Director Derick Muller stirs up controversy with WESENS production

In the vast landscape of South Africa, 1967, a unique cinematic journey unfolds. Wesens, a groundbreaking Afrikaans found-footage Sci-Fi film, is set against the backdrop of the Karoo, where four South African Republican Intelligence Agents embark on an investigation of an unidentified object that has landed on a local farm.

Behind the lens of this extraordinary film is Derick Muller, a multifaceted individual who has made a significant impact in the realms of literature, advertising, and now, filmmaking. Muller, the founder and head of The Suits Communications, an advertising agency in Cape Town, ventured into the world of writing with his debut youth novel, Vuil Skottelgoed, which won the Afrikaans category of Human & Rousseau’s 'Ek is 'n Skrywer' competition in 2007.

Muller's fascination with the realism that the found footage genre brings to filmmaking led him to choose this technique for Wesens. The film's narrative is designed to reveal the protagonist's spiritual quest through a "real-life" lens of South Africa in the 1960s.

Wesens was filmed on a farm on the Ouberg pass, more than an hour outside Montagu, a location devoid of electricity, cell phone reception, and water, contributing to the film's raw, authentic feel. Interestingly, Muller, who suffers from motion sickness, ensured that the film was shot on tripods and gimbals to avoid handheld footage.

Muller's advice for aspiring screenwriters is to learn how to edit films, read widely, write with a budget in mind, have fun with their work, and not be afraid to break the rules. He returned from his MBA international exchange at Yale University's School of Management, where he researched the South African film industry's performance in local and international markets, with these insights.

Muller's love for storytelling began at a young age. He penned his first book, "Die Spook van Union Dale," when he was nine years old. His passion for reading, nurtured by his parents, laid the foundation for his illustrious career.

Derick Muller and his wife Karin Muller founded the South African art and literature journal Ambassadeur in 2016. Despite his success, Muller remains humble, believing that with hard work, anyone can achieve their goals. He is inspired by filmmakers such as Jean-Luc Godard, Alain Resnais, and Ingmar Bergman, and writers such as Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Cormac McCarthy, John Steinbeck, and Guy de Maupassant.

Wesens, an independent South African film, is more than just a cinematic exploration; it is a film that cracks the code of the universe. It is a testament to Muller's dedication, creativity, and unwavering pursuit of the "absolute truth" in storytelling.