SA illustrator and director Pola Maneli is making waves on the international stage after his animated short film, Apart, was named by The Hollywood Reporter as a top Oscar contender for best animated short.
Created in collaboration with American filmmaker Spike Lee and fellow Nelson Mandela University alumni, the moving 17-minute film explores friendship across the racial divide during apartheid, earning critical acclaim.
The Hollywood Reporter kickstarted the build-up to the 2027 Academy Awards with an article on September 2 predicting the Oscar winners.
Under the category “best animated short” it listed Apart as one of four contenders.
Maneli, an NMU alumnus and still based in the country, graduated in 2019 with an MA in fine and studio arts.
His 17-minute film, Apart, is co-written by celebrated American filmmaker Lee, American screenwriter Jeff Leisawitz and two executive creative directors: Cape Town-based Lubabalo Mtati and London-based Tim Jones, who is also an NMU alumnus, having graduated with a BTech in design and applied arts in 2010.
Another NMU alumnus involved with Apart, namely Laduma Ngxokolo of the MaXhosa knitwear and homeware range, who graduated with a BTech in textile design and technology in 2010, is the film’s wardrobe designer.
The African touch is further complemented by SA DJ, record producer and songwriter Black Coffee as the movie’s musical supervisor.
“The movie has gone through a lot of different iterations,” Maneli said.
"First planned as live action, it became animation, and then, because I had an extensive career in illustration, they asked me to design characters and work on the style of the animation itself.
"I took ownership of the visual direction of the film."
The production company was in talks with Lee to direct but there was a scheduling clash with his crime thriller, Highest 2 Lowest, starring Denzel Washington.
“Spike seemed keen for me to step up and put my fingerprint on it, and with my background of being a South African and in the visual arts, there was a lot of trust there and so they asked me to direct it.”
Apart, which tells the story of the friendship of two young boys - Themba and Joel - across the racial divide in apartheid SA, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York in June.
In July it won the coveted Best in Show at the SIGGRAPH Computer Animation Film Festival in Los Angeles, which qualified it as an Oscar contender.
“There were people sitting next to me in the theatre sobbing,” Maneli said of the Tribeca screening.
"I wasn't expecting people to be moved in that kind of way.”
He also met Lee in person at Tribeca.
“Prior to that we were in a couple of virtual calls during production, where we got his input on how the film was turning out.
"He's an incredible storyteller with a brilliant mind for structure and tone.”
Maneli, who says “I’ve been drawing since I can remember”, hit the big time long before this movie.
Now, his client list includes the New York Times, Netflix and Google.
“I was fortunate to have a parent who completely supported whatever career I chose. A lot of people don't have that."
