Hailed as the “mother of the nation” by some, reviled as a corrupt and violent adulteress by others, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela is one of South Africa’s most prominent figures. News that a film is to be made of her life, with Jennifer Hudson, the American actress, playing the leading role has not gone down well in the country’s acting community.  At a stormy weekend press conference, the Creative Workers Union of South Africa said that using foreign actors to tell the country’s stories undermined efforts to develop a national film industry. “It can’t happen that we want to develop our own Hollywood, and yet we keep bringing in imports,” said Mabutho Sithole, the union’s president.  “This decision must be reversed. It must be stopped now,” Oupa Lebogo, the union’s secretary-general, told The Times. Udo Froese, a close friend of Madikizela-Mandela, agreed: “There’s a lot of good local talent, why not use them? Winnie herself is not involved in this, and in no way has given any sort of green light. ”The film is based on Winnie Mandela: A Life, an unofficial biography by Anna Marie du Preez, a local journalist. Hudson, a former winner of American Idol, who won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 2007 for Dreamgirls, landed the role last month. The film will be directed by Darrell J. Roodt, a South African film-maker, whose other works include Cry, The Beloved Country and Sarafina.

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