Naman Shrestha
Created by Rethabile Ramaphakela and Katleho Ramaphakela, Netflix’s ‘Miseducation’ is a South African coming-of-age comedy series that follows a young teenage influencer Mbali Hadebe who gets canceled after the truth about her mother’s corrupt political dealings come to light. In an attempt to start afresh and reinvent herself, she heads to Makhanda and gets admission to Grahamstown University. Mbali goes all out to succeed in her reinvention mission as she resorts to various tactics — driving the campus cab, featuring on the popular campus gossip show called The Spill by Raeesah, and running an SRC campaign. It is her new misfit squad, Jay and Natalie, who inspire her to get back to the top where she thinks she belongs.
As for the SRC campaign, Mbali decided to run, it is inspired by campus rowing champion, Sivu Levine. Featuring hilarious and compelling onscreen performances from several talented young actors, including Buntu Petse, Lunga Shabalala, Baby Cele, Prev Reddy, and Mpho Sebeng, the teen drama series unfolds mainly in Makhanda as Mbali explores the town and forms new connections to regain her social status. Viewers might wonder about the show’s filming locations and whether it’s based on real-life events, given its interesting settings and realistic subject matter.
Miseducation Filming Locations
‘Miseducation’ is filmed in its entirety in South Africa, particularly in and around Makhanda. Since the story is based in South Africa, the production team decided to shoot the show on location in the Republic of South Africa. Now, without wasting any time, let’s navigate all the specific locations that appear while the protagonist navigates life in her new university in the Netflix series!
Makhanda, South Africa
Given the fact that the series takes place in Makhanda, the filming unit sets up camp in the town and lenses most of the pivotal sequences on location. Also known as Grahamstown, Makhanda is located in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa and its versatile landscape turns into a film set for ‘Miseducation.’
In particular, the various aerial and exterior shots of the town feature a number of local landmarks and attractions, including St. Michael and St. George Cathedral, Fort Selwyn, Rhodes University, Dutch Reformed Church, and St. Andrew’s College. Furthermore, a few important portions are recorded in the open waters as well, for which the cast and crew seemingly travel out of the town.
Miseducation is an Original Screenplay
Katleho and Rethabile Ramaphakela are the creators responsible for the conceiving of the story, while other screenwriters — Lwazi Mvusi, Sunni Faba-Gutu, Brad Katzen, Mojak Lehoko, and Tumi Morake — play a vital role in coming up with the engaging yet seemingly realistic screenplay for the Netflix series. Many people, in real life, find it difficult to settle into their new life with new people at a new school or college, even after trying their best to fit in.
With the focus on various themes, such as identity, redemption, and a fresh start, which are ever so prevalent in the real world, most of the viewers are likely to feel some relatability and connection to the storyline, making them wonder if it is true-to-life or not. Meanwhile, some of you might find these themes a bit too familiar because they have been explored in many other movies and TV shows over the years, such as ‘Never Have I Ever,’ ‘Atypical,’ ‘Young Sheldon,’ ‘Derry Girls,’ and many others.
One of the aptest examples has to be that of the Netflix series ‘Sex Education.’ Created by Laurie Nunn, the British teen comedy series also follows the lives of the students, staff, and parents of a fictional institution as all the characters grow through the hardships they deal with each season. So, keeping in mind all the above-mentioned factors, we can conclude that even though it consists of some realistic themes and elements, ‘Miseducation’ is not a tale rooted in reality!
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