Didintle Khunou’s bubbly and off-the-wall nature is quite different to the meek yet eager to learn “born free” police officer Thato Sekoati in crime drama series Soon Comes Night.
Set against the backdrop of the tumultuous landscape of the South Africa’s emerging rainbow nation, the riveting six-part show tells the tale of liberation hero turned heist king Alex Shabane (played by Kwenzo Ngcobo) and a broken apartheid cop seeking redemption, detective Sakkie Oosthuizen (played by Albert Pretorius).
Detective Sakkie and his young partner in law Thato take on the case of bringing down the heist king, while Thato grapples with the hauntings of her late policeman father.
Being able to tell local stories with the same passion and attention to detail as our U.S. counterparts is what renowned director Thabang Moleya hopes to bring to South Africa’s cinematic landscape with Soon Comes Night.
“There’s always a sense of … seeking some sort of validation or acceptance from the U.S. market,” Thabang shared in an introduction before the screening.
“We’re always kind of saying like, ‘okay, if our stories are there then our stories will be better’. I think as filmmakers, as storytellers behind and in front of the camera, we need to own our own narrative. Be part of the stories that we’re telling because there are stories and we need to own that, you know and if we look after this path, it will look after us.”
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At an exclusive screening of the first episode in Hyde Park, TRUELOVE caught Didintle in the cinema after the screening to chat about her role as Thato Sekoati.
Getting the role after a successful audition, Didintle shares what she loves the most about the story in Soon Comes Night.
“I think I really enjoy Paul [Rowlston’s] writing. I think it was layered and full of so much subtext that it allowed us, the actors, to kind of dig deep into the crux of the story and the stakes in each scene. That's what I really enjoy.
“I'm not going to lie, it's very rare to get such really subtextual and layered writing. And this writer, you can see he really crafted from the details of the dialogue each and every single character. So, it's always nice to work and have that as a springboard as an actor because it means that the writer of the story had a real sense of intention when he wrote it and had something poignant to say,” she says.
“So that’s what I really enjoy [about] the story and obviously I'm loving the four gang, the men, the four main villains. I'm really enjoying them and their dynamic and their chemistry. I'm enjoying their mischievousness, their cockiness. The director really made sure to honour them and pay homage to them and make them bad boys. You know, with the slow walk and the fire and the bombs and the guns!”
The 31-year-old thespian and theatre lover’s fiery demeanour is a far cry from the character she plays but Didintle took the challenge on the chin.
Revealing how she dealt with any challenges of portraying Thato, Didintle says, “Initially, I was so afraid of bringing the innocence out of her because she's so innocent and at first, I wanted her to be tough and rough.
“But then the director and the writer let me know that they wanted to portray the femininity and the kind of innocence that a Black woman at that time walking into a police force that is not doing so well, not organised, that is chaotic; and they wanted to see the arc from her innocence to when she grows into her womanhood and really matures.”
When it comes to bringing out that innocence and femininity, Didintle’s roles in feel-good features, like the upcoming film A Soweto Love Story, and her theatre background gave her the skills, experience and talent to bring Thato to life.
“So, in episode one we see her quite bright-eyed, yes, and then we see the character arc grow and shift and change. So, I think that was the nice thing about playing her is that she has a beautiful arc. But jeez, at first, I resisted. I wanted to make her rough and tough. But I thought hey, let me own her femininity and her youth and her bright-eyed and all of that,” she explains.
“Let me own that and let me find that in my body. Because I'm not like Thato, I'm loud, I'm expressive and, you know, I grew up with older brothers. I wrestled and I was hoping to play with the guns too! But it was very interesting exploring that part of my femininity.”
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Before bagging the role in Soon Comes Night, the Isono and The Throne actress has a myriad of intense theatre production roles under her belt, including leading The Rocky Horror Show South Africa and The Colour Purple Musical, the latter of which earning her two awards.
Always eager to learn and perfect her craft and even creating her own film and television production company, Galalela Mosadi Productions, Didintle trains with artistic director and acting coach Steven Feinstein continuously to make sure that she is the best actor she can be.
“I train with my acting coach every year. I have an acting coach, Steven Feinstein, who I train with every year, and he has programs for actors every two years, and I do every one of them because I feel like I trust him, he knows me and I know he can really help me improve.
“He knows my weaknesses, he knows my strengths and he knows how to push me and he's the first person to plant that seed of self-belief in me as a young actor nine years ago when I started off acting so it will always be Steven Feinstein who will be there to kind of like – that I will go to that I can trust will help me nurture and hone in my craft.”
