08 / INDUSTRY SNAPSHOT
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INDUSTRY SNAPSHOT ON
CORONAVIRUS
In a special Industry Snapshot, we look at how the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has affected and continues to impact the film industry in Africa and across the world.
and the Commercial Producers Association has called for crew to assist producers in finding a solution to these issues. That said, there are production houses who are have ‘business as usual’ plastered on their doors. Although internationals cannot
COVID-19 IN NUMBERS
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I
t started as a trickle in December. We heard rumours of Sony, Universal, Netflix and others halting productions and closing offices, of international festivals being postponed or cancelled. But Africa only began to feel the real effects of the COVID-19 pandemic less than a month ago. On 27 March 2020, as the coronavirus victim
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count in SA started to grow exponentially day by day, President Cyril Ramaphosa enforced a nationwide lockdown for 21 days. This has resulted in businesses going bankrupt, commercial and film service work being postponed or lost completely, and has generally forced us to think very carefully about the high-contact group sport we call filmmaking and whether this is a new normal to adapt to like the power shortages or the water crises our country has faced in the past.
INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL COUNT
One of the first major festivals to fall was SXSW, which was cancelled in early March just days ahead of its launch. This was followed by MIPTV moving to a completely online format amidst France’s clampdown on the pandemic spread. This has also meant that Cannes Film Festival
will no longer be taking place in May, nor will Cannes Lions in June. Locally the pandemic has already affected the Cape Town International Animation Festival which has moved its event to 2021, while local independent filmmakers like Motion City Films’ Boni&Wes have been hosting exclusive online premieres in the wake of cinema shutdowns. Most government bodies and local associations have expressed their support of the industry during this trying time. This includes but is not limited to Wesgro, who has launched a COVID-19 support initiative (read more further in this magazine), the Documentary Filmmakers Association, the Independent Producers Organisation, the South African Guild of Actors, and many others. The commercial industry has reported several cancelled jobs,
On 31 December 2019, the World Health Organisation (WHO) reported a cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan City, China. ‘Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2’ (SARSCoV-2) was confirmed as the causative agent of what we now know as ‘Coronavirus Disease 2019’ (COVID-19). Since then, the virus has spread to more than 100 countries, including South Africa. As of 1 April 2020, South Africa has: • Conducted 44 202 tests for coronavirus • Identified 1 380 positive cases • Seen 31 recoveries • Reported 5 deaths For daily updated stats and numbers, visit www.sacoronavirus.co.za Emergency Hotline in SA: 0800 029 999 WhatsApp Support: 0600 123 456
