chronology of Water'), Scarlett Johansson ('Eleanor the Great') and Harris Dickinson ('Urchin') will all be unveiling their feature directorial debuts in Cannes' Un Certain Regard sidebar section. Many Cannes veterans will be back, too, including Tom Cruise ('Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning'), Robert De Niro (who's to receive an honorary Palme d'Or 49 years after 'Taxi Driver' premiered in Cannes) and Quentin Tarantino (to pay tribute to low-budget Western director George Sherman). Hermanus first came to Cannes with his 2011 film 'Beauty.' He went naively optimistic before realizing, he laughs, that a Cannes selection is 'a potential invitation to a beheading. 'Even going now with 'The History of Sound,' I'm trying to be realistic about the fact that it's a gladiatorial arena. It's everything to lose and everything to gain,' says Hermanus. 'When Cannes selected us, it came down to me and Paul going, 'Oh God, here comes the real stress. Will we survive the intensity of Cannes?' — which we both agreed is the reason to go.' © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
