With a total win of 54 Golden Horns at this year's prestigious 16th annual South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs), MultiChoice has demonstrated once again that is undoubtedly Africa's Most Loved Storyteller, highlighting the insatiable appetite for local content.
DiepCity, Tali’s Baby Diary, Glasshouse were the three biggest winners at the SAFTAs, taking home five awards each.
Showmax Originals received a total of 17 wins, including Best TV Comedy (Tali’s Baby Diary), Made for TV Documentary (Devilsdorp) and Made for TV Movie (Boxing Day). Tali’s Baby Diary and Glasshouse received a whopping 5 awards each, while DAM and telenovela The Wife walked away with two awards each. The streaming service clenched a total of 45 awards including curated content. This also includes key categories such as Best Soap Opera Suidooster, TV Drama 4 Mure, Structured Soapie Reality show The Unexpected - DJ Zinhle, Lifestyle show Die Broer Toer, Factual show Die Staat Teen, and Short Film #WeAreDyingHere.
Newcomers Mzansi Magic's DiepCity scooped the Golden Horn for the Most Popular TV Show/Telenovela as voted by the public. Mzanzi Magic’s Ehostela and Freedom each walked away with two Golden Horns, with Umkhokha and Old Mutual Amazing Voice (for viewers’ choice best presenter: Thembisa Mdoda) securing one win each.
kykNET was also a big winner with 12 Golden Horns, which is a testament to the channel’s commitment to authentic content. The Cape Town based soapie Suidooster walked away with title of best South African soap for the first time. G.I.L and 4 Mure both received three wins each, of which 4 Mure received the highest honour as Best TV Drama of the year. During the SAFTA Craft awards on Friday, Binnelanders, Broer Toer and Nêrens Noord-Kaap also walked away as winners. Shaleen Surtie Richards received the award for Best Supporting Actress in the kykNET&kie telenovela Arendsvlei posthumously.
1Magic’s popular telenovela The River also secured a win, a testament to the channel’s commitment to quality entertainment.
M-Net’s Reyka was also a clear favourite, securing four wins this year. It is worth noting that Reyka, a co-production between M-Net and Fremantle, opened the Monte Carlo International Film Festival in June last year. Telenovela Legacy and Carte Blanche’s current affairs programme Beitbridge Border Post grabbed one Golden Horn each.
"All the awards received by our passionate storytellers demonstrate that investing in local content and local content creators is essential, says Yolisa Phahle, MultiChoice Group CEO of General Entertainment and Connected Video.
“The breadth, depth and diversity of MultiChoice's content across its various platforms accommodates and caters for Africa in all its diversity. These awards are not solely ours; they are for the local TV and film industry that we continue to unceasingly invest in.
“Multichoice would like to salute the talent and production teams that delivered quality content despite what has been a challenging few years. These awards are dedicated to you; thank you to the hearts and minds that contribute to our industry's growth and society at large," concludes Phahle.
Full list of Multichoice SAFTA winners
1.        Best Supporting Actress- TV Comedy: Kate Normington (Tali's Baby Diary)
2.        Best Actress -TV Comedy: Julia Anastasopoulos (Tali's Baby Diary)
3.        Best Achievement in Directing -TV Comedy: Ari Kruger and Daniel Zimbler (Tali's Baby Diary)
4.        Best Achievement in Editing-TV Comedy: Richard Starkey and Gordon Midgley (Tali's Baby Diary)
5.        Best TV Comedy: Tali's Baby Diary (Sketchbook Studios)
6.        Best Achievement in Make-Up and Hairstyling- Feature Film: Glasshouse (Annie Butler)
7.        Best Achievement in Costume Design- Feature Film: Glasshouse (Catherine Mcintosh)
8.        Best Achievement in Editing- Feature Film: Glasshouse (Rowan Jackson)
9.        Best Achievement In Production Design - Feature Film: Glasshouse (Kerry Von Lillienveld)
10.      Best Achievement in Cinematography-Feature Film: Glasshouse (Justus De Jager)
11.      Best Achievement in Art Direction-TV Drama: Sue Steele (Dam)
12.      Best Supporting Actress-TV Drama: Natasha Loring (Dam)
13.      Best Actor – Telenovela: Bonko Khoza (The Wife)
14.      Best Supporting Actor – Telenovela: Abdul Khoza (The Wife)
15.      Best Made For TV Documentary: Devilsdorp (Idea Candy)
16.      Best Made For TV Movie: Boxing Day (Black Brain Pictures)
17.      Best Achievement in Cinematography- TV Comedy: Fahema Hendricks (Troukoors)
18.      Best Supporting Actress- Telenovela: Arendsvlei (Shaleen Surtie Richards)
19.      Best TV Soap: Suidooster (Suidooster Films)
20.      Best Achievement in Directing- Feature Film: Barakat (Amy Jephta)
21.      Best Supporting Actor- TV Comedy: G.I.L (Frank Opperman)
22.      Best Achievement in Wardrobe -TV Comedy: G.I.L (Cassandra Rowland)
23.      Best Achievement in Art Direction- TV Comedy: G.I.L (Beatrix Van Zyl)
24.      Best Achievement in Make-Up and Hairstyling -TV Drama: Minke Swart (4 Mure)
25.      Best Achievement in Wardrobe - TV Drama: Mariechen Vosloo (4 Mure)
26.      Best TV Drama: 4 Mure (Marche Media)
27.      Best Achievement in Editing-TV Drama: Regardt Botha, Markus Van Schalkwyk and Eva Du Preez (Nêrens Noord-Kaap)
28.      Best Achievement in Directing- TV Soap: Binnelanders (Danie Joubert)
29.      Best Lifestyle Programme: Die Broer Toer (Marche Media)
30.      Best Achievement in Directing - TV Soap: DiepCity (Mandla Ngcongwane, Manqoba Mathunjwa, Thandokazi Msumza and Mamohato Askew)     Â
31.      Best Achievement in Art Direction- TV Soap/Telenovela: DiepCity (Noluthando Lobese)
32.      Best Achievement in Make-Up and Hairstyling- TV Soap/Telenovela: DiepCity (Refentse Munyai)
33.      Best Achievement in Art Direction - TV Soap/Telenovela: DiepCity (Noluthando Lobese)
34.      Viewers’ choice: Most Popular TV Soap or Telenovela: DiepCity
35.      Best Actor- TV Drama: Thobani Dlomo Nzuza (eHostela)
36.      Best Achievement in Sound- TV Drama: Joel "Juelz" Mahlatjie (eHostela)
37.      Best Achievement in Original Music/Score- TV Drama: Zithulele Khwela (Umkhokha)
38.      VIEWERS CHOICE: Best TV Presenter: Thembisa Mdoda-Nxumalo – Old Mutual Amazing Voices
39.      Best Achievement In Original Music/Score –Telenovela: The River (Brendan Jury)
40.      Best Actress- TV Drama: Kim Engelbrecht (Reyka)
41.      Best Achievement in Cinematography- TV Drama: Reyka (Tom Marais)
42.      Best Achievement in Scriptwriting- TV Drama: Reyka (Rohan Dickson)
43.      Best Achievement in Directing- TV Drama: Reyka (Catharine Cooke and Zwelesizwe Ntuli)
44.      Best Achievement in Scriptwriting- Telenovela: Legacy (Gwydion Beynon and Phathutshedzo Makwarela)
45.      Best Current Affairs Programme: Beitbridge Border Post (Combined Artists) Carte Blanche
46.      Best Factual Programme: Die Staat Teen (VIA)
47.      Best Actress- Telenovela: Nthati Moshesh (Isono)
48.      Best Natural History and Environmental Programme: Unholy Alliance (Earth Touch)
49.      Best Structured Soapie Reality Show: The Unexpected - DJ Zinhle (Brightfire Pictures)
50.      Best Docu-Reality: Ghosted Africa: Love Gone Missing (Idea Collective)
51.      Best Achievement in Sound Design- Feature Film: Fried Barry (Ebenhaezer Smal (Haezer), Keagan Higgins, Rob Brinkworth and Gustav Stutterheim)
52.      Best Achievement in Original Music/ Score- Feature Film: Fried Barry (Ebenhaezer Smal (Haezer))
53.      Best Actor- Feature Film: Jafta Mamabolo (Freedom)
54.      Best Achievement in Scriptwriting-Feature Film: Freedom (Jafta Mamabolo)