Central SA
Senekal to be turned into a filmmaking hub─── ZENANDE MPAME 12:24 Thu, 15 May 2025
The Eastern Free State town of Senekal will be turned into a filmmaking hub by a film director and producer from Cape Town.
The Free State town, whose residents have worked had to fill potholes and clean up its streets, will be transformed by Frans Cronje, who grew up in the Free State but built a film career in Cape Town.
In addition to converting an old grain mill and silos into a film studio, Cronje intends to build a hundred hotel rooms on the property to accommodate the team during filming. “I moved to Senekal four years ago and I figured if I could take my next movie, which is a Gladiator story, to a small town and not just make the movie there,” said Cronje, brother of the late cricket player Hansie Cronje.
“But a film industry that does not exist in our area could have a significant impact on the economy of not just the town but the region.” We were fortunate enough to have purchased the old Sasko mill and silos, a massive property.”
He and his partners have subdivided it in half. “The first is a sunflower oil press, and on the other side of the property, I’ve got 10,000 m² under roof and I’m busy converting that into a film studio.”
The first film to be produced in the studio, which will be called New Road Studio, is a big-budget gladiator movie set in ancient Rome, chosen both for its appeal and its positive message. The project marks the first step to turn the town into a production hub for Christian-themed films, he said.
Biznews reports the studio will be set up in such a way that it’s a self-sustainable studio, all the crew necessary will be in Senekal, and the studio will have all the equipment. It will have advanced technology that “allows us to literally film Moscow on one day in New York on the other day inside the studio”.
“As a councillor, I am truly excited about Frans Cronje’s plans to establish a world-class filmmaking hub right here in the Setsotso Local Municipality area,” said Cllr Riëtte Dell. “Senekal is ideally located, it’s got a strong community, and it’s got great potential.
“This project could bring much-needed jobs, skills development, and international attention to our beautiful Free State town. I think it’s a bold investment in local talent, and I believe it deserves our full support,” she said.
