As foreign filmmakers we observe the struggles of living in the townships and the Westernisation of the African lifestyle. Amidst these hardships we also perceive Black South Africans' pride and their sense of containing their traditions. Indigenous rituals are celebrated in the centre of a modernised society.
After having met and interviewed more than one hundred boys, on the township streets, in the court cells and inside prison, we found Lucky and Bongani. We felt an instant sympathy for them. Throughout our working relationship the two brothers proved to be great protagonists. They are smart, funny and not intimidated by the camera. We experienced intimate moments together: Their bail application at court, their release from prison, days of thunder and heat in their tent on the Transkei mountains, finding a job in a busy Cape Town cafe and last but not least the hardship of the township - Bongani was almost killed in a stabbing in May '08.
Lucky and Bongani are as young as their country's democracy. They are at a shifting age, making their own decisions and learning to take on responsibility. They are motivated to find their position in the new South Africa. However, they are trapped in poverty and looking for short cuts to get out. Lucky and Bongani's story exemplifies, that a sense of belonging is the most important factor in a young person's life. Crime evolves where family and culture don't exist.
Like many other boys, Lucky and Bongani close the gap between urban and rural life and travel against the migration stream. Their journey takes them from Cape Town's sandy soil to the solid clay soil of the Eastern Cape. It is a voyage back to their ancestors, the people that their grandmother left behind for the life in the city.