Gaia

‘Gaia’ will debut on Showmax this Halloween 31 October. Images: Supplied.

Terror in Tsitsikamma: Where to watch ‘Gaia’ in South Africa

Horror film ‘Gaia’ is set in the Tsitsikamma National Park and follows an injured forest ranger on a routine mission.

Gaia

‘Gaia’ will debut on Showmax this Halloween 31 October. Images: Supplied.

Set in the Tsitsikamma National Park, Gaia will debut on Showmax this Halloween 31 October.

‘GAIA’ IS SET IN TSITSIKAMMA NATIONAL PARK

Horror film Gaia debuts on Showmax this Halloween – 31 October. The breakout South African horror film follows an injured forest ranger on a routine mission (Monique Rockman) who is saved by two off-the-grid survivalists Carel Nel and Alex van Dyk). 

However, what starts out as a welcome rescue grows suspicious as the son and his renegade father reveal a cultish devotion to the forest. When their cabin is attacked by a strange being, it’s clear there is a far greater threat in this unrelenting wilderness.

Gaia is set close to home, at the Tsitsikamma National Park. The horror film won the following awards at Silwerskerm:

  • Best Film
  • Director
  • Editor
  • Sound Design
  • Hair and Make Up
  • As well as Best International Film at Trieste Science + Fiction Festival

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WATCH THE ‘GAIA’ TRAILER HERE

THE HORROR FILM 

Gaia was released in cinemas, on Hulu and via video on demand in North America last year by Decal. The ecological horror has a 85% critics’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Gaia is a breakthrough for director Jaco Bouwer, who was up for Best Director and won Best TV Drama at the 2022 SAFTAs for 4 Mure, a five-part kykNET series set in the same hotel room, but with different stories in different genres each episode. 4 Mure is now available to binge on Showmax. 

A week into filming Gaia, production was halted due to the outbreak of Covid. They only resumed shooting three months later. 

“Suddenly what was fiction became a strange form of reality and our pre-apocalyptic film started to resonate more with cast and crew,” said Bouwer. 

“We experience a searing grief and horror when the collapse flickers into view… I don’t think the performances in Gaia would’ve had the same emotional undercurrent if it wasn’t for the pandemic and its interruption into our work.”

Gaia
‘Gaia’ will debut on Showmax this Halloween 31 October. Images: Supplied.

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