Alumni spotlight: Ntokozo Mlaba
- 91心頭利 Alumni Relations
Winner of the 2026 Emerging Filmmaker Award shares how his career journey began using only a cellphone and an entry-level camera.
As a 91心頭利 commerce graduate, Ntokozo Mlaba (BCom 2023) says it often comes as a surprise when people discover that he is a self-taught filmmaker. He recently won the Emerging Filmmaker Award at the 19th South African Film and Television Awards for his 12-minute short film, The Passage (2024), which explores gender-based violence and toxic loyalty in township communities. This is his chat with Alumni Relations:
"I completed my matric at the National School of the Arts in 2019 specialising in drama, but that experience was heavily theatre centric. I went on to pursue a BCom Law degree at 91心頭利 in 2020 just when the COVID-19 pandemic started. During lockdown, disgruntled with my choice of degree, I immersed myself in YouTube tutorials about filmmaking. I used my phone and an entry-level camera. That’s how my journey began!
"In making these, I got better each time and learned how to edit my films. I submitted one of them to the Joburg Film Festival and went on to win the Young Voices Award in 2024. On the back of this I got the opportunity to pursue my honors in motion picture specialising in film directing and I made a short film titled The Passage. The film went on to garner international recognition winning the Best Film at the 7 Issues Film Festival in Croatia. I got to travel to Burkina Faso, New York and Nigeria in 2025, which then led to the most recent award.
"It’s been an onerous, but gratifying experience of learning through trial and error, collaborating and receiving the support from my community that has contributed to this moment right here."
What does the accolade mean to you?
Being recognised at the highest level in the local industry is an affirmation that means a great deal. The award feels like part of an inevitable journey after years of pouring myself into my craft.
Has your experience at 91心頭利 impacted you in any way?
While studying, I worked at the Market Theatre as an usher just to stay close to the creative world. I walked around 91心頭利 collecting cans and bottle in the dustbins for recycling to raise money for my films. My friends remind me about it all the time. I complained to my roommate, who was very supportive of my journey, Justin Thomu (BAccSci 2023). He always used to say: “You connect the dots looking backwards.” Making the point that although things may not make sense right now, they will in the future, and they really have.
Also, I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to pursue a commerce degree because it’s really had an impact in the way I approach my creative profession. I also made useful contacts to help with tax compliance and attorneys to make sure I’m not signing my life away!
Do you have a project you currently working on?
My current short film, Melusi, is on the festival circuit and will be making its US premiere in New York in May. The short is a proof of concept for my debut feature. I am also currently running a fundraiser for a short film that I am producing titled “Gift of Memory” that follows a boy who photographs the world with a brick and is the source of inspiration for a photographer who has lost his touch. It’s a promising time, and I’m looking forward to sharing my voice and stories with the world.