Jenna Bass’ feature film debut "Love the One You Love" makes its North American theatrical premiere today, in New York City, at the Spectacle Theater in Brooklyn.

In brief, the Cape Town South Africa set drama follows parallel stories including a sex-line operator, a dog handler, and an IT technician who begin to suspect that their romantic relationships are the subject of a bizarre conspiracy, involving their friends, family, and possibly even greater forces.

Exploring themes of love, happiness, across a *new* South Africa, Bass’ marvelous feature film debut comes a few years after her first short film, “The Tunnel” (covered on this blog) – a product of Focus Features’ now-defunct Africa First program, which screened at top international festivals like Sundance and Berlin. The observant “Love the One You Love" made its world premiere at the Durban Film Festival during the summer of 2014, where it won multiple awards, including Best Actress, Best Direction and Best South African Feature Film.

Chiedza Mhende, Mzu Ntantiso, Andile Nebulane, Nelson Das Neves, Francis Chouler star in the feature.

Programmed by filmmaker Frances Bodomo and Steve Macfarlane, playdates for the film at the Spectacle Theater in Brooklyn, follow:

– Thusrday, March 3 – 7:30 PM
– Sunday, March 13 – 5 PM
– Friday, March 18 – 7:30 PM
– Wednesday, March 23 – 10 PM
– Wednesday, March 30 – 10 PM

Watch the trailer below, and visit the Spectacle Theater’s website here for more info.