Kyk My In My Oë

Genre: Drama

Rating: PG-13

Year: 2025

Language: Afrikaans

Subtitles: English

Director: Christian Schoeman

Cast: Albert Maritz, Adri Vivier, Rikus Terblanche, Anya Human, and Christian Schoeman 

Indie Director’s First Feature Explores Autism with Heart

For local filmmaker Christian Schoeman, storytelling has always been personal—but never quite like this. After years of producing short films, Schoeman has completed his debut feature, ‘Kyk My In My Oë’, a deeply moving drama about a young autistic man sent to Cape Town to meet with his estranged father.

It is a moving story that explores our inherent desire for acceptance, recognition, and understanding. The film’s events are set in recognizable South African locales, including Melkbosstrand, the iconic Muizenberg beach huts, and Stellenbosch, and it aims to offer a more nuanced, three-dimensional depiction of an autistic character. Something which, according to Schoeman, we rarely get to see in the current film landscape. “I just wanted to tell an honest story—one that reflects people we often overlook.”

What makes the project even more remarkable is that it was entirely self-financed. Without the support of traditional funding, Schoeman relied on creative problem-solving and the hard work of a dedicated cast and crew to bring his vision to life. He describes it as the most demanding project he’s ever taken on.

The story follows Andrew, a soft-spoken man on the autism spectrum, who is forced to stay with his cousin Riaan during his time in Cape Town. Riaan, stuck in a dead-end job and grappling with the aftermath of a breakup, struggles to connect with Andrew—but both men try, in their own ways, to bridge the emotional distance between them. When Andrew unexpectedly crosses paths with someone from his past, he is forced to confront a difficult chapter of his life that he thought he had left behind.

The cast includes a mix of established actors and fresh faces, including Albert Maritz, Adri Vivier, Rikus Terblanche, Anya Human, and Schoeman himself.

A rough cut of ‘Kyk My In My Oë’ will be screened in Melkbosstrand with the hope of gathering early feedback before a wider release. Schoeman plans to submit the final cut of the film to both national and international film festivals.