Friday, May 12, 1:00 PM, Charles Theatre 2
Sunday, May 14, 4:00 PM, Rotunda Cinematheque 1

Director: Thomas Allen Harris

Cast: Tshepo Clement Madibeng, Matsepo Majara, Kabi Thulo, Maria De Koker, Mxolisi Mantlana, Mbuyiselo Nqobi, Mncedisi Kwinana, Fezekile E. Peter, Andile Lizo Ngwilingwili, Linda Carlos Hlogwane, Alex Selesho, Watson P. Thapong, Richman Mphou, Edward Charles Human, Vuyo Mfanekiso

Country: USA, South Africa
Year: 2005
Running Time: 74:00 minutes
Format: Beta SP

Sometimes a film reminds us that the people within our own family have lived powerful and interesting lives that we can draw upon for strength and wisdom. If only we would take the time to pay more attention. Filmmaker Thomas Allen Harris was brought to a place of reflection when his stepfather Lee died. After Harris uncovered some of his stepfather's belongings he began to become intrigued with the life of a man he loved, but didn't get the chance to know: a man who was a political exile, freedom fighter, journalist, husband and father.

In 1960, Pule Benjamin Leinaeng (Lee) and eleven other young men set off into the South African wilderness leaving behind their families, homes and country to become ANC foot soldiers in the struggle to bring freedom, peace and democracy to their people and homeland. These men were the first wave of South African exiles who left Bloemfontein to keep the anti-apartheid movement alive from East Africa, Europe, America and Cuba. Some of them would not live long enough to reunite with their families and see their work realized. Most of them would make the journey back home as older men decades later to celebrate the fall of apartheid, the release of Nelson Mandela, and witness the formation of a new democratic South Africa.

The Twelve Disciples of Nelson Mandela is a poignant blend of history, biography, recreations and touching personal memoir that pays tribute to a father, his country and the sacrifices made to win the freedom of a people.

-- Darryl D. Pryor

Presented By: Thomas Allen Harris

Raised in the Bronx and Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania, Thomas Allen Harris is an award-winning filmmaker and cultural warrior, whose documentary films, installations, and experimental videos have been featured in venues across the international landscape on television, at festivals, museums, and galleries. His documentary films include That’s My Face/E Minha Cara and Vintage o Families of Value and the short documentaries Heaven, Earth, and Hell; Black Body; and Splash. Harris is a recipient of numerous awards, grants and fellowships from such institutions as the Sundance Institute, the Ford Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, the Jerome Foundation, the Paul Robeson Fund, and the Lannan Foundation.