Link in bio)🔥 RESULTS - Best in Craft March 2026 🔥
Judge’s comment on DIRECTION:
“It all comes together beautifully in this ad that depicts the African energy and passion for football. Every frame feels intentional from performance, camera movement, pacing and a warm tone, all orchestrated toward delivering what it feels like to be an EPL supporter in Africa. The director shows restraint and confidence, allowing moments to breathe while guiding the viewer with precise visual composition and rhythm, creating a cohesive world that feels both cinematic and conceptually lekker.”
– Sibs Zihle, Creative Director at Ogilvy South Africa
Judge’s comment on DIRECTION:
“A chicken standing on a football. That’s all it takes to make a memorable moment.
This genre is always difficult to get right, and few manage it with this level of assurance. The right amount of reality mixed with scripted moments, the right VO, the right music, all directed and shot beautifully. It’s what makes this piece stand out from the rest. What elevates this beyond a well-crafted brand film is its genuine cultural empathy. These aren’t fans being observed from the outside, they’re being celebrated from within. That understanding comes through in every frame.
Shooting on a blend of 16mm analogue and digital is a bold choice and gives the film a warmth that feels earned rather than applied. The direction never tips into the overwrought. The result is emotionally true and visually assured. Matchday, wherever you are, deserves a Lovely Day. This film makes you feel exactly that.”
– Bruno Bossi, Director at Carbon Films
Back in Shkoder..
Finally the legs were back to normal and it was time to reach back into the training peaks sessions Steve laid out for me. It really is the best way to see the city. I decided to run out of the tourist centre and head into the more local streets. It was about 32 degrees and already scorching and I was definitely the only person doing any form of “exercise” outside at least 😂
Again reinforcing the ease in which the culture moves here and the community they hold. Coffee shops filled with people having their morning espresso’s, tall glasses of cold water and cigarettes. Garage doors open with shop owners ready, sitting on there plastic crates chatting to the ouma or oupa. People cruising slowly on their bikes to where ever the day leads them. No rush in the slightest anywhere. A complete feeling of flow 🍀 This reminds me of the more rural towns of South Africa. Slow, beautiful community based living 💫
I’m Not sure if I’ve spoken about the cars. Old school Uber stylish trucks, vans and cars, almost always Mercedes. It Really feels like you have gone back in time and I’m here for it all!
Another smooth bus ride and we were now picking our rental car for the South of Albania. I must be honest I was nervous for this part of the trip. The stress of driving on the opposite side of the road and having to figure it out rather than having a local do all that for you. Parking could be an issue and ultimately how in gods name could this trip get any better?
The first turn the gps led us too, straight out of the airport, was a dead end and then we missed the off ramp to the high way so we started strong 😂 but all was not lost and we quickly made a come back and were well on our way. We were clearly not in the north anymore I was feeling a little nervous. High rise apartment buildings and zooming fancy cars.. hmmmm had I made a mistake? Well we will soon find out 🥸
1.5hrs later, tunes on, heart light and driving like a local we started seeing hills and hills of olive tree’s, the roads narrowed and we were in farm land. Yaaaassssssss pls, this is more like it 🥰
TBC on the next post..
Listen I know it’s romantic and the grass is always greener but it’s a reminder as to what’s important and that getting closer to this way of being is what I believe will bring about greater purpose and contentment. Also, the importance of stepping out of your spiral and getting perspective.
Okay enough dreaming, back down the rocky road to the centre to jump on our bus to Shkoder. A wonderful way to end things, walking rather than driving, slowly adjusting from one to the next.
The drives through the alps are next level epic, as you can imagine from the hike we just did. The roads right hair pin bends but somehow with a toot of a horn every just works around each other without colliding or going off the edge. Again the community of the Albanians shines bright. They driver gets a call, puts the phone down, says to me, “these seats are reserved” I was in the front. I move to the back and 5 mins later we waved down and stopped in the middle of the road and an elderly couple jump out. The other young drivers thanks ours and the couple get in. Free of charge. This happened over the course of the drive in different ways, no one paid but everyone helped everyone get to where they needed to be with a little help from these drivers. Making everyone’s journey just that little bit easier ✨✨✨
THIS IS IT!
Day 6: Theth to Shkoder
Uhhhh waking up on holiday in a different country just doesn’t get old does it? The trickling of water from the spring, the silence of nature and the wondering how far the sun is down the mountain illuminating its every detail as it travels down to the valley. I walk around the property taking it all in before breakfast. The cool Morning air like a comforting sensory blanket waking me up 🥰
Breaky is simple and all you need but today we were surprised with Albanian Doughnuts with their honey. They are basically small Vet Koek and are fucking delicious 🤤
The old man appears, big smile on his face, a collared shirt today and an a cigarette of course. He cruises down to check on his bee’s, greats us warmly, as always and heads to the kitchen. Out he comes with a blue bucket of fresh baked ciabatta bread and off he goes ⚡️
This is my idea of romantic living. Living with what you have, with your whole extended family, neighbours and most importantly in nature. Walking barefoot on the wet grass looking at the mountain immediately humbling you, everyday. The smell of fresh dung in the morning with the gentle sounds of bells in the distance. The sound of foreign accents waking up and the prospect of what’s to come, the unknown and unfamiliar ❤️
Dinner was a little different this evening. Before, we went for a walk around the garden to inspect what was growing. Corn, potatoes, zucchini, cucumbers. In the grow house. Tomatoes, peppers and beans. The old man came sauntering over smiling and began to try chat with us. A few things were exchanged through the language barrier and when he heard we were South African he gave me a huge slap of the hand as you would a chom and this warmed my heart deeply! Connecting through body language and big smiles. This I live for ✨❤️✨
Dinner was Still next level delicious with lamb and sides to die for with the mountain holding us changing from hard to soft as the sun dipped and the heat was replaced with an evening glow of cool air. The patriarch himself came around after our meal and served us home made Raki with his big warm smile, socks, sandals, suit pants and white vest that he had been tinkering around in the whole day, and by tinkering I mean rebuilding the deck sides we were currently sitting on.
I had seen him standing next to the spring water fountain with a very small glass much earlier that day / I thought water but perhaps it was Raki. Legend 💪
This man would have lived through the war and communist era. He is most definitely one hardcore mother fucker with stories I can only wish to be lucky enough to hear ❤️ and learn from!
I must admit even I wasn’t quite aware that we were going to be heading up another mountain in the peak day heat but of course, it is always worth it 💪
After perusing the “city sights” and being made very aware that although our accom was 40 minute walk down hill from the centre is was indeed the right choice. The “centre” is just a restaurant and small shop where all the taxi’s and vans drop and fetch and the rest is guest houses for the million travellers doing the hikes. Music blaring, very little shade and we were more than STOKED with our beloved and aunthentic homey Accomodation!
We walked along the icey river guiding us to the apparent waterfall. Breaking away from it up through the tree’s passing wooden and stone homes that were something out of medieval times. The one spot over looking the valley had these beautiful traditional mountain tea setups that lured you in. But, we were on a mission, ice cold water, body in it was all I wanted!
Up and up! Now my dad is fairly fearful of heights and I must take a moment to acknowledge this and with very little to no hesitance he pushed through, every time. A huge example to me and others that it’s never too late, you are stronger than you think and JUST FUCKING DO IT!!
The reward was two fold with the most magnificent waterfall and the healing ice cold water we got to swim in. There were a fair amount of others but with more of enough space it didn’t really bother us. Also influencers in the wild and very entertaining to watch ❤️😂
TBC on the next post..
Day 5: Theth Centre and Waterfall
A slow wake up at our new “home”. Silent, gentle and relaxed. I convinced my dad to join me for Yin on the grass under the mountain and this was a blessing. Stretching out the tightness from the day before and easing the mind further into relaxation and out of fight, flight and freeze. The Nervous system is slowly recalibrating day by day ✨💫✨
The plan was a chilled exploration of the “centre”, the church and maybe the waterfall. Perhaps a little lie from my side to get the father to come along but 4.5hrs later we had traversed another mountain 😂
TBC on the next post…
We were now very much in the alps with the peaks growing taller and steeper and the green grass below lush with the crystal blue river running through each village.
Driver stops, looks at me, says the name of the Accomodation and points up a dirt side road. Here we go again. Dropped off in the middle of nowhere in the heat with only hope that we were close to where we needed to be 🤞
The first few steps and I was a little concerned but looking up at the absolutely majestic panoramics ahead of us my smidge of concern melted away like snow water off the mountain and we pitter pattered away up the gravel road. A mere 950m and there she appeared. Our beautiful Accomodation, at the literal base of the Albanian alps 🥰
Lucky again and with a warm welcome, a fresh room and the always delicious Albanian food we were fully relaxed and in awe of the landscape around us ✨✨
A fresh shower and I dragged my corpse into a soft Vetsak like cushion on the grass outside. With the mountain as my view I zoned out into the absolute bliss this was 💫💫💫
Tomorrow, we climb!
The water was this soft but clear green and we were surrounded by canyon cliffs flanking us left and right. It didn’t take long and we were gliding through the water with the ever changing landscapes. Low green hills turned into white crusted cliffs and finally into what revealed the Albanian Alps. Absolute Magic ✨
The one massive downfall was the amount of plastic and litter there was floating on the surface of the water 🫣🤯🥲This wasn’t the case at the beginning but the further up the lake we travelled the more prevalent it became until, in some sections, it looked like a top layer to the water. This was devastating and took away from the experience completely 😡😓
3 hrs was long enough and the butt was ready for its next seat on another van. Smooth like always, one word with a hand gesture and I was in another comfy van 🍀
TBC on the next post…
Day 3: Shkoder - Valbona
REWIND - I got over excited and skipped one of my favourite parts of the trip 😂🤭
READY to finally get into the mountains we were up at 6am packed and ready to go. Our accommodation was happy to keep majority of our luggage as we were to return to the same place 3 days later. This meant we just had a small back pack each with what we needed, very little 💪
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect but I knew there was a boat ride involved that I had done some research on and it looked sensational. I was unsure about how busy it was going to be and if we were going to be sitting in 37 degree sun for three hours. Time would tell!
Onto the bus with a bunch of young tourists and we started making our way into the mountains for the first time. Slow and windy rather than steady as these chaps knew how to handle their vehicles but, it was too close for comfort at the best to times 🫣 half way there and we stopped at one of the always quite beautiful road side Kafe’s which had a toilet, coffee, chips and drinks. Here we were met with 3 other vans which made me feel this could get a wee bit chaotic. Back in we got and 45 minutes later we pulled over in what seemed like the middle of nowhere.
A tunnel in front of us and a, “walk that way, 5 minutes”. A couple side glances and we all climbed out the bus and made our way through the tunnel, Dad wasn’t the most comfortable but we kept the pace as I assumed first come first serve. After about 5 minutes of walking through a tunnel about 10m wide and 5m high the light appeared and slowly white light turned to glistening luminous blue / green with a beautiful line of hand crafted wooden boats of different shapes, sizes and colours. It takes your breath away and I stopped in awe for a second, that was quickly stopped by multiple men calling the name of their boats out. Fumbling for my ticket I found the name and the boat very easily and was pleasantly surprised with a covered lower deck area and comfy seats. It also didn’t get too packed and we were quickly acquainted by two lovely Australian ladies which made for a social ride👌
TBC on the next post…
The climb was EPIC 🍀You had to put your head down in parts but absolutely doable and the ever changing panaramic views are absolutely worth it.
Eventually we reached the saddle which is where you start the descent into tethe. While my dad took a bit of a break I scurried up to the peak to get a full 360 view and it was absolutely spectacular 💫 Peaked mountains surrounding you in all directions. The immense joy your can feel in these moments, pfffffffft, so simple ✨
Nature and movement is the recipe, ALWAYS!
The climb down was beautiful too but the hoards started coming. Hundreds of people doing the hike the opposite way. This is fine but not what I prefer, so I was very stoked we had decided to do it the way we did. There is also a lot of loose rock which is tricky to navigate and after 10am the heat cranks up a couple solid notch’s. So if you are to do this trail I highly recommend starting early and to do Valbone to Theth and not the other way around!
After a 3.5 hour descent we saw the sign for our Accomodation, another 27 mins. The sun klopping and us ready to be done, we smashed some water and some shnacks and put our heads down. Well, for a second because the monumental mountain was too epic not to marvel at whilst dragging your body along the path 🥵Funnily enough I do believe this could have been the hardest part of the trail 😅
When we arrived we were greeted by a beautifully warm Albanian woman and her family. A farmstead, authentic, comfortable and homely. Just what the doctor ordered ❤️
Our host wasn’t able to offer us lunch but a quick call to the neighbour and we were very slowly walking to finding some lunch. A super friendly couple invited us in as if we were guests serving us ice cold beer and the best soup I have ever eaten, honestly!
The community feel the Albanian culture is giving me is palpable and a brilliant reminder of how we have lost so much of our natural human connection. More of the Albanian way please ❤️
So much more to say but for now we are two accomplished, happy and full travellers about to have an afternoon nap 😴🥰
The initial summit wasn’t gradual and we pitter pattered our way winding up the mountain through the trees until I heard a bell. A cow or perhaps a horse… and there she was a beautiful mare, attached to an even more beautiful Kafe.
The Albanians take such pride in the things they create and from what I’ve seen they use all their surrounding natural materials to create these very unique and beautifully crafted spaces. Hand crafted long tables with matching benches made of logs. A leafed out roof creating shade and a ginormous tin pot with ice cold fresh spring water flowing into it for refilling. Last but not least they had a carved out log with fresh drinks and beers with spring water flowing through it keeping them cold 🤩
A handsome middle age man stood at the wooden bar with coffee mugs lined up. “Kafe” he asked. Absolutely yes, traditional please. This is a Turkish coffee which is like a moer coffee and it is like a kick in the butt and just what we needed. While we sat and enjoyed, the old man who had passed us appeared behind the bar and sat with what seemed like his son for their morning espresso. This made me smile and also admire the sense of ritual and connection✨
Off we went with a little more hop in our step and the mountains just kept growing, getting more detailed and the climbs more brutal. My dad and I were very in sync but also far enough away mostly to just zone into our own journey and reason for being here, checking in every now and again!
The path continued climbing through the lush green scattered with pink and yellow wild flowers. “Oi, South Africa” we hear echoe’ing down the pass. The two Aussies we had met the day before were just above us. A welcome surprise. I love not having any others on the path and is why we left early but a couple friendly faces and a bit of banter is always welcome 👌
TBC on the next post…
