It was decades in the making but the long-awaited film based on Nelson Mandela's autobiography is finally here.
Starring British actor
Idris Elba as the beloved South African icon, "Mandela: Long Walk To
Freedom" had its South African premiere Sunday in a buzzing Johannesburg
cinema.
"During the preparation for 'Mandela,' I was very nervous about my abilities, my capabilities as an actor," Elba told CNN.
"But then it came to me
as I was playing a 70-year-old man (that) if you put your mind on
something you can actually do it," added Elba, famous for his role as a
drug kingpin in U.S. TV series "The Wire."
Mandela, 95, did not
attend the premiere as he remains in critical but stable condition in
his Johannesburg home, where he is being looked after by a team of
military doctors.
Yet relatives, friends
and former freedom fighters all joined the movie's cast and crew in what
was an exciting and emotional gathering.
"It's going to evoke a
lot of sad memories for me," Ndileka Mandela, the former President's
granddaughter, said at the red carpet before the film's screening. "His
incarceration was not a good time for me as his grandchild and for the
family as a whole."
Based on Mandela's
autobiography, also called "Long Walk to Freedom," the biopic follows
Mandela's life journey from his childhood growing up in a rural village,
through the anti-apartheid struggle and prison years, to his
inauguration as the first democratically elected president of South
Africa.
The film's producer,
South African Anant Singh, says he first started corresponding with
Mandela about the movie's rights when the iconic leader was still behind
bars.
"It began almost 25
years ago to try and get this story and to bring it to the big screen,"
Singh told CNN earlier this year. "I have letters in his handwriting
modestly saying, 'will people actually want to see a film about my
life?'"
Singh announced Tuesday that the film will be screened at the White House on November 7.
"It is an exceptional
honor to have the film screening hosted by President Obama at the White
House as it is the first for a South African film," said the movie
producer. "It is also of special significance as it connects Madiba and
President Obama as statesmen who were responsible for major paradigm
shifts in their respective countries and who have special places in the
hearts of their people."
The movie is directed by
Justin Chadwick ("The Other Boleyn Girl," "The First Grader") and also
features fellow Briton Naomie Harris ("Skyfall") as Mandela's second
wife, Winnie.
"This is the biggest
film ever to be made in South Africa," added Singh. "We have two foreign
actors and the (other) 143 are all South African. What we've tried to
do is make a South African film and make in a way that it can engage
audiences everywhere."
"Mandela: Long Walk To
Freedom" will be released in South Africa on November 28 and one day
later it will premiere in in New York and Los Angeles.
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| The film follows the life of the freedom fighter from his early years in a rural village to his election as South Africa's president in 1994. |
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| Mandela became an international figure while enduring 27 years in prison. |
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| British actress Naomie Harris stars in the movie as Mandela's second wife, Winnie. |
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| Called "Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom," the biopic had its South African premiere in Johannesburg on November 3. |
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| Harris, who recently starred in "Skyfall," also attended the Johannesburg premiere Sunday. |
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| Elba with Winnie Madikizela-Mandela (center) and her daughter Zindzi at the movie's premiere. |
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