The SA Hip hop culture, is a melting pot of innovation, ambition and passion. In the pursuit of this dream that many of our local rappers and artists share, there lies the support of their fellow creatives. That being said, Rofhiwa was one of the key directors in the making of the music video for J Smash’s track, ‘The Truth’, officially making his directorial debut.
Sometime this year, he was recognised by ‘10and5’ for his photography thus defining his creative identity. His work is said to revolve around ‘pushing the envelope’ in his projects and that is what he has certainly done. As Rof’s creative portfolio grows, the various faces of his artistry will surely show up and show out!
In the film realm, the director’s vision influences almost every aspect of the production process and demonstrates as well as aids in creating a well-rounded immersive piece of visual. With music videos, there is far more space to be experimental and playful as compared to indie films and or other types of productions. Rof’s directing style in the music video demonstrates a lot of calculated cutaways, interesting locations and superb cinematography of which is to be credited to the DOP as well as co-director, Jesse Barnes. In the heat of seeing his work, he gave me the opportunity to gently interrogate him and enlightened me in a recent interview.
Disclaimer: Interview has been edited for reading purposes.
What word would best describe you?
I would use the word ‘Multifaceted’ as those that know very closely can attest to having have experienced numerous sides of me including skills that I possess within.
What is something that you want people to know most about you?
I am a very ‘super curious’ individual as I love learning everyday and I believe that knowledge lies within the little things so I am never afraid to ask questions even when it sounds ridiculous in my mind. The other thing would be my ‘passion’ for all the things I do. I am very passionate about all projects or any form of work I lend my hand towards as they all have contributed to my career and most importantly relationships I have.
What made you choose your name, Rof the multifaceted?
I feel like it best fulfils/describes my curious nature & purpose you know like fate because I have been blessed enough by God to be able to tap into so many different facets at the highest level & be good at whatever I’m doing at that point in time in my own opinion and not only that but also the ability to adapt to different environments.
What were your favourite aspects directing the music video for “The Truth”?
I would say the whole experience of collaborating with all these amazing & wonderful artists that were involved in the project in its entirety and seeing the vision come to life. There is nothing more satisfying than seeing something you wrote & planned come to life even though things don’t always pan out the way you planned them out, it’s always fire to let nature take its course.
How did you come across the opportunity?
Some people might / might not know but I’m the creative director of the highly anticipated debut album titled ‘Toxic Perfectionism’ by J-Smash and initially someone was supposed to direct the video, however they were taking time to submit the treatment and we were also running out time so, I just took initiative and started writing the script with my younger brother, Orifha (Maru), then eventually asked Jesse Barnes to jump on board as well. That’s how I came across the opportunity.
Walk me through the conceptual process of the music video.
The idea/concept for me was to basically connect the dots & artists on the song, you know finding common ground across, J-Smash (Venda), Thato Saul (Pretoria), Youngsta Cpt (Cape Town), Flow Jones (Krugersdorp) & Kwesta (Katlehong)
Due to unforeseen circumstances we couldn’t necessarily travel to the initial locations I wanted but the trap house worked out well because that happens to be common ground in all these hoods, because you’ll definitely find one in a hood across the 5 locations where the artists hail from, so it worked out in the end. (like I mentioned earlier sometimes it’s okay to let nature take its course)
How was it working on a production on that scale for the first time?
I wouldn’t say it was my first time working in a big production of this sort, I’ve always helped out on other people’s sets as an assistant, but it was different this time since it was my set and I enjoyed every moment. It’s definitely stressful but was nothing we couldn’t handle as a team.
Can we expect more music videos directed by you?
Yeah, crazy enough there’s something I’m currently working on that is set to drop sometime later in the year.
Congratulations to Rofhiwa, we can’t wait to see what he has more in store for us. Be sure to watch the music video and enjoy!
