SO, LOCAL actors plan to stop American actress and singer Jennifer Hudson from being cast as Winnie Madikizela Mandela in a film based  on the ANC veteran’s life story.

The film, to be shot on location in SA, is based on an unofficial biography of Maikizela-Mandela written by local journalist Anna Marie Du Preez  and will be directed by accomplished South African filmmaker Darrell Roodt.

Through the Creative Workers Union of SA (CWUSA), local celebrities are complaining that foreign actors are cherrypicking South African roles. They argue that using foreign actors to tell South African stories undermines efforts to develop  a national film industry.

“We can’t allow this to happen. We have people who can play the role far better than Jennifer …. This decision must be reversed, it must be stopped now. If the matter doesn’t come up for discussion, we will push for a moratorium to be placed on the film being cast in South Africa. We are being undermined, there is no respect at all,” cried union general secretary Oupa Lebogo.

While I agree there isn’t a shortage of local actors who could do justice to the role, does it mean they should be given the monopoly over stories about South African heroes? Not that Madikizela-Mandela is mine.

I am not so sure how Lebogo and company  would react if they were to be excluded from foreign films simply because they were not from the nations that are portrayed. It seems hypocritical. I don’t recall any objections when five or more local actors were cast in the film Hotel Rwanda, for instance, or were given  roles in movies such as Lord of War and Blood Diamonds.

Let’s face it. The movie industry is about making money, and not about making history or being politically correct. Whoever has invested in these projects will dictate the terms because they have a right to expect returns. And if they think Jennifer Hudson will pull people to the box office, then so be it.

That is how the movie world works. They want bankable stars who will make their movies commercial successes. And casting a known star, like Hudson, guarantees that the film will have more international appeal.

While we are at it, a quick reminder to the CWUSA that, if they are so worried about how “their” heroes are portrayed, nothing stops them from making their own movies. Invictus – another international film which opened locally this week starring Morgan Freeman as Mandela and Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar  — is the umpteenth movie about the life of our icon Nelson Mandela, is it not?

It is a strange phenomenon this national sport we have perfected of constantly throwing our toys out of the cot each time we don’t get our way. Surely, instead of complaining,  we could tell our own stories, make our own movies and put our own money into the local film industry?

Nigeria does it.  And India does it with Bollywood.

The Nigerians fund  their own stars, and with their own money  and have built a film industry that is the biggest in Africa. Today the Nigerian film industry has overtaken Hollywood and closed the gap on India, the global leader in the number of movies produced each year, according to a  UN report released earlier this year.

We have the talent . SA has it own bankable stars and filmmakers and already punches above its weight in the industry — we have a couple of  Oscar statuettes to prove it.

SA has a vibrant, growing film industry . It has also become an attractive location for big budget international films. But a sound and sustainable film industry cannot be built on endless whingeing and unnecessary nationalism. It is the result of hard work, recognition of talent and clever investment.

So instead of complaining, why not invest all that energy in giving us decent productions. South Africans yearn for good local movies. There are many great stories to be told.

Lebogo and his fellow creatives should wake up and smell the coffee. SA stopped owning the Mandelas years ago. They now belong to the global village.