Easily one of the most inspiring stories in recent memory, the triumph of democracy over apartheid in South Africa began with the release of longtime political detainee Nelson Mandela and culminated in his glorious rise to the presidency in the country’s first free and fair elections in 1994.
While there are several feature films and documentaries that offered a glimpse of what the apartheid system of racial segregation was like in South Africa as well as examples of how President Mandela initiated certain reforms under his watch, there has not been a documentary that has thoughtfully opted for a more in-depth approach in depicting the struggle of a nation against formidable odds.
Until now.
“Miracle Rising: South Africa” is a new two-hour special documentary on the History Channel that retells the story through simple, intimate portraits of local and international key players determined to change the country for the best of all who live there.
Moving beyond mere chronology, the story climaxes with the thrilling behind-the-scenes events of the elections that resulted in the joyful inauguration of President Mandela.
“It is such a powerful and amazing story of transformation and forgiveness that I think it really spoke to something deep in the hearts of all of us really, about the power to forgive and to go through that true reconciliation process that South Africa did. So it’s a kind of inspiration to all of us, I believe,” Adam MacDonald, VP of programming at A+E Networks UK recently told InterAksyon in an exclusive interview.
In distinguishing “Miracle Rising: South Africa” from previous documentaries that covered the same subjects, MacDonald said the producers shot new footage and conducted interviews with around 40 people from all over the world who were involved in the struggle against apartheid.
These include such influential figures as Desmond Tutu, Albie Sachs, F.W. De Klerk, Jeremy Thompson, Richard Branson, Christiane Amanpour and former US president Bill Clinton.
