| From |
South Africa |
| Gender | male |
| Birth | 11 September 1991, Johannesburg, City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality, Gauteng, South Africa |
| Age: | 28 years |
| Star sign | Virgo |
Sibs Shongwe- La Mer (born 11 September 1991) is a screenwriter, film director, musician, TED (conference) talks alumni and visual artist born in Johannesburg, South Africa. His critically acclaimed debut feature film, Necktie Youth premiered in the Panorama section of the 65th Berlin International Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival, Sydney Film Festival and numerous top tier international film festivals, winning “Best South African Feature Film” and “Best Direction” at the Durban International Film Festival in 2015. The film went on to garner a multitude of awards including “Best Achievement in Cinematography” and “Best Achievement in editing” at the 2015 South African Film and Television Awards. Necktie Youth was theatrically released in South Africa (2015) at Ster-Kinekor and on the iTunes Store & DStv Box-office. The film was later released in the Netherlands enjoying a circuit run at De Balie in Amsterdam and other cinema house and territories.
Early career
Sibs Shongwe-La Mer (born Sibusiso Mandla Shongwe) was born in Sandton in the Northern Suburbs of Johannesburg, South Africa on 11 September 1991. His visual art and cinema career began in his late teens after the untimely death of a high school girlfriend and other influential tragedies befell his social circle and resulted in the creation of various bodies of art and film exploring themes of suburbia malaise, depression and the new South African experience. First working as a independent music video director and rock n roll photographer for local acts, Shongwe-La Mer had his first notable international film festival exposure with self funded low-fi production “Territorial Pissings” that was screened as a work-in-progresses at the 70th Venice International Film Festival (La Biennale di Venezia) in 2013 with a copy of the work added to the festivals historical archives. At this time, Shongwe-La Mer was additional active as a visual artist & photographer, exhibiting works in his country of birth as well as various galleries around the world.
“Josephine” from 2014 Photographic Series “Burial of My Sisters
Filmography
As writer/director
- Necktie Youth (2015)
- Territorial Pissings (2013)
- Death Of Tropics (2012)
As actor
- Necktie Youth (Supporting Lead) (2015)
As Producer/Executive Producer
- Territorial Pissings (2013)
- Death Of Tropics (2012)
Awards/Nominations
| Year | Awards | Category | Recipient | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Durban International Film Festival | Best South African Feature Film | necktie youth | Won |
| Best Director | Won | |||
| 2015 | Tribeca Film Festival | Best Narrative Feature | Nominated | |
| 2015 | Granada Film Festival Cines del Sur | Golden Alhambra | Nominated | |
| 2016 | Festival De Films Geneva | Prix de la Critique | Won | |
| 2015 | Festival de cinéma de la ville de Québec | Grand prix de la compétition | Won | |
| Prix du jury collégial | Won | |||
| 2015 | World Cinema Amsterdam | Best Film | Won | |
| 2015 | Carthage Film Festival | TV5 Award | Won | |
| 2015 | AFI Fest | Breakthrough Audience Award | Nominated |