by Thinus Ferreira
A devastated group of people - TV family really - all huddled together, with some crying, some simply hugging each other, on one of the sets inside Sasani Studios in Johannesburg on Monday morning as they were all told together that the South African public broadcaster had decided to cancel 7de Laan on SABC2.
Tears flowed freely from several faces, especially from the crestfallen crew and cast members who've been part of the fictional Hillside-set story from Danie Odendaal Productions for a number of years.
"Let's give it our best exit ever," said Frances Maposa, 7de Laan's line producer, to the people around her. "Let it be as unforgettable as 7de Laan is."
"It was a real Monday's Monday," an insider told me on Monday afternoon about the devastating moment the Danie Odendaal Productions group got the news. "It was sombre. It was moving. It was heartbreaking."
Some cast members and crew were seen patting each other on the back. "We can be proud of what we achieved. We had a great run. Look at what we've meant for South Africa for such a long time," some said to each other.
Around 100 people including the permanent cast and crew and short-term actors are all losing their jobs after the SABC decided to axe the long-running Afrikaans TV soap on SABC2 - on-air since April 2000 - with the upcoming 24th season which will be its last.
After ending The Estate on SABC3 recently, the SABC - which is facing a growing monetary black hole of over R1 billion - is simply out of money to keep big-budget shows on the air of which traditional local soaps like 7de Laan is part.
Although 7de Laan in June had 1 191 198 viewers on SABC2 and a 14 audience share (14% of all TV switched on at 18:00 was tuned to SABC2) as the channel's second-most-watched show overall for the month, the SABC's precarious financial position, and the cost of these type of daily serialised dramas, are making it basically impossible to keep large ensemble cast shows on the air.
"Today was a shock," said an insider. "But when the SABC and 7de Laan went through the period where the episode order got reduced from five to just three episodes per week on SABC2 a few years ago before it again went back to five episodes per week - that was really when people realised that 7de Laan could one day end."
"Since then, 7de Laan's cancellation has always been something lurking in the back of people's minds," a longtime insider told me on Monday after they got the official cancellation news. "People have been thinking for a while: When will the end be? What is the worst that could happen?"
The final episode of 7de Laan will be filmed on 21 October - sure to be a heightened, extremely emotional day for the cast and crew - after which this last episode, just as poignantly, is set to air on SABC2 as the show's swansong on Tuesday 26 December - Boxing Day.
For now, the 7de Laan cast and crew are however not packing up or packing anything away in boxes - yet. There's still a final 24th season to do and to deliver.
Insiders say some extremely excited and dramatic storylines have already been outlined for the 24th season but Monday's cancellation news - with a finite end - now gives producers and writers carte blanche to do some things with Hillside's residents that's never been possible for a setting and characters that always had to continue.
"The stakes for Hillside and everyone working and living there will now be higher than ever. 7de Laan already started a while ago to shoot and do OB [on-location] scenes."
"Over the next couple of weeks the storylines will be created and adapted for the final 7de Laan season. The show - the writers and producers and actors are all dreaming big and are very creative," an insider quipped.
"Within the next few weeks, a special few people will know exactly how 7de Laan will eventually conclude."
