Principal photography has commenced on Pieces, a family drama written and directed by award-winning South African filmmaker Imran Hamdulay The Heart is a Muscle (2025). Filming is underway on location in Cape Town and surrounds and scheduled to wrap in November.
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Family Drama Film with Stellar Cast
Pieces stars Emmy-nominated South African actress Kim Engelbrecht (“Reyka,” “Raised by Wolves”) with award-winning Keenan Arrison (“The Heart is a Muscle,” “Kings of Joburg”), Cedwyn Joel (“Kelders van Geheime”, “Suidooster”) and introducing Asher Jacobs and Tazwill Spogter.
Told through the perspective of two young brothers, Pieces follows a family at a moment of change as their mother prepares to remarry and leave the home in which they were raised. As the boys begin to understand the father they lost in different ways, the film explores childhood and memory, and what we inherit from the people we love.
“Pieces is a simple story about two boys trying to understand their father, their family, and the world that is changing around them,” says writer/director Hamdulay. “It’s a film about loss, but it’s funny in places, sad in others, and always kind to its characters. We have an incredible cast and crew around the film, and it’s been a real joy making it together.”
Pieces is the first in a slate of 5 micro-budget films funded by the National Film and Video Foundation of South Africa and is produced by Adam Thal (“The Last Ranger”, “Rise: The Siya Kolisi Story”) and Casey Diepeveen (“Trifole”) of The Star Film Company, with Pierre de Villiers (“Black Burns Fast”, “This is not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection”) as cinematographer.
“The NFVF is committed to promoting and developing the South African film industry, increasing the number of South African films produced, and promoting social cohesion by giving our nation’s diverse stories a platform through film,” says NFVF CEO, Dr. Shadrack Bokaba. “Pieces is a wonderful example of that mission in action — a deeply felt South African story from a gifted filmmaker, and we are delighted to support it.”
Family Drama Film to Premiere in 2027
Imran Hamdulay’s debut feature, The Heart is a Muscle premiered at the 2025 Berlinale, garnering the Ecumenical Jury Prize and went on to win Best Feature at the 2025 Silwerskerm Fees. The film was selected as South Africa’s submission for Best Foreign Language Film to the 98th Academy Awards®.
Pieces is scheduled to premiere in 2027 and has secured South African distribution through Indigenous Film Distribution and Development.
Imran Hamdulay
Imran Hamdulay is an award-winning South African writer and director. He is a Berlinale Talents alumni & Film Independent fellow. His debut feature, The Heart Is A Muscle, premiered at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival going on to win the Panorama Independent Jury award.
His most recent short film, The Wait, premiered at the 3rd edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival and won best short film at the 45th Durban International Film Festival. His screenplays have featured at various international markets including IFFR Producer’s Lab, Cannes Marche du Film, EAVE and Gotham Film Week amongst others.
Imran was also the producer on the crime-thriller Sons of the Sea.
Kim Engelbrecht
Kim Suzanne Engelbrecht is a South African actress best known for her roles as Lolly in Isidingo, Sgt. Noma Banks on Dominion, Marlize DeVoe on The Flash, and the titular character in Reyka. She has two South African Film and Television Awards as well as a nomination for an International Emmy Award
Keenan Arrison
Keenan Arrison is an acclaimed award-winning South African actor, producer, writer, and performer whose work bridges art-house independent cinema, high-concept television, and international studio productions.
A graduate of AFDA, where he earned his degree cum laude, Arrison has built a career defined by emotional range, physical intensity, and an instinct for grounded, deeply human storytelling.
Over the past two decades, he has become one of South Africa’s most dynamic screen talents, known for seamlessly moving between gritty independent films, premium television dramas, and global productions. He stars in The Heart Is a Muscle, directed by Imran Hamdulay, which premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival and South Africa’s selection to the 98th Academy Awards, marked a major breakthrough moment for contemporary South African cinema on the world stage
Source and References
https://www.happeningnews.co.za/2026/10/02/fame-week-africa-2026/
Also read:
Mad Moth Communications
https://teeveetee.blogspot.com/2026/10/principal-photography-starts-on-imran.html
