“VUT PhD graduate Dr. Mashaole Jacob Makwela uses animation to reclaim liberation struggle memories, transforming the Boipatong Massacre into powerful visuals.”
26 September 2025 | Story By: Nontobeko Moimane | Picture: Supplied
3 minutes read time.
The Vaal University of Technology (VUT) has once again demonstrated its ability to produce scholars whose work transcends the academic realm and touches the very soul of the nation. This time, it is through the remarkable journey of Dr Mashaole Jacob Makwela, who has turned the pain of South Africa’s past into animated stories of memory, resilience, and hope.
His doctoral study, “Reclaiming Liberation Struggle Memories in a Post-Apartheid South Africa in the Sedibeng District Municipality through Short Animated Films”, re-visits the 1992 Boipatong Massacre, an event etched into South Africa’s collective memory.
For Dr Makwela, this achievement is not just about the gown and the title. It is about healing, honouring those who came before, and using his craft to remind younger generations of a history that must never be forgotten. “I am still pinching myself because I never thought I would complete a PhD,” he admits. “But it feels great, not for the academic status, but for the person I have become in critical thinking and visual arts, particularly in cartoons and animation.”
From sketching heroes to preserving history
His love for visual storytelling began as a young schoolboy in 1992, sketching figures like Nelson Mandela and Frederik de Klerk in the margins of his notebooks. Those sketches, innocent at the time, would later become the seeds of a career that merged creativity with conscience. At VUT, as a Fine Arts student, his world expanded when animation was introduced during orientation week. A fascination quickly grew into a life’s calling to use animation not just for entertainment, but as a powerful archive of memory.
A film born out of pain and resilience
His animated short film, Body of Massacre (2023), is both haunting and healing. It took four years of research and production, involving painful engagement with archival footage, survivor testimonies, and raw community memories. At times, psychologists had to be brought in, underscoring the emotional toll of the work. “It was disturbing, but necessary,” he reflects. “Animation allowed me to represent trauma figuratively, making it accessible without overwhelming audiences.”
History, memory, and care
For Dr Makwela, animation is more than technique, it is a bridge between unbearable truth and necessary remembrance. “If younger generations are not exposed to these histories in a way they can engage with, we risk forgetting. And as Karl Marx warned, history repeats itself,” he cautions. With careful balance, he has used Rosenstone’s ideas of “true” and “false inventions” to ensure that even figurative representations remain ethically grounded.
Looking ahead
He dreams of expanding this work into a series of short films that explore the Boipatong Massacre from multiple perspectives: survivors, perpetrators, police officers, and community members. In doing so, he hopes to build a research niche within VUT’s Department of Visual Arts and Design that reclaims liberation history through animation.
A message for the next generation
His voice carries both urgency and hope when speaking to young African artists: “It is our duty as African artists to interrogate truth, memory, and healing from a Pan-African point of view. Through new media, we can help communities reconcile, remember, and preserve our collective identity.”
In the end, Dr Makwela’s PhD is more than an academic milestone. It is a gift to South Africa’s memory, a tribute to those whose lives were lost, and a reminder that the past only heals when it is remembered with care.