SA documentary goes to Hollywood

According to the North West Film Commission, ‘My Life on the Tracks – the Rohan Vos Story’, written and produced by Deon van Zyl, received the nomination against over 100 other entrants from around the world.

The documentary would fly the flag for South Africa at HIIDA on the 30th of June, and the winners would be invited to receive their awards at at screening to be held on September 10 at the Raleigh Studios in Hollywood.

HIIDA is an exclusive film festival for documentaries whose goal is to promote and recognise documentary film-makers from around the world.

Van Zyl, in a statement, said he was proud to have his work recognized on an international platform.

"I am extremely proud to be a South African and be recognized as a South African Film-maker on an International platform, telling a South African story which has its roots in Delareyville, a small town deep in the North West Province," van Zyl said.

In ‘My Life on the Tracks- the Rohan Vos Story’, Rohan Vos, who grew up in Delareyville in the North West Province tells his remarkable story in his own words as the owner and founder of the largest privately owned railway in Africa.

The story shares some very intense and challenging times, some previously untold, that van Zyl experienced on his personal journey, a journey that started without the intention of ever becoming a business venture.

Vos shares intimate and personal details about his life in vivid detail, some of which have never been told before.

Intimate interviews with family and employees added authenticity to this timeless piece of African rail history. Today Rovos Rail is a thriving business and the most luxurious train in the world.

Van Zyl said it took him a year to make ‘My Life on the Track- the Rohan Vos Story’.