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★★★★★
Directed by: #RudaSantos
Starring: Billy, Yan, Rayaan, Muna, Theo, Leon, Faiza, Hassan and Angelo
It’s funny how we make attachments to material goods nowadays. People can’t even function without their phones [I dropped my friend’s phone in Tesco last night and everyone turned around and stared at me like I killed the pope], we have relationships with childhood toys, or a reaction of cuteness to a soft toy and the desire to hug it. I’m guilty of the last one; what if the bears have feelings? Who are you to not give it a little love hug.
Sometimes these objects can become part of the family, part of a ritual in our day to day. So much so that we couldn’t imagine doing these things without it, and here lies the backdrop for Ruda Santos short docu fiction film, Jabulani.
Jabulani is the tale of a group of friends who make regular trips to a woodland near there home town. These trips revolve around them having a ‘’sesh’’, now for those who are over a certain age, having a sesh means getting tanked basically or high, either way, you’re welcome.
And on one of these trips they stumbled upon an abandoned trolley which they used to cart all their firewood, tents and immense amount of Capri Suns and Haribo Super Fun Mix, up the hill to the woods. They are not hardcore enough for the Haribo Sour Mix...lightweights.
What starts as a measure of convenience, soon becomes a part of the ritual, the trolley appeared again and again, aiding the youths on their trips into the wild, and in turn the trolley became part of the group, being seen as a member of the family, named and respected.
Shot with a mixture of handheld and steadicam, you get a juxtaposition between clean and professional documentary #filmmaking and what feels like shots extracted from the smartphone of one of the young people, capturing another evening spent with the trolley and co. This allows the viewer to feel immersed and involved, but able to observe and understand the motives behind the connections developed between man and cart.
This #shortfilm is beautiful, visually as well as within its content, this trolley lifts the mood of those involved in it, they speak of it as if it were a real person, someone who adds to the dynamic of the group, a valued member, and it does not feel ridiculous, and you too come to love its little steel face.
As well as that, it reminds us of those moments in our lives, where as silly as it may seem, how enjoyable and comforting it is to know that you can have this connection with a reliable source, people come and go, trolleys last forever...
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