Some creative works remain intellectually frozen in one specific art form, whilst others morph. Masculus – The Male Domain, a seven-kilogram photographic coffee-table publication on men and their interiors, created by photographic director and author Leoni Smit, became one of those rare works that refused to stay bound. Its evocative images and intimate atmospheric worlds with the very unique subject matter, men and their interiors, would later inspire kykNET to base a Television series on its content – Tussen Mure, airing every Sunday at 17:30 on DStv 144, with episodes also available on DStv Stream and Catch Up. Brought to screen with the support of iFX Brokers. The Series explores the private spaces of these South African men from Masculus – The Male Domain — and the unique stories their spaces tell.
Supplied – Film Scroll
Behind this project are two women whose disciplines meet at the intersection of stillness and movement: Leoni Smit, the book’s creator, and Elmi De Pauw, the director responsible for translating its emotional world into television.
Supplied – Leoni Smit
Supplied – Elmi De Pauw
The stillness that started it all
Leoni Smit’s creative path is defined by an instinctive understanding of atmosphere — the kind of stillness in which rooms reveal their own quiet truths. Her career spans multiple disciplines: she has worked as a trend forecaster for international shoots, contributed conceptual art to television, shaped makeover-format storytelling, and earned an ATKV Veertjie Award nomination for Investigative Journalism. Her interiors have been showcased on the front cover of Marie Claire Italia and featured in the celebrated French magazine Maisons Côté Sud, affirming her distinctive eye and deeply intuitive approach to design.
Smit previously owned two internationally recognised shoot locations — Mudhouse and Runaway Royalty — which became creative homes for global fashion, stills and advertising teams. Alongside photographer Yvette Jordaan and graphic designer Sirette Hare, she created Masculus – The Male Domain, a conceptual coffee-table book exploring how men express identity through space. In the television adaptation of the book, she brings the same contemplative tone as scriptwriter and co-presenter, giving voice to the textures, rhythms and emotional nuances that define each home viewers encounter.
Supplied – Masculus – The Male Domain
A director who brings ideas to life
Where Leoni is meditative – still frozen in time, Elmi is dynamic. A director with more than two decades’ experience, she has created, scripted, and produced dozens of television programmes across genres, from children’s educational content to lifestyle formats and reality series. Her work has been nominated for SAFTAs, recognised by the International Emmys, and produced for global distribution.
Supplied – Tussen Mure Clapperboard
After co-owning the iconic production company Hi Mom, Elmi founded Walla Films in 2019 and, in 2024, co-established Khelgejo Media, a company focused on developing strong African content for local and global distribution. Her strength lies in transforming a conceptual spark into a fully realised series — understanding editorial rhythm, visual narrative and the emotional beats that hold a viewer’s attention.
With Tussen Mure, Elmi’s challenge was taking a book built on stillness and turning it into a television experience that preserved its intimacy. Rather than staging or stylising the homes, she approached them with sensitivity, allowing each environment to breathe and stand as an authentic reflection of the people who live there. Her direction bridges the gap between the quiet honesty of Leoni’s photographs and the immediacy of the moving image.
Supplied – TV Show – Behind-the-Scenes
A partnership built on contrast and complement
Together, Leoni and Elmi form a rare creative partnership. Leoni brings the contemplative discipline of photography; Elmi brings the narrative dynamism of film. One recognises the emotional weight of an object; the other understands how that object exists in time and motion. Both women share an instinct for truthful storytelling.
Supplied – iFX Brokers
Their collaboration also reflects a quiet shift in a genre historically shaped by male voices. Here, two women lead the creation of a visually-rich interiors series, offering a perspective grounded not in trend or artifice, but in empathy and curiosity.
The power of unexpected support
The involvement of iFX Brokers adds another distinct layer to the story. As a financial services brand, their investment in a culturally rooted lifestyle series is unusual — and meaningful. Their support enabled the project to grow from a book into a polished broadcast offering, affirming that stories about identity, home and emotional space matter just as much as those about finance and industry.
Between the walls
Ultimately, Tussen Mure – Masculus is not simply a show about décor. It is a Series about the emotional architecture of the homes of South African men — how men collect, arrange, build, refine, and ultimately reveal themselves through the places they inhabit.
Guided by the stillness of Leoni’s eye and the movement of Elmi’s lens, Tussen Mure offers viewers a rare invitation: to look beyond aesthetics and see the stories that live quietly between the walls.
Featured Image: Supplied – Tussen Mure Behind the Scenes
