Lamiyah Barnard, a 10-year-old girl from Belmont Park in Kraaifontein, plays a lead role in Snake, a local thriller that will hit cinemas next month for a limited run.
The film, which premiered at the Johannesburg Film Festival in February, is based on the 2011 book of the same name by Tracey Farren.
The film is directed by Meg Rickards, of Claremont, and tells the story of 10-year-old Stella, played by Lamiyah, in her debut role, who lives with her family as squatters on a farm.
When Jerry (Neels van Jaarsveld), a charismatic stranger, arrives, Stella is thrilled that her father Frank (Keenan Arrison) stays sober, and that her mother Nancy (Tarryn Wyngaard) begins to laugh again. However, her hope is shattered when she suspects Jerry of murdering a policeman.
Jerry manipulates Stella into lying on his behalf and rewards her with the gift of a beautiful silver flute.
Stella’s lie is a password into Jerry’s tragic past, for he burdens her with his boyhood trauma, which is slowly revealed to be closely connected to Stella’s family.
Meanwhile, Jerry seduces Stella’s mother and encourages her father to drink again. And he slyly sabotages their chances of buying land and their dream of a home of their own.
When Stella breaks down and tries to expose his evil deeds, Jerry shuts her up with a terrible threat: he swears to kill her baby sister.
“We went through a really intense but fun process with Lamiyah in the three months leading up to filming,” says Rickards. “Lamiyah was so open and engaged with the story. She also rose to the challenges of learning to play the penny whistle, and also to swim, in a matter of weeks.”
Lamiyah’s mother, Nicolette van Schalkwyk, says her daughter has always loved being in front of the camera.
“I knew from the start that I should start looking into getting her signed with an agency. I saw an advert on Facebook for a model call for a local clothing designer here in Cape Town, and she was chosen.”
She later got an email about the casting for the movie, but Lamiyah’s agent believed that she was not the right age for the character they were looking for in the movie.
“I went on Facebook and searched the information on there and approached the casting director myself, and Lamiyah was invited to audition in Paarl. They immediately loved her and told us the director would be in touch,” say Ms Van Schalkwyk.
She says Lamiyah at first had doubts as the movie is in Afrikaans and she was not able to speak Afrikaans fluently.
“After a few practice rounds, she nailed it. She developed so much confidence,” says Ms Van Schalkwyk.
The film will be released at Nu Metro Cinemas, Canal Walk Shopping Centre, from Friday May 3 until Thursday May 9. It will also be streamed on Amazon Prime Video and later on eVOD.
