White Lion

In Shangaan telling, white lions are messengers of the gods, but none has been seen in the valley for years. When a white cub is born, a young Shangaan named Gisani takes it on himself to protect the animal. The cub, who will be called Letsatsi, is driven out of his pride and sets off alone on a long attempt to stay alive. Gisani meanwhile starts work as a tracker on a game farm and comes face to face with Letsatsi in the company of a foreign hunter. Michael Swan’s film is, at bottom, an argument against canned hunting, against shooting an animal that cannot get away and calling that hunting. John Kani appears in the cast. Around thirty real lions were used, all handled by Kevin Richardson, who also produced. It premiered at the Seattle International Film Festival on 6 June 2010.