When Fanie Fourie, a young Afrikaner, falls in love with Dinky Magubane, a beautiful Zulu woman, he doesn’t realize what her lobola (bride price) will cost him. Dinky is also pursued by Mandla, a man who shares her traditions and understands very well what her family expects from him. There is no doubt that Fanie and Dinky share a real love, but their families are not as happy with their relationship. This was the first (and only) comedy of the festival!

Often during the Film Festival we are seeing movies that I’ve never heard of. This was the exception as I looked forward to seeing the movie even before it was announced that it would be coming. The theatre was packed; not an empty seat in the house! I enjoyed the film, but I was also a bit disappointed. I had heard interviews about the “real” story and there was so much more to it than was portrayed in the film. I’ll definitely be ordering the book from the library – like many other in Powell River I expect.

Jason, a young filmmaker, who studied at Emily Carr College in Vancouver, was on holiday with his family when he fell on the beach and was unable to get up. He is diagnosed with primary progressive multiple sclerosis. Unable to continue with his film projects, he begins to film the progression of his disease. Jason’s family is very supportive and, while attending an MS support group, he meets Alice who will become his wife. Although there are times when Jason is despondent, his strength, and the strength of his family, make this a very uplifting film. By the end of the film Alice has become Jason’s hands in the editing room, and they are expecting a child.

The filmmaker’s mother and brother were in attendance at the screening. She says that Jason’s baby has just celebrated his first birthday, and that Jason is now a quadriplegic but his cognitive skills are undiminished.