Jock of the Bushveld is a much loved, true South African tale 
of a dog and his human traversing the South African bush. Jock first became known to South Africans when Sir Percy Fitzpatrick penned and published his adventures with his beloved dog in 1907. In 1986 it was made into a movie and now, more than 100 years after he first appeared, Jock is going to hit the big screen in 3D. Thanks to the tireless efforts of a group of South African animators working on a shoestring budget (especially when compared to animated movies made by Disney, Pixar and Dreamworks) Jock finally gets to tell the story from his point of view.
The film comes to us courtesy of South African born producer Duncan MacNeillie, who worked on the 1986 film. According to screenafrica.com, MacNeillie recently returned from a successful trip to the United States where he found a top-notch marketing and distribution company to finance the film’s release internationally. Visio Entertainment is reportedly very excited about the movie, but has, of course, requested some changes to make it more appealing to an international audience. Rumour has it that one of these changes will be to the lead voice. Jock is currently voiced by SA actor Damon Barry, who has a list of stage, screen and voice over credits to his name. But it looks like he might have to give way to Bryan Adams, a move which is sure to raise a few local hackles.
One of the other changes has to do with the release date. Initially the movie was set for local release in December 2010, but as it will still be a few months before it’s ready for release in the US and Europe the date has been pushed back to much later this year (some people have touted April/May as a release date but other sources say it’s more likely to be July/August).
One thing is for sure, neither the South African nor the American guys will want to replace Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, who lends his voice to Tata, the movie’s resident spiritual leader – naturally.
Johnny Clegg will reprise his role from the 1986 film as music man, and, with the help of the very famous Tim Rice (who had a successful working relationship with Andrew Lloyd Webber and wrote lyrics for Disney’s Aladdin and The Lion King) and a handful of South African music artists, will produce the soundtrack.
In an article on timeslive.co.za, MacNeillie said that, world class graphics aside, he was proudest of the film’s music. “We have got the backing of [three-time Oscar winning lyricist Sir] Tim Rice, that will help promote the film in the world market. South Africa can’t always match the US market [in film production] but we hope with this film we can.”
Merchandising is expected to play a big role in the film’s financial success. Andy Rice (Sir Tim Rice’s brother), the movie’s marketing director, says, “The merchandising will target various markets from babies, to adults and also the pet owners. These will include apparel, toys, baby jumpers, games, books, pet products and duvets for children’s rooms.”
It’s not yet clear if the movie will be true to the book and stick with the teary ending or whether it will mimic the 1995 film remake, which allowed audiences to leave the theatre smiling.
Regardless, South Africans have something to look forward to this year, even if it is only kicking some buttocks in the animated movie stakes.
Find out more about the movie on the official website: www.jock-animation.com
Jade Scully is a copywriter excited about writing copy and stories, blogging about the world and editing. She currently and regularly publishes her stories on a number of blogs. Jade loves animals and hopes to begin writing copy for the animal rescue charity TEARS as her contribution to the cause.
