Surviving the Islands

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I recently went off to an island, which I can now reveal was in The Philippines, to do some behind-the-scenes on the new season of Survivor South Africa and I have to say, we’re in for a treat! The show is now being produced by uber-fans of the international franchise Handrie Basson and Le Roux Botha who run a company called Afrokaans Film and Television. And this is perhaps the thing that makes this season so spectacular. Both Handrie and Le Roux have worked on the show before in various capacities and there is absolutely nothing they don’t know about the show.

So I spent a few days observing the shooting of the show, including the games and challenges and even the tribal council. And they have pulled out all the stops this season!

For those not familiar with the show, Survivor South Africa is a South African reality game show based on the popular international Survivor format.

As in all versions of the show, it features group of strangers who are marooned in an isolated location, where they must provide food, water, fire, and shelter for themselves. The contestants will compete in challenges to earn either a reward, or immunity from elimination. The contestants will be progressively eliminated from the game as they are voted-off by their fellow contestants until only one remains and is given the title "Ultimate Survivor" and awarded the grand prize of R1 million.

In the sixth season of this hit global franchise, the 18 Survivor South Africa: Philippines castaways are exposed to the beauty of thousands of islands connected by Pacific waters, each one home to distinct forests and bays which are teeming with indigenous wildlife, both beautiful and dangerous.

 “Their aim will be to outwit, outplay and outlast their fellow competitors to endure longer than any previous South African winner: to Day 39, where the finalists will have to convince a jury of ousted contestants, whom they either directly or indirectly had a hand in voting out of the game, to give them the title of Sole Survivor and the whopping cash prize that goes with it,” says MNet Publicity Manager Ingrid Engelbrecht.In Survivor SA, you can be whoever you want to be, the only thing that matters is how you play the game. So, expect a lot of conniving, strategising and physical and mental triumphs over others to become the next winner of the sixth season of Survivor South Africa?

As always I’m quite keen on the Durban contestants on the show. The winner of season 1 was Vanessa Marawa who is from Durban and as it turns out Durban contestants always do well on the show and they deliver quite the punch this season as well.

 They are:

MARTHUNIS OOSTHUIZEN (29) Investment advisor from Durban

No-nonsense Marthunis is a devout Christian and father of one from Durban. As a member of MENSA, Marthunis is intellectually nimble but admits that he struggles to read people and their emotions, so the social aspect of this game may pose a challenge for him. Marthunis says that viewers can expect him to be 100% real at all times during this competition – but how seriously will the other castaways take this suit-wearing investment advisor?

 SEAMUS HOLMES (25) Property broker from Durban

Seamus is a super-fan of the Survivor franchise who is not out to make any friends on the island. He confesses that he is coming into the game to play hard, cause chaos and initiate as many blindsides as possible. An unapologetic villain and strategist, Seamus admits that his weak spot could be incorrectly identifying the other strategists in the game. Physically fit and visibly strong, he could also pose a physical threat to other Alpha males on his tribe. Fans will immediately recognise Seamus by his signature blue straw hat.

 TEVIN NAIDU  (24) Medical doctor from Durban

 Tevin is a Survivor boffin who has watched every season of every franchise – sometimes watching individual seasons up to 15 times! This doctor, whose interests lie in the fields of neuroscience, behavioural science and physical cosmology, believes that Survivor is the best human social experiment on Earth. Tevin plans to do a lot of lying on the island, as he feels that the only way to play a successful social and strategic game is to have his competitors eating out of the palm of his hand. A hero to the tribe and a villain to the viewers, Tevin’s all time favourite player of the game is Boston Rob.

 Survivor South Africa Season 6 premiers on MNet Channel 101 on Thursday, 3 May 2018.

You can email Terence Pillay at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter: @terencepillay1 and engage with him there.