Telling original African stories with local actors and filmmakers is one of the strong suits of Netflix — and Diamond Groove Pictures' new movie, Jewel, is a celebration of this.

Premiering on July 8, this anticipated Netflix Original is a compelling romantic drama where an iconic moment in SA's history — the Sharpeville Massacre — serves as the catalyst for two unlikely lovers to cross paths decades later. 

A white photographer (Michelle Botes) visits the township of Sharpeville, near Vereeniging, to document a memorial to this 1960 tragedy, when about 250 people were killed or wounded as apartheid police opened fire into a crowd peacefully protesting against the country's oppressive pass laws.

While there, the photographer finds herself drawn to a young Sharpeville resident (Nqobile ‘Nunu’ Khumalo). The women embark on a romance that stirs up painful memories of a shared past.

Jewel was directed and co-written by Adze Ugah, the brains behind other remarkable local productions such as Isibaya, Jacobs Cross, Mrs Right Guy and Shaka.

Along with Botes and Khumalo, it boasts a stellar cast that includes Desmond Dube, Robert Whitehead, Connie Chiume, Sandile Mahlangu, Lilian Dube, Cindy Mahlangu and Senzo Radebe.

Watch the trailer now:

This article was paid for by Diamond Groove Pictures.