Nelson Mandela documentary premiers in the USA

Cape Town, South Africa (PANA) – More than 70 hours of rare, unreleased audio recordings of former President Nelson Mandela have been included in a new documentary which will have its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, in the United States on Tuesday.

Troublemaker: The Story Behind the Mandela Tapes is directed by Antoine Fuqua with executive producer Mac Maharaj and screenwriter Michael Toomey Mann. Troublemaker (named after the Xhosa translation of Mandela’s birth name, Rolihlahla) follows Mandela’s extraordinary journey in his own words. The documentary covers Mandela’s childhood grooming in the royal court, his imprisonment and his historic presidency.

The documentary uses the recordings Mandela made while preparing his acclaimed autobiography Long Walk to Freedom.

The involvement of Maharaj in the production is significant because he was jailed in the same block as Mandela on Robben Island for 12 years and Maharaj served in Mandela’s Cabinet. 

-0- PANA CU/MA 26Jan2026