‘INVISIBLE’ set for exclusive first screening at kykNET Silwerskermfees

By Venecia Valentine

South African audiences will get an exclusive first look at INVISIBLE, the highly anticipated action-conspiracy thriller series based on Deon Meyer’s bestselling novel Blood Safari, when the production premieres its pilot episode at the 14th kykNET Silwerskermfees on Wednesday, 19 August.

The special screening takes place ahead of the series’ official world premiere on 1 October and its broadcast premiere on M-Net (DStv Channel 101) on 14 October.

For the first time, members of the public will be able to attend the festival screening, with a limited number of tickets available through Quicket at R80 each. The evening begins with a book signing with Meyer at 7pm, followed by the blue carpet at 8pm and the screening at 9pm.

INVISIBLE features an international and South African ensemble cast, including Australian actress Abbie Cornish (Limitless, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) and Scottish actor Dougray Scott (The Hack, The Crow Girl). They are joined by South African stars Tim Theron, Tumisho Masha, Frank Rautenbach, Kim Engelbrecht, Chi Mhende and Siv Ngesi.

Produced by the team behind Trackers and Heart of the Hunter, the series follows bodyguard Martin Dekker and London-based expat Emma Le Roux as they become entangled in a decades-old conspiracy rooted in South Africa’s Lowveld.

As they uncover long-buried secrets, police investigator Colonel Jack Phatudi moves closer to exposing a corruption network extending into the highest corridors of power. The gripping storyline also draws on real events, including the mysterious 1986 plane crash that claimed the life of former Mozambican President Samora Machel.

Directed by Jozua Malherbe, INVISIBLE is written by William Schneider and Meyer, with additional writing by Amy Jephta.

For Theron, who also serves as producer and stars in the series, bringing Blood Safari to screen has been a career highlight.

“Translating that world to screen, while stepping into Dekker’s boots myself, has been the privilege of a lifetime,” he said, adding that having the first episode screened at Silwerskerm is particularly meaningful given his history with the festival.

Meyer, who serves as executive producer, said seeing Blood Safari transformed for the screen had been “an extraordinary experience”, with the production capturing the story’s danger, family dynamics and secrets.