Filming starts on season 6 of Primedia Studios and Homebrew Films' MasterChef SA for e.tv as Filmscape's LED Volume adds a virtual tasting expansion

by Thinus Ferreira

South Africa's MasterChef SA contestants for the upcoming 6th season on e.tv from 22 February will suddenly find themselves at the Eiffel Tower in Paris, among golden hay bales on a farm, as well as Nelson Mandela's statue at Sandton Square - all without having ever left Atlantic Studios in Cape Town.

Filming of Primedia Studios' 6th season of MasterChef SA, done by Homebrew Films at Atlantic Studios in Cape Town, has started and for the first time in the history of the South African reality cooking competition series, a virtual video wall is being incorporated as an additional environment besides the MasterChef SA kitchen.

To seamlessly immerse the MasterChef SA contestants into other realms, the Banijay-format show is making use of Filmscape's revolutionary LED Volume - Africa's first - in Milnerton. 

For certain tasting and judging segments, the contestants and MasterChef SA judges will leave the MasterChef SA kitchen and walk a stone's throw distance to the curvature of the massive "in vision" wall that will display a backdrop of Paris, a yellow farm field, as well as Johannesburg's Sandton precinct.

Cutting down on costs for on-location shoots, while being able to control the lighting and removing any hindrances like wind, Homebrew Films is able to bake and make MasterChef SA scenes for the 6th season on e.tv to perfection - crafting scenes that look like they're set outdoors with an Instagram-reel feel.

Charl Marais, Filmscape general manager, told TVwithThinus during a MasterChef SA set visit last week, that the LED Volume suddenly opened up more possibilities for the show in terms of what's possible, similar to all of the other productions that have started to embrace the technology, the studio space and the LED Volume over the past three years.

"It's extremely time-effective and cost-effective, so it increases productivity. Producers and directors get more done, faster, and also more precisely since they're in even more control over even more environmental factors when placing scenes within the LED Volume".

Although done far down at the bottom end of Africa, Banijay had absolutely no qualms about Homebrew Films incorporating a virtual environment for the new MasterChef SA season after the idea of using the LED Volume was pitched.

With Primedia Studios and Homebrew Films' proven track record of rekindling MasterChef SA for a 4th season on M-Net in 2022, followed by a 5th season for SABC3, the South African version will again take a kitchen leap forward by adding virtual video wall backdrops for the 6th season.

"The setup and turnaround time is very quick, the contestants, judges and guests remain contained without having to be transported away from studio, and get to play, compete and taste in beautiful additional environments," Charl Marais explains.

Filming of the 6th season of MasterChef SA will be completed in mid-December with the new season of 26 episodes that will start on e.tv on Sunday, 22 February 2026, in the plum timeslot of 18:00.

All three MasterChef SA judges - Zola Nene, Justine Drake and chef Katlego Mlambo - are back for the 6th season.

Justine Drake told TVwithThinus "the MasterChef SA contestants this season are definitely quite good cooks".

"They've also improved at a very rapid rate. The new season is more 'contestant-forward' if that's a word. It relies more on them and they're delivering - a lot of different characters: A lot of colours and cultures."

Zola Nene said "What's evident this year is definitely an elevated level of creativity - the ideas that they come up with are very outside the box. Some of their ideas seem TikTok inspired, so the level of creativity is evident".

Katlego Mlambo said "this is my second season and together with Justine and Zola we're an amazing trifecta together in looking at what the contestants come up with and are trying to surprise us with and us judging what they plate for us".

About the contestants, he says "I think food has evolved so much the last seven years. It's much more of a culture now - making food is quite a 'dreamy' job to have, so your Instagrams, your TikToks, your Facebooks: Everyone's a content creator now and everyone's a food content creator".

"Mzansi food has grown so much because we are doing all of the European trends, and all of the American trends, but we are also adding a Mzansi South African flavour to it".

Justine Drake is also back as MasterChef SA judge for the 5th season on SABC3.

by Thinus Ferreira

Justine Drake is also returning as a judge for the new 5th season of MasterChef South Africa on SABC3.

Justine Drake who was a judge on the 4th season of MasterChef SA and the editor of Pick n Pay's Fresh Living magazine, joins the already-announced Zola Nene who was also a judge in 2022.

Homebrew Films is responsible for production and is testing a string of tricky challenges the chosen homecook contestants will have to prepare in limited time using ingredients from the Pick n Pay pantry with the retailer which is also back in the latest season of the Banijay format cooking competition show secured for SABC3 by Primedia Studios.

South African contestants have until the end of the day on 15 March to enter with the season that will be shown on SABC3 from mid-June.

"The aim of the show is to allow home cooks to achieve their MasterChef status," says Justine. "However it doesn't arrive on a silver platter. The participants are put to the test in gruelling challenges, and to reach the top of the culinary ladder, they have to be disciplined and willing to learn."

She really wants people who think they can do it, to enter at masterchefsa.tv . "If you have a culinary vision and are ready to work hard to achieve your culinary dream, the world is your oyster with this show."

Andrew Mills, Pick n Pay chief marketing officer, says "The role of MasterChef judge fits Justine, an esteemed foodie, like a stylish kitchen glove".

"For many years, she has helped our customers serve up delicious dishes through the Fresh Living publication and, as a judge in 2022, demonstrated an authentic connection with people from diverse backgrounds and different food cultures. She is also a hard taskmaster who always strives for excellence."

ALSO READ: Zola Nene back as judge for 5th season of Primedia Studios and Homebrew Films' MasterChef SA on SABC3.

ALSO READ: Entries open for 5th season of MasterChef SA.

ALSO READ: Primedia Studios and Homebrew Films to plate 5th season of MasterChef SA for SABC3.

MasterChef SA S4 Day 2: Out for a duck.

by Thinus Ferreira

In the second episode of the 4th season of MasterChef SA on M-Net (DStv 101) it was instantly clear that MasterChef SA judge Gregory Czarnecki's duck dish would be the most difficult to get right out of the three judges' dishes - which led to contestant Mohammed getting axed.

In Tuesday evening's episode, the contestants were divided up between the three judges and had to prepare one of their dishes that revealed a bit about themselves, with judge Zola Nene that said they were looking forward "to tasting my memories through your cooking".

There was Gregory Czarnecki's "duck a la Orange" - a simple yet very difficult recipe to execute with the secret in the sauce - with duck fat confit potatoes and sultana pancakes.

Zola Nene's "isinkwa sombilla" had steamed mielie bread, cheese sausage and apple chutney that was made by her maternal grandmother.

Judge Justine Drake's dish was an Asian noodle broth of ramen, fragrant meat and vegetables.

Several of the contestants mentioned to the judges that they felt like failures when it came time to bring their dish to the judges' table.

Tasnim came close to tears, telling them that "It fell apart. It's really not what I wanted to put in front of you, I mean no disrespect."

She made Justine's noodle dish - and what a surprise: She got one of the highest scores and had nothing to be worried about.

Mohammed said "I feel angry and I feel embarrassed and I feel ashamed to bring something like this forward".

In the end Onezwa, Masedi and Mohammed rounded out the bottom three, with Mohammed who got sent home after Gregory said that his duck dish "didn't bring the emotion that I was looking for".

First time cooking duck

"Following on from the introductory episode and the challenge of preparing a starter, Tuesday's second episode is where the judges were introduced to DStv subscribers and the contestants," says content producer Errieda du Toit.

"Each of the three judges presented a definitive dish that says something about them. The contestants had to draw a card to see which dish they had to prepare, and they had to replicate it exactly."

"For most of them it was the first time eating duck, cooking duck - the daylights frightened out of them having to make duck a la Orange."

ALSO READ: MasterChef SA S4 Day 1: Spilling the tea inside the MasterChef cathedral.

MasterChef SA season 4 on M-Net: The judges are Justine Drake, Zola Nene and Gregory Czarnecki.

by Thinus Ferreira

The three new judges for the fourth season of MasterChef SA on M-Net (DStv 101) are the food editor Justine Drake as well as the local and international chefs Zola Nene and Gregory Czarnecki.

The fourth season of MasterChef SA, filmed at the V&A Waterfront's Makers Landing in Cape Town, where the kitchen for the contestants was constructed, will start on Monday 28 February at 18:00 and will this time run with daily episodes from Mondays to Thursdays, with the finale on Thursday 31 March in which the winner gets R1 million.

"We are focused on improving the gender balance in MasterChef judges worldwide. Over the last couple of years, we have increased the number of female judges and this is something we are continuing to improve upon," says Dave De Bie, format consultant at Banijay, the content producers who own the rights to the show.

"Out of 37 active markets, 26 now have female judges. We are delighted that MasterChef SA joins the likes of Israel, Norway and Brazil with two female experts on their panel."

Yolisa Phahle, MultiChoice CEO of general entertainment and connected video, says "We're very excited to have one of our most-loved shows – and toughest of reality competitions – returning to our screen after some time away",

"We have always had a rich crop of home chefs to choose from, but the pandemic has certainly created more, and this is the perfect time for MasterChef South Africa to make a comeback."

As the culinary masters whose palates and expertise will guide a new crop of contestants in the MasterChef SA kitchen, Gregory Czarnecki will bring the perspective of an international chef with Zola Nene and Justine Drake being the local experts.

Zola Nene's professional journey with food started in 2007 when she enrolled at the Institute of Culinary Arts in Stellenbosch.

She has since gone on to great success within the food industry and in television and authored two popular cookbooks – 2017's Simply Delicious and 2018's Simply Zola. She was also part of the judging panel for The Great South African Bake Off on BBC Lifestyle (DStv 174) in 2017.

Born in France to parents who were gourmands, Gregory Czarnecki was head chef at The Restaurant at Waterkloof and won the coveted Chef of the Year award from Eat Out in 2016. 

He served as a mentor for the prestigious S. Pellegrino Young Chef competition in Africa and the Middle East, and his French heritage is carried intelligently and creatively in his food.

Justine Drake is the launch editor of Pick n Pay's Fresh Living magazine. Having worked in food media since 1988, she has authored five cookbooks, is an experienced TV host and during the Covid-19 pandemic started hosting Just Cook at Home SA with Justine Drake on YouTube.

ALSO READ: M-Net’s MasterChef South Africa season 4 wraps filming at Cape Town's V&A Waterfront.

ALSO READ: M-Net revives MasterChef South Africa for a 4th season from February 2022 as comfort food television this time with Homebrew producing in Cape Town as a Covid-19 safe bubble production.

Coronavirus: Chef Justine Drake now YouTube cooks from her kitchen during the Covid-19 lockdown.

by Thinus Ferreira

Chef Justine Drake has taken to the interwebs and has started a new weekday video series, Just Cook at Home SA, from her own kitchen during South Africa's Covid-19 national lockdown period to bring people new healthy recipes.

Realising that preparing nutritious meals at home during the coronavirus lockdown can be quite challenging, Justine Drake who is the Fresh Living magazine editor is now making videos from her own kitchen, filmed by her patient husband Marc with no fancy TV crews.

The Monday to Friday videos are available on YouTube and also connect to the #justcookathomesa Facebook group and @justcookathomesa on Instagram, sharing tips, tricks and hacks among minimalist-savvy home cooks.

Justine already uploaded videos including recipes for tuna and olive pasta, coconut dhal and aloo gobi to YouTube, with more on the way.

"We're not changing the world, but I do hope that we can inspire and entertain people to cook healthy, affordable food with their pantry and freezer stocks," says Justine. "There'll also be loads of recipes using fresh vegetables – the farmers are still growing produce and the supermarkets are well stocked – let’s make the most of it."