Reel Epics wins Best Factual Programme at SAFTAs

We are beyond thrilled to announce that the first season of Die Staat Teen / The State Versus won the Golden Horn award for Best Factual Program at the National Film and Video Foundation South Africa‘s South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs).

We are so honoured, thank you so much, but we of course couldn’t have done it alone.

First, thank you to the The National Prosecuting Authority of South Africa and the South African Police Service (SAPS) media office who worked closely with us to create this show. We also have to lift our hat to all the state prosecutors who shared their most memorable and gruelling cases with us.

Then, a very special thank you to ViaTV and all their viewers for giving us a platform and supporting us from the get-go.

And finally, the entire Reel Epics team who created this show. A special shoutout to Jackie Ruth Murray (co-producer), Mia Cilliers (director), Katharina Stehle (production manager) and Roxanne Dalton (editor extraordinaire), who tirelessly saw this project through.

We hope this show achieved what we set out to do: to shed a positive light on our country’s judicial system and to provide insight into the work of those who dedicate their time, energy, and professionalism to serving justice in our courts.

More about the series

Die Staat Teen (The State Versus) is a docuseries for local broadcast where state advocates retell stories of some of South Africa’s most notorious criminal court cases and guide us through the investigation, the evidence, their legal strategy, and the challenges of the compelling cases that they’ll never forget.

Here are some pictures from behind-the-scenes: