21 Up South Africa: Mandela's Children

synopsis

"Give me the child until he is seven and I will give you the man." The Jesuit maxim behind the landmark UP Series has now been taken to South Africa, where a group of children, first filmed in 1992 at the age of 7, are 21. The fascinating and revealing portraits offer insight into the social and political upheavals that have occurred throughout South Africa since the crumbling of Apartheid. The 14 children who started the Series have experienced a multitude of changes, just like the country itself. We see them at age 7 and 14, and now 21, figuring out their place in the world, part of the new South Africa. In successive interviews we witness their changing attitudes and experiences about many issues.