Five South African productions have received International Emmy Award (iEmmy) nominations, the most ever for an African country in a single year. This positions SA third in the number of nominations, behind the United Kingdom and Brazil.
The five SA iEmmy nominees include:
- Catch Me a Killer (Showmax) – best performance by an actress for Charlotte Hope.
- Chasing the Sun 2 (SuperSport) – sports documentary.
- Koek (Showmax) – drama series.
- School Ties (M-Net) – documentary.
- Play Room Live (Play Room children’s channel, DStv Channel 300) – kids: factual and entertainment.
Notably, four of the nominees (Catch Me a Killer, Chasing the Sun 2, Koek, and School Ties) are MultiChoice productions. This brings the company’s total iEmmy nominations to eleven in the past eight years and marks the fourth consecutive year that a production has been recognised.
Adapted from Pistorius’ memoir, the true-crime drama series is set in the mid-90s as the newly qualified forensic psychologist tries to prove to a largely sceptical, largely male police force that she can help profile and track down South Africa’s most feared killers, from the Station Strangler to Stewart “Boetie Boer” Wilken.
Produced by Kowalski Films, Night Train Media and Local Motion Pictures, the Showmax Original became the first SA series at Series Mania and won best production design for Warren Gray at the British Film Designers Guild Awards.
Sphere Abacus sold the series widely, including BritBox in North America, BBC First in Benelux and Poland, SBS in Australia, Alibi Channel in the UK, Mystery Channel in Japan, Cosmote TV in Greece, and Pickbox in Central and Eastern Europe.
Koek (drama)
When Cape Town housewife Christelle Smit discovers evidence her husband is having an affair with a stripper named Candi Floss, her investigation takes her to a world poles apart from the suburban utopia she knows. The Showmax Original is nominated for a drama series iEmmy.
The crime comedy stars Cindy Swanepoel as Christelle, with Sandra Prinsloo as the brandy-drinking, cigar-smoking, leopard-print loving, kidney-stealing mob boss she’s soon in debt to.
The show is created by Christiaan Olwagen, directed by Johannes Pieter Nel, and produced by Wolflight. It was the most awarded TV series at Silwerskerm in 2024.
Chasing the Sun 2 (sports documentary)
Chasing the Sun 2 offers fans front-row seats to the Springbok’s 2023 journey to their historic fourth Rugby World Cup victory, the most by any country ever. It is nominated in the sports documentary iEmmy category.
Siya Kolisi celebrates with The Webb Ellis Cup. Photo: DAN MULLAN, Getty Images.
The five-part documentary series features never-before-seen footage, interviews with more than 30 players and coaches, and all the highlights from the Springboks’ nail-biting journey from first-game defeat to winning the final.
Chasing the Sun 2 is directed and executive produced by Gareth Whittaker and produced by T+W for SuperSport, earning their second International Emmy nomination in three years after Two Sides (2023).
School Ties (documentary)
School Ties confronts the grooming and sexual abuse of learners in some of SA’s most prestigious boys’ schools. It is nominated in the iEmmy documentary category.
The M-Net series unravels the trauma endured by victims and the culture of silence that allows this to happen, and the responses of authorities, schools, and society at large.
The four-part documentary series is directed by Richard Finn Gregory and produced by local true-crime pioneers IdeaCandy (Tracking Thabo Bester, Devilsdorp, Rosemary’s Hitlist, Steinheist and the upcoming Unspoken War).
School Ties was nominated for best documentary at this year’s National Arts and Culture Awards.
MultiChoice at the iEmmys
The four MultiChoice nominations come as the company expands its global footprint under new parent company CANAL+.
MultiChoice Studios is managing international sales for Koek, School Ties, and Chasing the Sun 2, while Catch Me a Killer is represented internationally by Eccho Rights.
“We are incredibly proud of our content teams and producing partners, whose creativity, passion and commitment have earned MultiChoice a record four International Emmy nominations,” says Nomsa Philiso, director of content for general entertainment, English and Portuguese-speaking Africa at MultiChoice.
“These nominations mark a significant milestone for our industry – a moment where local stories, crafted with care and cultural depth, are being recognised on a global stage like never before.”
MultiChoice invested over R8-billion in local content in the 2025 financial year, more than half of its general entertainment spend. This funding produced 5,000 new hours of African storytelling, expanding its library to more than 90,000 hours.
In addition to the four MultiChoice productions nominated this year, DStv screened two other iEmmy contenders. Play Room Live, produced by Eclipse Television Productions for the Play Room channel (DStv Channel 300), is nominated in the Kids: Factual and Entertainment category, while Ludwig, which aired on BBC Brit (DStv Channel 120), is nominated for Best Comedy and Best Actor (David Mitchell).
Showmax is streaming previous MultiChoice nominees Die Brug (2024), Two Sides (2023), Reyka (double nominee in 2022), The River (2019) and Is’thunzi (2017 and 2018).
The iEmmy winners will be announced in New York City on 24 November 2025.