Comments Singh, "The Peabody Award is a very big deal in American broadcasting. We did not recognise its significance. Its uniqueness is that it is not done through a nomination process, but winners are selected by a board that watches all the films and then has to unanimously agree to present the Peabody award to a film. We are humbled with the recognition that 'Yesterday', an indigenous South African film in isiZulu has received on the world stage."
'Yesterday' was the first South African film to receive an Oscar nomination and the first isiZulu film to receive international acclaim. The Peabody Award follows upon the broadcast of 'Yesterday' in the United States on World Aids day last year.
The 2006 Peabody Awards honoured recipients from three continents and in seven languages, reflecting the international scope of the competition. 'Yesterday' was described "as a South African film that personalised Africa's Aids crisis." Singh and Roodt were presented with the Peabody Award by Jon Stewart, the host of Comedy Central's award-winning 'The Daily Show with Jon Stewart'.
The only other film recipient was Martin Scorsese for his documentary feature on Bob Dylan.
'Yesterday' is a Videovision Entertainment production in association with the Nelson Mandela Foundation, M-Net, The National Film And Video Foundation, Distant Horizon and was shot on location in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The music was composed by Madala Kunene and it is executive produced by Sudhir Pragjee and Sanjeev Singh, produced by Anant Singh and Helena Spring, and written and directed by Roodt.
The Peabody Awards programme, established in 1940 and administered by the University of Georgia's Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, is the oldest honour in electronic media and perpetuates the memory of the banker-philanthropist whose name it bears. The Awards recognise distinguished achievement and meritorious public service by stations, networks, producing organisations and individuals.
