Acclaimed groundbreaking indie documentary Mother City, is set for screenings at Ster-Kinekor as part of the chain’s new strand for classic and local film. A nationwide release is set for 1 October 2026.
Documentaries have long played second fiddle to fiction on the big screen, but that’s changing. Audiences worldwide are increasingly choosing the cinema for non-fiction storytelling, and Mother City, directed by Miki Redelinghuys and Pearlie Joubert, is riding that wave. with tickets priced at an accessible R50. It is the first documentary to screen in this slot as part of a countrywide release – a milestone for local non-fiction filmmaking and a sign of the chain’s ambition to widen access to quality cinema.
Mother City followed Cape Town’s Reclaim the City activists’ six-year fight for affordable housing on public land, and the story is centred on the iconic old Tafelberg School site, situated in the Atlantic Seaboard.The film kept the case in public view and amplified the voices of activists and the Ndifuna Ukwazi legal centre, turning the documentary into a tool for sustained pressure.
In July 2026 the Constitutional Court ruling declared the Tafelberg sale unlawful, affirming the movement’s core argument that the government has a constitutional duty to provide affordable housing within the inner city, and that high property values or land scarcity can’t be used as an excuse to avoid that duty. The ruling ignited audiences’ urgent requests to see Mother City that follows – blow by blow – the thrilling courtroom drama and bold activism.
Told with raw honesty, fearless journalism, a cinematic eye, and genuine edge-of-your-seat tension, Mother City is exactly the kind of documentary changing what audiences expect from the genre.
Screened at festivals and venues around the world
Mother City’s journey to South African multiplexes is itself part of the story. Since premiering at the prestigious Sheffield DocFest in 2024, the film has screened more than 180 times at festivals and venues around the world, picking up numerous awards along the way. That sustained international demand, built through independent, filmmaker-led distribution rather than a traditional studio release, has helped convince commercial cinema chains that there is a real appetite for local, character-driven cinema.
“We made Mother City to be seen, not just at festivals, but by the communities whose stories it tells. Having Ster-Kinekor bring the film to cinemas nationwide is proof that South African audiences want to see their own realities reflected on the big screen. Land and housing activism in South Africa is uniquely powerful, innovative, reflecting our shared humanity’” says Pearlie.
Miki concurs “This isn’t just a milestone for the film; it’s a milestone for what a local documentary can achieve by bringing these urgent and evocative stories of ordinary people to the big screen.”
What: Mother City
Where and when: At select Ster-Kinekor cinemas from 1 October 2026
Western Province: V&A Waterfront, N1 City, Blue Route Mall, Somerset West Mall | Gauteng: Rosebank Nouveau, Eastgate Mall, Brooklyn Mall | Kwazulu-Natal: Watercrest Mall | Eastern Cape: Baywest Mall
Tickets: Ster-Kinekor
WS
