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CCESSORIES A & S A R E M A C MEDIA ASSET MANAGEMENT BROADCAST, FILM, TV, COMMERCIALS, NEW MEDIA & TECHNOLOGY NEWS
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| IN THIS ISSUE
19 THE SEOUL CONNECTION
22
25
MINERS SHOT DOWN: BUSINESS AS USUAL?
23
MEDICAL DOCUMENTARY SHARES AN AWAKENING DISCOVERY
28
BIG FISH STUDENTS EXCEL WITH POWERFUL DOCUMENTARIES
THE CHANGING FACE OF THE CAMERA INDUSTRY?
SPECIAL FEATURES CAMERAS & ACCESSORIES
FILM
BOX OFFICE
Made in Jo’burg: The Fastest Film Ever ....................... 18 The Seoul Connection ..................... 19 SA heist thriller a class act .............. 20
The diverse sounds of the highest SA box office earners ........ 41
The changing face of the camera industry? ................................ 28 Sony goes ‘Beyond Definition’ ........ 30 Two exciting new products in Cine Photo Tools’ inventory ....... 30 Visual Impact drives SA reality production ........................................... 31 Panasonic debuts new 4K camera .................................. 32 Telemedia offers top range Hitachi broadcast cameras .............. 32 3,2,1 Action! ........................................ 34
MAM / ARCHIVING
Managing your assets effectively .... 36 CLEAR content and workflow management ..................... 37 Is archiving important? ..................... 38
NEWS
Of history and technology ................. 2 M-Net appoints new CEO ................. 2 Meet the new head of SABC1 .......... 3 Launch of multi-platform distributor of South African produced content .. 3 South African indie movie Jimmy in Pienk triumphs at international film fest ........................... 4 Exclusive screenings and new initiatives at Cinema Nouveau ........... 4
Joel Churcher to head and develop BBC Worldwide in Africa .... 5 Eight years of the SAFTAs, 20 years of freedom ............................. 6 WGSA honours television and film writers ..................................... 8 The world’s largest short film festival comes to South Africa ........... 8
DOCUMENTARY
And the winners are… .................... 10 Rwandan cinema on the rise .......... 12 Zuku’s modern political drama State House hugely popular in Kenya ................................ 12 Video On Demand platforms captivating the biggest markets in Africa ................................ 13
Miners Shot Down: Business as usual? .............................. 22 Big Fish students excel with powerful documentaries ......... 23 Luscious Dosi questions social perspectives in Across the Colour Bar .......................... 24 Short doccie shines with gritty authenticity .............................. 24 Medical documentary shares an awakening discovery ......................... 25
ADCETERA
TELEVISION
AFRICA
Will ‘Slow TV’ save the wildlife documentary? ....................... 14 Lowe Johannesburg appoints new creative kingpin ......................... 15 As far as the eye can SeeSayDo ..... 15 JWT interns nail BBC’s global challenge .................................. 16 Getting in on the ACTion ............... 16 Remember when you got excited about banking? ..................... 17 The Quest for cute ........................... 17
DTT – peace at last or a gathering storm? ............................. 26
TRACKING TECHNOLOGY Miranda Telecast CopperHead 340K camera-mountable fibre transceiver ................................. 39 Panasonic Varicam HS ....................... 39 Blackmagic MultiDock with Thunderbolt 2™ Technology .......... 40 Visual Unity’s vuMedia and vuMobile end-to-end OTT solutions .............. 40 AJA Ki Pro Mini ................................. 40
WEB NEWS Ajax receives live production workflow from VidiGo in Amsterdam ArenA ............................ 42 The Writers’ Guild of South Africa Muse Awards honours best performance writers ................ 42 L-S-B Broadcast Technologies demonstrates Virtual Studio Manager at CABSAT ......................... 42 Hollywood film executives scout locations in South Africa .................. 42 M-Net appoints Nkateko Mabaso as Director for Local Interest Channels in South Africa .................. 42 Satellite owner SES reaches 291 million television homes globally ... 43 Study reveals that mobile is a crucial tool for moviegoers ......... 43 Minister Carrim brands MultiChoice a bullying monopoly .. 43 Vrou Soek Boer takes over R1.2m at SA box office .................... 43
REGULARS
Production Updates ...............44 – 47 Events ................................................... 47 Social ..................................................... 48
NEWS
FROM THE EDITOR
M-Net appoints new CEO
Warren Holden
PHOTO BY SEAN BRAND
Of history and technology This month we celebrate 20 years of the country’s democracy and we have an ideal opportunity to take stock of ourselves, and determine to what extent the much-lauded transformation of the country has filtered down to every aspect of South African life. That is by no means an easy matter to assess. This issue includes a look at Rehad Desai’s documentary, Miners Shot Down, an unflinching investigation of the Marikana tragedy, which suggests that, at least in some situations in the country, the fruits of democracy have been very slow to reach people, or have been stolen or waylaid en route. But this is not a political publication – our concern is the film, television and broadcasting industries and they too, like any other part of our country, have been impacted one way or another by the developments of the past 20 years. The SAFTAs are taking place this month, and this particular edition of the award ceremony contains many thematic links to the government’s ‘20 Years of Freedom’ celebrations. Aside from the greater historical considerations that the country will be pondering during this time, the occasion may stimulate those who work in these industries to think back and consider how our field in particular has changed in the past 20 years. It would be interesting to hear what conversations will be started around the topic. No doubt there will be many complaints, but also a good number of congratulatory and celebratory opinions. Just consider the batch of South African films that has been released over the past couple of months, or the local television productions being beamed into our homes. Now think back to the same output 20 years ago. I won’t tell you what conclusion you should draw from the comparison, but I think the contrast is a stark one, particularly in the area of cinema. This issue has been quite an educational one for me as far as our two main features are concerned. We look at cameras and accessories and media asset management. Here we get a glimpse of the unstoppable progress of technology, whose wheels seem to turn (completely unlike those of the country’s political machine) at lightning speed. I still have a rather sentimental fondness for the old Arri 16mm camera on which I shot my 1st and 2nd year university projects (yes, I am a celluloid devotee and a reluctant convert to digital), but I have to admit that the products discussed in our cameras and accessories feature made me feel like the proverbial kid let loose in the proverbial candy store. When it comes to media asset management, I couldn’t help thinking about those thousands of reels of film wasting away in vaults around the world, or those that have already been destroyed, and how different things might have been if the production companies in question had had access to 4K cameras and cloud-based storage.
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FROM MUSIC TO TV: Yolisa Phahle In March, the Group CEO of MultiChoice South Africa, Imtiaz Patel, announced that the corporation’s wholly-owned subsidiary, M-Net South Africa, would have a new CEO as of 1 April. The new boss of South Africa’s oldest pay-TV platform is Yolisa Phahle, who rises to the position after five years as the director of special interest channels for South Africa. As CEO, she will now focus on the bigger picture, but, she says, local content remains a central part of M-Net’s strategy. “Local content has always been central to M-Net’s success. Even if you look at the big audience pullers on M-Net and kykNET, whether it’s Carte Blanche, Survivor, Idols, MasterChef or Binnelanders – all local productions. It’s fair to say that local content is a big focus for the company going forward.” Phahle was born and raised in the United Kingdom, the child of South African parents living in exile. Her parents decided to send her for music lessons, believing this would be a good addition to her overall education but never imagining that she would actually choose music as a career, which is precisely what she did. Although classically trained, she got involved in the world of popular music and went on to perform with the likes of Duran Duran, Soul II Soul and Jamiroquai among others. It was while working as a professional musician that she found herself drawn to the world of production and broadcast. “As a performer, you spend a lot of time in interviews or performing live where there are television cameras present. So I was exposed to the full force of the media and I found
myself fascinated, not so much by what I was doing, but by what the journalists and producers and people behind the cameras were doing, so I decided that was a career I would like to pursue.” She was then accepted as an intern at the BBC World Service, and her career progressed from there. “Coming from a performance background, you don’t arrive with all of the business acumen, that’s something I’ve learnt more about along the way, but you do come with a lot of knowledge about the product, and what it takes to entertain people and how to get the best out of the creative industry that you depend on,” Phahle says. Phahle’s career with M-Net began when she took a year-long sabbatical from her job at the BBC (she had, by this time, risen to be a producer at Radio One, the British broadcaster’s flagship popular music radio station). She decided to spend the year with family in South Africa, where she had visited periodically since her childhood. “We came to South Africa in 2004 and then, after about six months I had run out of money. So I decided I had better get a short-term job for the remainder of our stay. Ultimately I signed a six-month contract as the General Manager of Channel O… and I’ve been here ever since.” The ‘temporary’ post at Channel O developed into a permanent position as head of local interest channels, which saw Phahle’s portfolio expand – first including only Channel O and kykNet, then encompassing the new additions of Vuzu and the various Mzansi channels. One of Phahle’s priorities for M-Net is the continuing expansion of the platform’s offerings to meet the growing needs and expanding demographics of its audience. “The world is changing,” she says. “So what we need to do is align ourselves with that and with the changing demographics of our country. Initially there was just M-Net and kykNet, then came Vuzu and Mzansi Magic. Then we conceptualised more channels for black viewers and added new Mzansi channels. It is now about building on that foundation because we are catering for a wider audience than ever, who speak a variety of languages. That is an added complexity but it’s also an opportunity. It’s a wonderful chance for us to find new stories, to work with new production companies and sectors of society that we hadn’t previously worked with.” – Warren Holden
SCREENAFRICA PUBLISHER & MANAGING EDITOR: Simon Robinson: publisher@screenafrica.com EDITOR: Warren Holden: editor@screenafrica.com SENIOR JOURNALIST: Martie Bester: martie@screenafrica.com
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| NEWS
Meet the new head of SABC1 In March, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) announced a number of key appointments. Among these were a new acting Group CEO, Tian Olivier and acting Chief Financial Officer, James Aguma. Aside from these senior appointments, a number of vital positions further down in the corporate structure were also filled by new candidates. These included the heads of each of the SABC’s three entertainment, news and lifestyle channels. Taking the helm at SABC1 is Maijang Mpherwane, while SABC2 will now be led by Gerhard Pretorius and SABC3 will move forward with the guidance of Aisha Mohamed. SABC1, which broadcasts mainly in
AT THE HELM: Maijang Mpherwane isiZulu, isiXhosa, isiNdebele and siSwati, with some English programming, commands the largest television audience in the country, which makes it both an honour and a major challenge to be charged with taking control of this platform. Mpherwane comes to the role after having begun work with the channel in 2011 as an assistant programmes manager, from which position he moved on to become acting programmes manager and then acting head of channel
in 2012. This new appointment formalises the position he has held in practice since 2012. Mpherwane is a graduate of WITS University, where he acquired his BA in Television and Media Studies. He then went on to earn an Advanced Diploma in Project Management from Cranefield College of Project and Programme Management. His work at the SABC began in 2014 when he was appointed as a project manager in the Formal Education Unit. He then left the SABC in 2006 to join Mindset Network (DStv channel 319) as a channel manager. He then rejoined the SABC in 2009 as a Commissioning Editor with the Youth Development Unit at SABC Education. Mpherwane’s mandate as head of the SABC’s flagship channel, he says, is: “to ensure that the channel retains its market leader position in this ever-changing South African broadcast landscape. More importantly though, it is to ensure that the channel continues to deliver a compelling public broadcast service that
attracts a major share of available audiences and revenues.” Mpherwane is mindful of the fast-moving world in which his channel operates. “We operate in a highly competitive environment, and competitors have over the years copied, with some measured success, what have for years been SABC1’s unique selling points. We serve a generation that is open to continuous change and innovation, a generation that is at the cutting edge of new trends that quickly become mainstream. So it is inevitable that there would be changes at some point to the channel. We are at the final stages of concretising our plans going forward and these will be shared shortly with all stakeholders.” The new SABC1 channel head plans to: “lead a highly competitive, high impact and trendsetting channel that is distinguished by quality and public service values. I bring 10 years of broadcast experience and a lifetime of engaging with and understanding SABC1’s target market,” he concludes.
Launch of multi-platform distributor of South African produced content In a first of its kind in the country, a new video-on-demand service, ONStv, has been established with the objective of keeping South African expatriates connected to their roots through the provision of locally produced film and television content. Partners Henning Basson and Danie Barnard have created ONStv, which will distribute locally produced content via cinema and an IPTV VOD. Afrikaans-language movies Klein Karoo and Musiek vir die Agtergrond were released in 2013 in cinemas in Australia and New Zealand, while romantic adventure film Pad na jou Hart and Stuur Groete aan Mannetjies Roux are scheduled to release in cinemas in those countries in June or July. Initially only available in Australia and New Zealand, the VOD service has now been expanded globally and also offers an Electronic Sell Through (ESP) service.
Due to the rise of digital production and advances in the film and television industry, ONStv has developed a model that will bring a secure service to South Africans living abroad. “In recent years, local films even outperformed top international films at the box office. The platform is available on any device with a web browser, such as phones, tablets and smart televisions and Xbox Live, Roku and many more,” says Basson, director of ONStv. The VOD service will exclusively broadcast and promote South African films and popular television content in English and Afrikaans (with English subtitles). To cater for all viewers, the service will eventually include news, documentaries and sports programmes. As about one million South Africans live abroad, there has been an increase
TAKING LOCAL FILMS ABROAD: Business partners Henning Basson and Danie Barnard in demand to have access to local content. Basson comments: “We have taken on the responsibility to provide this service in a cost-effective manner to expatriates.” Basson and Barnard are of the opinion that South African films deserve a bigger audience. “Local producers have lost out on the expat market who have a hunger for South African film and television. They are prepared to pay in dollars to watch
these productions. “The more we can grow our audiences, the more we can boost the local industry and economy. In addition, ONStv is committed to and excited about promoting the South African performing arts abroad,” concludes Basson. Producers are invited to contact Henning Basson at henning@onstv.net and Danie Barnard at danie@onstv.net. – Martie Bester
NEWS
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South African indie movie Jimmy in Pienk triumphs at international film fest Afrikaans-language film Jimmy in Pienk, written and directed by Johannesburgbased filmmaker Hanneke Schutte, which released nationwide in South Africa in August 2013, has won the award for Best Feature Film at the ninth Beloit International Film Festival (BIFF) in Wisconsin in the US. Schutte won the Jameson First Shot Competition in 2013 with her short Saving Norman, starring award-winning US actor Willem Dafoe. At BIFF, a 10-day tribute to the power of movies and the excitement of independent film from around the world, 120 films were shown with more than 100 filmmakers from around the globe in attendance. According to Schutte, venues were set up all over town for the festival, including in theatres and coffee shops. “It had an intimate feel and I got to meet international filmmakers. It was great to meet so many industry players and chat about their experiences. No matter where you go as a filmmaker it’s always surprising to find out that it doesn’t matter whether you’re from Switzerland or the US, we all deal with the same challenges,” she comments. BIFF has been listed as one of a half
dozen alternatives to the Sundance Film Festival by leading US publication The New York Times, but, comments Schutte: “The film festival is definitely much smaller and more intimate. I don’t think it’s on par with Sundance yet. It’s a smaller festival with a great deal of heart.” Schutte’s winning movie tells the story of conservative corn farmer Jimmy (Louw Venter), who is overjoyed when his wealthy, gay uncle Buks / Fredrique (Gys de Villiers) offers him the opportunity to save the farm from bankruptcy – only to find out that he has to show off his (hidden) talents as a hair stylist, which is just the beginning of often hilarious challenges the young farmer, a stranger to the city, has to face. The movie competed against mostly American independent films and after speaking to members of the jury, Schutte says they voted for Jimmy in Pienk because the “movie felt quite foreign and at the same time very familiar. They could identify with it and root for the characters, even though the film was shot on a different continent. The style of the film seemed fresh to them, but also the fact that it still had a lot of heart.” She adds: “It was quite bizarre
Exclusive screenings and new initiatives at Cinema Nouveau Ster-Kinekor Theatres’ Cinema Nouveau is the leading independent and art cinema in South Africa, showcasing film product from all corners of the earth and exposing audiences to quality art-house films they would not otherwise have the opportunity to see. Says Lola Gallant, Brand Manager of Cinema Nouveau / Ster-Kinekor Select: “Cinema Nouveau is in the business of creating a rare film experience that is both unusual and of exceptional quality. We are successful in that we deliver a film experience that opens minds to new ideas, new worlds and new emotions. We celebrate the medium of film in its many guises and audiences
4 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
A RARE FILM EXPERIENCE: Lola Gallant, Brand Manager of Cinema Nouveau / Ster Kinekor Select respond accordingly.” Cinema Nouveau screens about 70 to 80 new titles per year, ranging from foreign language films, independent films – particularly international film festival winners – ‘live’ productions such as those
SMILE OF SUCCESS: Director Hanneke Schutte watching the film with an American audience. They were reading the subtitles and I thought a lot of the humour would be lost in translation, but they laughed at exactly the right moments. They somehow even picked up on some subtle Afrikaans nuances which was quite surprising. I had people come up to me afterwards with tears in their eyes telling me how much it meant to them. The
theme of tolerance really seemed to strike a nerve with them.” Schutte is currently working on a screenplay called Meerkat Maantuig / Meerkat Moonship. “I’m also trying my hand at some other writing and I’m getting involved in a few non-film related projects. I find it’s important for my sanity to step out of that world from time to time,” she concludes. – Martie Bester
of The Met Opera, National Theatre Live and Royal Shakespeare Company, as well as a range of documentaries, such as Exhibition: Art on Screen, and bespoke film festivals. “We are pleased to announce that audiences can continue to enjoy many more world-class productions from The National Theatre as well as The Metropolitan Opera,” continues Gallant. “We have added to this repertoire with more exclusive live content such as the release of The Royal Shakespeare Company’s Richard II starring David Tennant. Viewers can expect to see more from The Royal Shakespeare Company during 2014 with new productions such as Henry IV Part I and II as well as The Two Gentleman of Verona,” she says. Four National Theatre Live productions have been confirmed, including Coriolanus, starring Tom Hiddleston; War Horse; King Lear, directed by Academy Award – winner Sam Mendes, and A Small Family Business. The current Opera season continues until June 2014 and includes Puccini’s La Bohême and Mozart’s Cosi fan Tutte to name a few. Comments Gallant: “Cinema Nouveau is launching an exciting new initiative, The Short Film Project, where local filmmakers will be asked to submit an original short film. If the film is selected, through a judging process, it will be screened as the ‘opening act’ to the main feature films
showing on our Nouveau circuit.” Other exciting projects include the Europe Film Festival starting in early May, featuring content from countries including France, Germany, Austria, Portugal and Denmark. The festival’s theme will focus on the many ‘faces’ of love – including forbidden romance, passion and desire. The Turkish Film Festival runs in September followed by the Japanese Film Festival in October. “The Cinema Nouveau Doccie Fest is scheduled to run from 23 May with all titles exclusive to Cinema Nouveau. Audiences can look forward to a host of great documentary titles, with a new doccie releasing every week over a period of five weeks,” adds Gallant. In the next few months, Cinema Nouveau will also be hosting Classic Film, which will bring back famous classics and / or cult films for a limited period, according to audience demand. “The films we show are not just about pure escape and entertainment; the films we release are thought-provoking, stretch the mind and offer food for thought for our audiences, who enjoy being challenged. “Our mission, and to ensure ongoing success, is to introduce a younger audience to this enlightening cinema experience that is original, surprises, challenges and questions… and is certainly not formulaic,” concludes Gallant. – Martie Bester
| NEWS
Joel Churcher to head and develop BBC Worldwide in Africa
THE RIGHT CANDIDATE: Joel Churcher
Joel Churcher has been appointed as BBC Worldwide’s Vice President and General Manager for Africa, which is a new role for the business and emphasises a long-term commitment to Africa as a priority market. Says Ian McDonough, BBC Worldwide’s Executive Vice President for the Asian, Central European, Middle and East African (CEMA) region, to whom Churcher will report: “We ran quite an extensive search to find the right person for the job. For almost a year, we interviewed several candidates in the UK and South Africa and met some fascinating people.” However, Churcher, who has excelled in his position as Account Director for BBC Worldwide Channels across the
European, Middle Eastern and African (EMEA) region emerged as the right candidate through the process. Comments McDonough: “He has a special passion for this market and his knowledge of the business is extraordinary. The network of contacts he has established and his understanding of the market has proven to be impressive and sets him apart. I am absolutely sure that we made the right choice, he is a fantastic executive.” Churcher was also Advertising Sales Director in charge of sales on all BBC-branded channels in Western Europe and within the CEMA region, including South Africa. In 2013, BBC Worldwide underwent restructuring from its divisional to geographic lines of management, which enables it to capture future growth opportunities globally and as a result, the role of Vice President and General Manager for Africa was created. Based in Johannesburg, Churcher will be responsible for strategy and business development across all BBC Worldwide businesses in the CEMA region, including television and digital sales, production and format sales, licensing and publishing, live events, and the daily management of the BBC-branded channels portfolio available on DStv. “Churcher’s role looking after Africa,
which I see as the biggest opportunity on the planet bar none for television companies, is not only the most important role, but also the most exciting,” says McDonough. He continues: “The television market in South Africa and Africa is still in its infancy in a hugely populous part of the world. There is a lot of cultivation to do within the market and we have to think about this as a long term investment that will pay off down the line. “With the analogue switch-off happening across Africa there is a vast amount of new channels coming to the market which will offer a huge number of channels for which to find content. “Therefore we have an incredible opportunity to push out into Africa with our finished content.” Concludes McDonough: “We haven’t even scratched the surface outside South Africa, with countries on the scale of Nigeria, with a population of 170 million, and development opportunities in regions such as Kenya, Angola and Ghana.” While strategising and developing plans for the commercial arm of BBC Worldwide on the continent, Churcher aims to appoint an all-African team with extensive local industry knowledge over the following year. – Martie Bester
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NEWS
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Eight years of the SAFTAs, 20 years of freedom The eighth South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs) will be awarded on 5 April. Since the event takes place in the anniversary year of South Africa’s first democratic elections, it forms a part of the Department of Arts and Culture’s (DAC) national celebration of that milestone.
F
or the team at Clive Morris Productions, who are tasked with producing the gala event meant to celebrate the best of the best in the South African film and television industries, this is not merely a show about those select few who are chosen as winners on the night. It is a celebration of the entire industry. The production team, responding to the brief of the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) has visualised the awards ceremony, which takes place at Gallagher Estate in Midrand, Gauteng, as a gathering of the greater community of film and television professionals, coming together not just in the hopes of walking away with Golden Horns at the end of the night, but to celebrate, as a whole, this industry and community. This approach, while fostering a stronger sense of community in a sector that is, by its nature, highly competitive, also synergises with the broader environment in which the awards ceremony is taking place. It has been 20 years since South Africa made the transition to a multiracial democracy and one of the Department of Arts and Culture’s (DAC) priorities for the year is to
lead the country in the celebrations of this milestone. The SAFTAs, being an initiative of the NFVF, which in turn, falls under the DAC’s mandate, form part of these celebrations.
Content – democracy and diversity made manifest The list of nominees for this year’s SAFTAs displays a remarkable diversity of content, which was lacking in the early years of South Africa’s democracy. In the mid-1990s, South African films acquired a reputation for consisting of either heavy-handed socio-political storytelling on one hand, or physical comedy on the other. Personal stories – telling of individual triumphs and tragedies without emphasis on the socio-political environment in which they were taking place – were few and far between. The dark side of the cinema was avoided – horrors or thrillers were rare. Erotic content took quite some time to be taken seriously on South Africa’s screens. This is a situation that seems to be changing and the list of nominees bears testament to that. The list of Best Feature Film nominees, while still including one
BEST OF THE BEST: Zama Mkosi, CEO of the NFVF and chairperson of the SAFTA Committee
Jerry Mofokeng, Overall Judging Co-chairperson, addresses the audience at the SAFTA Nominees announcement
very notable politically and historically themed film in the shape of Long Walk to Freedom (which, of course, is a perfect fit for 20 Years of Freedom), the other two films in the category could not be less conventional by South African standards. Both are dark, both deal with sexual obsession and its violent repercussions and both demonstrate highly individualistic storytelling. These are Barry Berk’s Sleeper’s Wake and Jahmil XT Qubeka’s Of Good Report. These two films – along with a number of others that have seen the light of day recently, but will only be eligible for nomination next year – seem to indicate that South Africa’s first group of true cinematic auteurs is emerging. Possibly for the first time in South African film and television history, storytellers are telling whatever stories they wish to convey in whatever fashion they see fit. Visual storytelling in South Africa is being genuinely democratised – 20 years after the country’s political emancipation. All this despite the momentary kneejerk reaction against Of Good Report by the country’s censors last year, an action which might in fact be seen as a birth pang in the emergence of this democratised storytelling. If the process has been slow to happen, it has
not been because of state censorship, but because of the industry’s tendency to self-censor. As it grows more confident in its abilities, the industry is leaving this tendency behind. Looking at the list of nominees beyond the Best Feature Film category, a broad array of subject matter and treatments are apparent. In addition to murder and mayhem, one can also find romantic comedy (Fanie Fourie’s Lobola), an actioncomedy caper (Gog’Helen), a clash of modern and traditional cultures (Elelwani) and more.
FILM FREEDOM: The three nominees for Best Feature Film at the 2014 SAFTAs: Long Walk to Freedom, Sleeper’s Wake and Of Good Report
6 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
Voting for the winners – democracy in action Zama Mkosi, CEO of the NFVF and chairperson of the SAFTA Committee, said that the 20 Years of Democracy theme would be used to showcase South Africa’s film and television heritage through the awards, with highlights from the past 20 years of film and television being showcased during the course of the programme. But the most obvious link between democracy and the SAFTAs is the process by which the nominees and winners are chosen. The judging panel is co-chaired this year by Jerry Mofokeng and Roberta Durrant. Mofokeng said at the nominee announcement: “It has been my resolve to maintain the integrity of these awards throughout. We believe that we’ve fine-tuned the nominee process and remained advocates for both the industry and the SAFTAs. “The awards even resort to real popular democracy in one category – Best TV Soap – which is open to a public vote. This has proven to be a highly effective tool for drawing public interest to the SAFTAs.” Whatever one’s opinions may be about awards, they do serve as very effective ways to assess and measure the current state of the industry, and to reflect upon its legacy. This year, the 20 Years of Democracy theme colours most aspects of the awards. Next year, in the absence of that theme, what will the SAFTAs reveal about our industry? – Warren Holden
8th annual
SOUTH AFRICAN
Film & Television Awards
4 – 5 April 2014 Gallagher Convention Centre, Midrand, South Africa
# www.nfvf.co.za
NEWS
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WGSA honours television and film writers The Writers’ Guild of South Africa (WGSA) held its inaugural Muse Awards ceremony on 15 March at the Barnyard Theatre in Cresta in Johannesburg. Hosted by well-known actor Jack Devnarain, best known for his role as Rajesh in Isidingo on SABC3, a group of musicians, vocalists and performers from the South African Guild of Actors (SAGA), headed by Richard H Nosworthy of Plum Productions, produced a dazzling show. Zama Mkosi, CEO of the National Film and Video Foundation delivered the keynote address, while representatives
Egan triumphed with The Chemist in the Best Spec Script (unproduced work) category. But it was Shirley Johnston, winner of the award for Best Feature Script for international multi-award winning movie Felix, directed by South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs) Lifetime Achievement winner Roberta Durrant, who expressed her surprise that a feel-good movie walked away with the laurels. A long-time collaborator with Durrant, Johnston said: “Felix was in development for seven years and had it not been for Roberta’s tenacity to see the movie realised on screen, it would never have materialised. I actually wrote the story in 2003 after which I struggled to get a publisher. But after that I entered a film competition and Felix came second.” As part of the prize, Harriet Meier, founder of the WGSA, became Johnston’s editor. During the filming of television series Shooting Stars in 2005, Durrant optioned Felix but it was only in 2011, when the director took the movie to the Cannes
Film Festival, that an investor showed interest and became involved with the project. Commented Johnston: “For the whole of 2012 I worked on rewriting the script, which was originally set in the 1990s and had to be adapted to the present. The majority of the content stayed the same, such as the story itself and the characters, but locations had to change to fit in with the theme of a ‘modern’ Felix.” Johnston recently finished writing popular original television series Traffic, again directed by Durrant, currently screening on free-to-air channel e.tv. “I’m so grateful to Roberta for giving me the opportunity to write Traffic. It was very hard work as it is a difficult subject which deals with child trafficking.” Johnston is currently working on another writing project, which sees her typing away for long hours at a stretch, continuously honing her skills. Straight after her win, Johnston commented: “When someone says never give up on your dreams, don’t, because they might just come true.” – Martie Bester
as popular as it has?” He adds: “Tropfest has made short films accessible to filmmakers and is a platform for emerging filmmakers, many of whom have gone on to be successful in feature films, advertising and so on. Plus it is free.” Funded through sponsorship, Laverty says: “We always maintain the balance of commercial reality while sustaining a strong festival culture. People own Tropfest. Our most important stakeholders are filmmakers whom we hold and honour dearly and, in return, they give us FESTIVAL OWNED BY PEOPLE: Michael Laverty, Managing their stories.” Director of Tropfest Every year, between 700 free-to-air channel. and 800 films are entered Laverty, who ran an advertising agency into Tropfest and after being judged by a and owned events such as Fashion Week, panel of select filmmakers, 60 to 80 attributes Tropfest’s success to several movies are shortlisted which are then factors. “The timing of the festival’s narrowed down by Laverty and Polson. beginning was immaculate. There wasn’t Laverty comments that the potential a festival where you could make film market for Tropfest Africa is huge. “Africa especially for the event. And who knew as a whole has an untapped, massive that the short film concept would become group of people who have stories to tell
without concerns over budget and equiment when they enter Tropfest. There is no excuse not to make a movie for the festival. Films with a budget of less than the equivalent of R600 have won and the winning movie in 2008 was shot on a mobile phone.” The only rules that should be adhered to are that films should be seven minutes long, including credits, and that the filmmakers have to focus on the idea, the story, the performances and the production values. “I have great hope for South Africa as an amazing generation of incredibly creative people are coming through with powerful stories to tell.” Laverty encourages South African filmmakers to enter Tropfest and should they reach the top 16, they will be flown to Sydney for the event, which takes place on 8 December. With prizes that include a car valued at AUS$40 000, prize money of AUS$10 000 and a week-long immersion programme in Los Angeles to learn the ropes of the industry and the business of film, there simply is no excuse not to get the cameras rolling. – Martie Bester
DREAM COME TRUE: Shirley Johnston with her WGSA Muse Award for Best Feature Script, which she received for Felix from different broadcasters and the film industry, such as Verona Duwarkah, Head of Television at the SABC; Ayanda Halimana, Commissioning Editor at Mzansi Magic and Wethu; Paul Raleigh, producer of the Oscar-winning film Tsotsi and head of completion guarantors Hollard Film Guarantees; and Nkateko Mabaso, General Manager of M-Net Local Channels, presented the awards. Writer of Best Comedy Script Fidel Namisi won for Tooth and Nails, while Joshua Rous took the honours for Best TV Drama Script for High Rollers. Gisele Turner bagged the award for Best Stage Play Script for eLimboland and Kelsey
The world’s largest short film festival comes to South Africa For the first time, Tropfest, the world’s largest short film festival, held screenings in South Africa in Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Pretoria and Johannesburg from 16 to 19 March. Michael Laverty, Managing Director of Tropfest since 2002, travelled to South Africa as a guest of the Australian High Commission, with the hopes of establishing Tropfest Africa, following the festival’s successful launch in cities such as Abu Dhabi, London, Berlin, Toronto, Bangkok and New York. Now considered a truly global film festival, director John Polson founded Tropfest 23 years ago when he screened his movie to 200 people in the Tropicana Café in Sydney. Now, a live audience of 150 000 individuals watch the festival which is broadcast live in Australia and to the rest of the world on a
8 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
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AFRICA
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NIGERIA | GHANA
And the winners are… The second Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards were held at a glittering gala event at the Eko Hotel and Suites in Lagos, Nigeria on Saturday 8 March. As fate would have it, the awards night coincided with International Women’s Day, which was appropriate since many of the winners in the major categories were indeed women, perhaps indicating a transformative trend in an industry traditionally dominated by men.
O
ne of the big winners at the AMVCAs 2014 was the Ghanaian comedy, Contract – another interesting development in an industry in which Nigeria still holds the lion’s share of output and recognition. Contract won out over rivals from Ghana’s giant neighbour, as well as over Kenya – who had a true favourite in the race in the form of Nairobi Half Life – in the categories of Best Director, Best Editor, Best Script and Best Movie. The main creative force behind Contract is director, editor, co-writer and co-producer, Shirley Frimpong-Manso, who was the honouree or co-honouree in all four of these categories
The progressive African story A graduate of Ghana’s National Film and Television Institute, Frimpong-Manso has
10 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
WOMEN OF SUCCESS: Shirley FrimpongManso with her AMVCA for Best Director
Michelle Bello with her Trailblazer Award
Rita Dominic, winner of the New Era Award
been a working producer, director and writer since 2003, when she founded her company Sparrow Productions. Contract came about when her co-producer, Yvonne Okoro, suggested they make a comedy after having released several more serious films. Neither of them expected that the film would top its African peers in four major categories at the AMVCAs. “It was a big surprise,” Frimpong-Manso says. “It was almost overwhelming but very welcome and an absolutely beautiful feeling. I am still trying to recover from it. I had hoped to win at least one award, but four – and some of the most important ones for that matter – was a real big deal. Obviously it puts pressure on us to go back next year with even better productions.” On the importance and impact of the AMVCAs, Frimpong-Manso says: “It’s a great platform to encourage the making of quality productions in Africa. That’s the way I see it. It’s especially an encouraging medium for new filmmakers as well as new performers and also provides some education for African movie watchers, because at the AMVCAs, the continent gets an introduction to various quality films from around the continent. My advice to the organisers would be to provide an avenue to showcase these films to the voting public and even the invited guests prior to the awards.” Of her country’s film industry, Frimpong-Manso says: “It’s still in its infancy stage. We are still trying to find our voice and, like I always say, there’s power in numbers. So, as many of us continue to do better at our productions and push the boundaries we will make the needed strides. Presently we are doing a lot of crossover into Nollywood, which is a good thing. It balances out the market, provides us with the platform and the audience. I am looking forward to the day when a Ghanaian movie will just be an African movie because the boundaries
have become seamless and all of Africa is telling one story – ‘the progressive African story’.”
Industry Merit Award
New Era and Trailblazer Awards The AMVCAs include two special categories – The New Era and Trailblazer Awards – which honour young practitioners who are making an impact in the industry, or show promise of doing so. The winners in these categories were Nigerians, actor / producer Rita Dominic (New Era) and writer / director Michelle Bello (Trailblazer). Rita Dominic has appeared in over 100 films. On receiving the award she thanked M-Net Africa Director for Special Projects, Biola Alabi for creating a platform on which filmmakers across Africa could be rewarded. “It encourages us to keep doing what we’re doing despite the odds.” Michelle Bello’s film, Flower Girl was also nominated in a number of categories, winning for Best Writer (Comedy). “I would like to thank all the great African filmmakers who inspired and pushed me to do my work,” she said after accepting her award, which, she says, came as a complete surprise to her as she did not know even about the Trailblazer category. “I’m passionate about film, I love telling stories and we have so many stories to tell. I sometimes get asked why I haven’t gone to Hollywood and I say, “Why? I’m Nigerian, I’m proud of that and I want to tell our stories to the world. One of my ambitions within the industry is to tell our stories on an international platform.” Bello pursued this ambition with Flower Girl, which has been screened at the Toronto Black Film Festival and on several screens in the United Kingdom.
Lest we think that the AMVCAs this year were only about the women in the industry, it should be stated that several major awards went to male colleagues of Frimpong-Manso, Dominic and Bello. The Industry Merit Award, the “lifetime achievement” category of the AMVCAs, went to the legendary, veteran Nigerian actor Pete Edochie. A household name in his home country, Edochie is best known for his leading role in the 1980 television adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s seminal novel Things Fall Apart. Edochie was unable to attend the ceremony, so his award was collected by his son Yul, himself a star of the Nollywood screen. “I would like to thank Africa Magic for honouring my father,” the younger Edochie said. “He’s a great man and I’m honoured to be his son. He’s done so much and he’s inspired a lot of the industry’s younger people – like me.” Perhaps the last word on the 2014 AMVCAs is best left to another formidable woman – the driving force behind the event, M-Net Africa’s Biola Alabi: “We know that Africa’s film and TV industry is making a powerful contribution to the social, economic and cultural development and diversity of this continent. We must also recognise that this is only possible because there are individuals who make it so. Men and women who work, who create, who believe their art is impactful, entertaining and relevant. Whether it’s comedy or drama, documentary or short film, each story speaks to myriad lives committed to making that specific production possible. The nominees and winners of the 2014 AMVCAs are ambassadors of that community and it is in their success that we can see a bright future for the continent’s film and TV landscape.” – Warren Holden
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AFRICA
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RWANDA | KENYA
Rwandan cinema on the rise
TELLING A DIFFERENT STORY: Kivu Ruhorahoza, Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo and Joel Karekezi
For a decade, Rwanda was best known in cinematic terms through foreign fictions – from Nick Hughes’ 100 Days (USA, 2001) to Alrick Brown’s Kinyarwanda (USA, 2011) – set in the country and based on its tragic 1994 genocide. Actor Mazimpaka Jonis Kennedy played in many of these international features. According to him: “It was very good to have these productions coming out: American, British, French... Most of the locals who worked with these productions turned out to be the filmmakers you now see around. But these productions came out as ‘genocide tellers’ for the international screens. People knew Rwanda because of genocide. Now, for us, we should tell the story differently.” In February 2014, Rwanda launched the Thousand Hills Academy Award, an initiative designed to recognise the best of Rwanda’s Film Industry. Joel Karekezi received the award for his first feature Imbabazi: Forgiveness, which recounts the story of two friends torn apart by the hate speech that the Hutus used against the Tutsis in the time leading up to the genocide. Karekezi is one of a group of up and coming Rwandan filmmakers. He studied
cinema online through a Canadian school website, then participated in an East African organisation’s workshop, the Maisha Film Lab. After the Berlinale Talent Campus 2010, Karekezi received a grant from South Africa’s DurbanFilmMart 2012 and was selected at the Cannes Film Festival’s Pavilion Les Cinémas du Monde 2013 for his next project, The Mercy of the Jungle, for which he is still searching for funding. “After the genocide, Rwandan cinema was really born again,” says Karekezi. Young filmmakers have ambition, they direct many shorts... They’re ready to work hard to make good movies, even if funds are lacking. I’m full of hope for the future of Rwandan cinema because directors are now telling stories from a Rwandan perspective.” Kivu Ruhorahoza is one such filmmaker. Discovered in 2011 through his first feature Grey Matter, a fantastic story in which different characters have to deal with their painful past, he won awards at the Tribeca, Warsaw and Cordoba film festivals. He began his career as an actor, then worked as a producer on various documentaries before becoming the Rwanda Film Festival’s director from 2005
Zuku’s modern political drama State House hugely popular in Kenya
POLITICAL AND PERSONAL: Cast members of Zuku’s popular political drama series, State House State House, an original modern political drama fictionally set in the President’s official residence in Kenya, was produced by Nairobi-based Zuku, the Wananchi Group’s triple play and pay TV business, and goes beyond the façade of political power, creating an intimate view of the workings behind it, both political and personal. Likened to international series West Wing and British period drama Downton Abbey, as the show concerns itself with
12 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
the President’s household and the different kinds of power that exist within it, State House is proving to be immensely popular with Kenyan viewers. Says Hannelie Bekker, Managing Director of Wananchi Programming: “Kenyans are fascinated with politics and political process and none of this had ever been dramatised for the screen, even though international shows like West Wing and Scandal have shown the rich storytelling potential that is inherent in
to 2006. Considered the first Rwandan fiction feature filmmaker, in a country where documentaries are more commonly produced, Ruhorahoza doesn’t want to be trapped by history: “I don’t want my cinema to be an answer to those of others. To feel driven by a mission is exhausting and counterproductive and a genocide heritage is tremendous. Sometimes I think it is impossible to suggest a real film story with a plot that does not mingle with the consequences of genocide.” His next feature, The Man Without a Skin, is about a white man’s arrival in an idealistic African society and will be shot this month. Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo addresses contemporary Rwandan issues. She shot her first short film, Lyiza in 2010, thanks to a workshop sponsored by the Tribeca Film Institute (USA). Awarded the Bronze Tanit at the Carthage Film Festival in Tunisia in 2012, she directed her second short film Behind The Word in 2013. This story about a teenager suffering as a result of learning difficulties and school violence, was shot in the context of a
competition, organised by the GoetheInstitut, for films that addressed gender-based violence. It also addresses another problem facing Rwandan society: “If you don’t know how to speak French or English using some sophisticated accents, people laugh at you,” Dusabejambo explains. “The violence I see is not of a physical, but rather a mental nature. The language barrier in Rwanda is a real problem, but everyone takes it lightly.” With a Rwandan Cinema Centre set up in 2003, a film school (Kwetu Film Institute), the Rwanda Film Festival (each year in July) and various production companies, ‘Hillywood’ is now trying to develop its own industry by welcoming foreign productions and promoting local filmmakers. “There is a good dynamism,” asserts Eric Kabera, founder and president of the Rwanda Cinema Centre, who recently launched a professional platform, RwandaFilm.org, with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Inflatable Film and the Business Council for Peace (Bpeace). But time will tell if Hillywood will make it to international box offices. – Claire Diao
this universe.” “We put out a request for proposals in early 2013, asking for ideas for drama series that were bold and distinctive, and received more than 50 proposals from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa and even the UK!” continues Bekker. However, the clincher was the names behind State House. Zuku was keen to work with writer and director Wanuri Kahui and producer Rebecca Chandler, and was sure that a collaboration would result in a piece of work they could all be proud of. Comments Chandler: “Wanuri and I originated the idea… we felt that there needed to be a political drama set in Africa to address the many different political stories, investigations, etc that happen every day in African politics. “State House is a half-hour drama about lives, loves and scandal that face the people who work in, live in and visit the President’s residence. It is interesting to explore the unseen areas of government from a personal, sensitive perspective,” explains Kahui. She continues: “The idea was initially inspired by the book It’s Our Turn to Eat: The Story of a Kenyan Whistle-Blower by British Journalist Michela Wrong. It was the first time I had read about what happens within the walls of the State House in Kenya.”
“State House, we believe, is a first-of-its-kind show in Africa and Kenya,” says Chandler. “We believe that we have started a conversation about the ‘behind-the-scenes’ machinations of African and Kenyan politics that all viewers will find interesting and entertaining.” Contributing to Zuku’s commitment to investing in unique and original content, Bekker states that: “State House is smack bang in the middle of that commitment and objective. It typifies our approach of working with the most talented people we can find, and creating an environment in which they can do their best work. This is how we try and create ‘must-see’ programming to attract subscribers.” “What I like most is the writing and the cast,” comments Bekker. “Within minutes of episode one, as a viewer, I understand the stakes and care about the characters – and that means I’m hooked. It is the first East African series I’ve seen that makes me want to get the box set and ‘binge view’ – and from feedback we know that many other feel that way.” The series was shot with a Canon 5D over 20 days in October 2013 in a private residence outside Nairobi. State House is in English with Swahili subtitles and screens on Zuku Entertainment on Mondays at 8.30pm. – Martie Bester
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Movies, soap operas, documentaries, live concerts and TV series from across the African continent and the diaspora feature on AfricaFilms.tv, a video download website managed by Senegalese production company conglomerate, SOON. AfricaFilms.tv has previously aligned itself with The South Africa Online Film Festival, and The South African Encounters International Documentary Film Festival, opening its catalogue of African content to international audiences. – Carly Barnes
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Not only does Kenya’s Buni TV offer viewers a diverse spread of African
DIGITAL MEDIA DELIVERY VIDEO STREAMING MOBILE TV
Kenya
Up until now the UK-based online platform iROKOtv has dominated the Nollywood movie streaming scene, however, local businesses are now vying
Senegal
The first of its kind, Mobilefliks is a mobile content distributor based in Accra which is capitalising on Africa’s growing pool of mobile phone users. The service provides consumers with fast, cost-effective, on-the-go videos, which are less than 10 minutes in length. Viewers in Ghana and Nigeria can access Mobilefliks content conveniently from wherever they are via
NEW MEDIA
Nigeria
MTN Play and Airtel Money Market, or can download the app for free from Google Play.
Ghana
TELEVISION
Video on Demand (VOD) services have comfortably taken their position as major players in the audio-visual driven consumer markets abroad, and while Africa plays catch-up on the front of internet access and broadband capabilities, VOD start-ups are sprouting and gaining popularity in some of the continent’s more technically in-tune regions.
content, ranging from films and music videos to animations and documentaries, the distribution platform rewards contributing filmmakers and producers with 50% of all revenues generated from their content. The website is accessible via computers, smartphones and tablets, while the Buni TV android app is available for free download at the Samsung app store.
PROFILE
for a stake in the countries fast-growing online and mobile audience. While online streaming sites such as 9Flix and NextSpeel offer users a selection of Nigerian TV shows and soap operas, as well as some programmes from across Africa, the Afrinolly mobile app provides a plethora of content relating to films produced in Africa. Nollywood fans need only extend themselves to a few clicks to access thousands of their favourite movies on YouTube, now featuring a number of channels like RealNolly, Nollywoodlove and tvNolly, which cater exclusively to productions from Africa’s largest film and television production industry.
AUTOMATION SYSTEMS
Video On Demand platforms captivating the biggest markets in Africa
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ADCETERA
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OPINION
Will ‘Slow TV’ save the wildlife documentary?
TAKING DOCUMENTARY TO ‘REALITY’: A scene from Slow-TV’s Piip Show
Anton Crone laments the demise of good wildlife documentary as the genre continues to decline in the wake of the more ‘reality’ oriented shows favoured by advertisers. We can no longer blame the movie Jaws for our fear of the great white shark. But we can blame the Discovery Channel. ‘Shark Week’ has the right mix of visual horror, dramatic score, gruff voiceover and sensationalised script to keep you out of the water and glued to the screen. This is movie style fiction. This is filler for advertising. This has titles like: Megalodon – The Monster Shark and Sharkzilla Lives. Sounds unreal, doesn’t it? Well, it is. The ‘evidence’ of a gigantic whale-eating shark with the water born ferocity of T-Rex is fabricated. It is fake documentary. So what? It’s fun. Who would believe that shit anyway? Well, children actually, and Australia’s PM, Tony Abbot – shark cull, anyone? In fact according to a poll conducted after the Megalodon feature aired, 79% of respondents believed the fearsome beast was still cruising the ocean. It’s irresponsible stuff from a ‘documentary’ channel that prides itself on being ‘the world’s #1 non-fiction media company’. But who can blame them? They need to up viewer numbers to lure advertisers. Advertising has killed the wildlife documentary the same way a trophy hunter kills canned lions – except you are the target, trapped in your living room. It’s all action on the screen: tooth and claw, flesh torn from bone – and that’s not
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between species, it’s between the TV channels fighting for your attention so that they can get paid. Even when wildlife documentaries don’t seem fake, they really are. It’s nothing new. Geese have been hand reared and trained to follow light aircraft so they can be filmed in flight. Predators have been baited to catch them on film and insects have been transported thousands of miles to film studios where intimate versions of their natural habitat have been recreated around cameras. But it’s astounding stuff, and it’s educational. We learn from it, we fill our minds and understand the wonders of the natural world better. But it’s being relegated to the TV in the classroom. In a world with multiple channels, action gets more views at home. Purists of the wildlife documentary craft no doubt lament this. You can imagine the profundity of thought that must come from sitting in pristine nature for months – even years – just to capture blisteringly short-lived animal action to fill comparatively minuscule sections of TV viewing with a full eight minutes of advertising in between exhaustive recaps to remind the viewer what’s been going on since the last mind-numbing ad break, which was filled with reminders of upcoming Discovery shows that are just as sensationalised as the one you’re
watching. This is because the advertiser has high-tailed it to the History Channel where Storage Wars is in its fifth season with two spinoffs and competition from the likes of Pawn Stars. There’s even a whole new History Channel, H2, which takes up the slack of programmes that don’t fit into the ‘classic’ History genre like UFO Hunters and Ancient Aliens. A lion gnawing on the hind leg of a bleating buffalo can’t compete anymore. You’d think there would be some respite over at Animal Planet, but the predators in Big Cat Diaries have been written off for pet shows like My Cat from Hell about yet another animal whisperer who psychoanalyses violent fur balls rather than dealing with the root of the problem: their owners, and Tanked in which “Wayde and Brett are back to bring wild aquariums to life in this all-new season!” Even Nat Geo Wild features shows following a similar formula by focusing on domestic animals and their handlers like Shear Madness, which takes us on a journey with a city-girl-turned-sheepfarmer as she juggles her many farm animals and her family of five children. Then we can ride along with veterinarian ‘Dr. Pol’ as he performs monster cavity searches on wide-eyed livestock. But there’s hope. As always the first to react to any questionable behaviour on
the part of western culture are those bastions of good society, the Norwegians. Not even the History Channel’s bloody speculations in Vikings can draw this crowd. They’re bored with pillage – it’s so 9th century. So the Norwegians have invented Slow-TV. Norway’s National Broadcaster, NRK, fixed one single camera to the front of a train and took us on a seven-hour rail journey to Bergen which proved remarkably popular, awakening as it did that sense of slow travel that inspires writers like Paul Theroux to their musings. A six-day ferry cruise along the fjords soon followed as did an eight-hour knitting epic in the land where wool is a second skin. Have you ever seen a Viking scratch an itch? Ultimately, there’s hope here for the classic wildlife documentary. Those somnambulistic communions with nature are being revived on our screens with NRK’s latest, Piip Show, a ‘reality show’ featuring wild birds that flock to little bird-houses which are scale versions of places humans hang out in, such as a children’s room replete with pretty wallpaper and photos of mom and dad; a nest and chicks; and even a version of the popular Oslo coffee shop, Java. No croissants here, just bird seeds. Tits pop in and out for a fill-up, magpies shoulder their way to the counter, and if that doesn’t sound exciting enough, the odd squirrel sets the birds aflutter. And in the corner, a TV airs scenes of their feathery friends in repose, a silent screen completely ignored by the patrons of this little café.
OPINION
| ADCETERA
Lowe Johannesburg appoints new creative kingpin “There are two currencies in agencies – pecuniary currency and creative currency. If you don’t have the latter you are just a doppelgänger,” says Bruce Anderson, the newly appointed Executive Creative Director at the Johannesburg branch of advertising agency, Lowe + Partners SA. Along with wearing high heels on the Boulevard de la Croisette in Cannes and working with Anton Kannemeyer of Bitterkomix on a baby food brand, Anderson cites saying yes to a wooing coffee shop rendezvous with CEO of Lowe + Partners SA, Adelle Wapnick, as one of the milestones of his career. Anderson’s creative calling kicked off in 1997 when he joined Ogilvy and Mather Johannesburg. The 17 years of agency experience which followed are decorated with the creative crème de la crème, including TBWA Hunt Lascaris, Gray Johannesburg, The Jupiter Drawing Room and Net#work BBDO. “I have learnt from the best, from my days at Hunt to my time at Net#work. Other than that, experience is only really helpful if you keep doing the same thing.
This is a brand new challenge,” admits Anderson who hopes to help elevate Lowe Jozi from mid-weight street fighter status to champion industry contender. He believes the key to this gear change lies in re-establishing a healthy home grown group of clients as well as re-energising Lowe’s global brands. “I want our work to embody the strange dichotomy of ‘creative logic’. We hope to create an environment that stimulates and nurtures great creative ideas (not just ads) that impact on the social and cultural tensions unique to South Africa. A fun and stimulating place but most of all this has to be place where our people find reason to get out of bed in the morning – imagine that,” adds Anderson. Listing his greatest challenges as “finding a black T-shirt to wear in the morning”, “not eating lunch at my desk,” and “getting home in time to see my baby daughter before she goes to bed,” Anderson’s disposition seems to be one of poised positivity. When asked what he is most excited about, his response was simply: “The future.”
Bruce Anderson Wapnick concludes: “In the short time that Bruce has been at Lowe + Partners SA, he has made his presence felt in such a positive way. He shares the same value
As far as the eye can SeeSayDo
project and great skill within their own jobs, on board,” said Illunga. Liandi Kirkham, COO of SeeSayDo added: “I feel like our differentiating factor goes beyond the value we offer. We want our users to feel that they can benefit from the rewards, but that advertising can make their lives better, and that they can do it on their own terms.”
At a first glance, the concept of getting paid to watch adverts sounds far too good to be true to the discerning consumer who, plagued daily by false promises and scams, has become accustomed to asking – what’s the catch? They may find it refreshing to find out that in this instance, there isn’t one. SeeSayDo.mobi is an advertising platform which runs on a win:win business model, incentivising a consumer’s brand experience while providing companies with critical product feedback and a shot at reaching the Holy Grail of marketing… a call to action.
Attention as an asset Aside from creating effective channels of communication between brands and their target consumers, SeeSayDo aims to empower its users by turning the attention they are willing to apply to an advert, into a useful currency. Once a consumers have registered on the SeeSayDo site, they are eligible to receive rewards in the form of airtime, cash or data. The process is selfexplanatory: See – watch the available adverts which offer payment on the site.
system of the team here at Lowe and that is what we believe is going to take Lowe from strength to strength.” – Carly Barnes
Building BRICS
Kali Ilunga and Liandi Kirkham Say – answer a few questions about the advert. Do – respond to an invitation to further your experience and contact with the brand.
A savvy start-up For Kali Ilunga, global CEO of SeeSayDo, his experience in the realm of digital marketing, which included founding the mobile content platform, Spoken Ink,
brought about an idea to create a service which would appeal to a large mobile audience. From the phase of inception, Ilunga believed that by developing a vision for the company which exceeded functionality, and investing in the right team, his company would reach stand-out status among any potential competitors. “The thinking was that a start-up is similar to a train, which could change direction at any time. It was important to get people who had a passion for the
“When it came time to launch, it was quite clear that emerging markets were the place to go as they contain large populations with access to phones, and see cash, airtime and data as valuable commodities,” said Ilunga who considered Brazil, Russia, India and China before settling on South Africa as the home for his business. “We know that if we get it right in South Africa, because of the youth market and how mobile savvy they are, we could succeed anywhere,” commented Ilunga. Although the goal is to eventually expand reach into Africa, Ilunga wanted South Africans to feel like they were an integral part of the story and pioneers in the new culture of interactive mobile advertising. Ilunga plans to develop a SeeSayDo app and make the platform accessible across all devices. He concluded: “2013 was about testing the brand, 2014 is about establishing it and from there we will allow the opportunities which come our way, to guide us.” – Carly Barnes
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ADCETERA
| Report on the South African commercials industry
JWT interns nail BBC’s global challenge
JWT SA interns: Catherine Andrews, Tali Halili and Thandeka Kunene Students from the AAA School of Advertising received more than just international props when they took the top spot in a creative challenge, set by the BBC World News Service. When Catherine Andrews, Tali Halili and Thandeka Kunene began an internship at JWT South Africa in November 2013, they looked forward to gaining practical creative experience with the highly regarded international
advertising agency. Their training was fast-tracked when they were assigned as competing participants in a BBC challenge targeted at young creatives based outside of the UK. The project presented a perfect opportunity for three bright eyed and bushy tailed interns to get their hands dirty working on a real life pitch, with the extra perk of being able to add some serious stand-out cred to their CVs and a
cut of the £3 000 prize money to their student bank accounts. The JWT interns responded to the global brief, which was was to sell the BBC Worldwide Service to the youth market in their own country, with a concept which has become contagious on the social media scene: FOMO – Fear Of Missing Out. “We all have this fear that there are far better events and things happening other than what we are doing,” says Halili who notes that a lot of people were motivated to watch the news to constantly stay in the know and avoid awkward conversations where they may not know what people are talking about. “Being able to join in group conversations becomes important. So we put the two findings together... and BOOM! A brilliant idea was born!” she adds. Ronnie Malden, Creative Director of JWT Johannesburg thought their interpretation of the brief was very effective: “The idea that the BBC can ‘squash’ FOMO is right and relevant for the youth market. FOMO really resonates with their culture of Facebook, Twitter and social media.” Together with Art Director John Meyer, Malden offered guidance throughout the process, which he believed was a valuable undertaking for the students.
“It gave them the opportunity to think through their idea, their strategy and their execution. They also learned about the pressure of doing a project in real time with a real deadline in a real agency environment,” says Malden. Under expert mentorship, Halili, Andrews and Kunene were able to complete a crash course in conceptualising, teamwork and project management which resulted in the epic win they had been hoping for. “When we received the news we were all in complete surprise! The first thing I did was phone Tali and Thandeka, we screamed solidly for about five minutes in excitement. We were so happy and humbled, we still can’t believe it,” says Andrews. A BBC statement concludes: “We had a brilliant response to the Global Creative Challenge, and were overwhelmed with the amount of outstanding, creative entries we received from all corners of the globe. The winning entry was chosen due to its particularly pertinent insight into the youth of South Africa (and possibly the youth of the developed world). It also ties in very well to their creative concept around promoting the BBC to this particular audience.” – Carly Barnes
agency and allowing the production process to happen naturally,” added Cox and Slim. Staying true to the genre, the ad features an epic ‘I-can-barely-watch’ stunt, involving a jump across an eight-metre gap, seven stories high. Pyranha Stunts, who had just wrapped shooting on Neil Blomkamp’s Chappie, rigged and supervised the action
sequences while lead actor, Regan Ross performed the jump himself. This meant that the editor, Julian Redpath of Left Post Productions, was able to use one single take of the action, rather than have to edit a number of angles. Cox and Slim said: “We set up the stunt rigs the day before shooting which allowed us a few hours of rehearsal with Regan to get him comfortable, as well as giving us a good idea on how best to shoot the moment. Although we covered the main jump from various angles, the fact that Regan did the stunt himself allowed us to shoot it without ever having to cheat a stunt-double.” Using an Arri Alexa camera, DOP Werner Maritz shot most of the footage using loose hand-held camera work, which aligned with the style of a contemporary action movie. In addition, Lars Cox operated a second camera so that enough shots were taken to allow for a fast-paced edit. The production team included Devi Lazanas who was the production manager, Sabelo Tywabi as the production co-ordinator, Keenan McAdam who handled art direction, Keno Naidoo who was responsible for post stunt rig clean-ups as well as VFX and Craig Simonetti from Pudding Colour Services who graded the footage. “It always helps when you work with a great agency, crew and cast,” concluded Cox and Slim. – Carly Barnes
Getting in on the ACTion A New York cop, Russian style gangsters, gunshots and a subliminal hostage. No, this is not a tagline for the next Van Damme blockbuster – it’s the premise of the ACTII Not Just For Movies Anymore TV commercial, by Volcano Advertising and Egg Films. The action-packed advert, which tricks the viewer into believing they are watching a real movie scene or trailer, was shot at the end of January 2014 in the gritty urban landscape of Braamfontein, Johannesburg. Egg Film’s Nicci Cox, who produced the spot, and Slim, the director, said the concept relied on misdirecting the viewer so as to set them up for the twist at the end. “The overall idea was that of recreating a clichéd movie moment and genre, except that it is not being viewed by the ACTII Hero in a theatre / home, where one typically enjoys popcorn, but for real. In a nutshell, ACTII now comes premade and bagged, and can be enjoyed anywhere, anytime,” said Cox and Slim. Cox and Slim have a great, collaborative relationship with Volcano Advertising, having previously worked
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Screen Shot from ACTII popcorn commercial with their creative team; Francois Boshoff, Lucky du Plessis and Tarryn Bezuidenhout on a number of campaigns. “The Volcano creatives are very open-minded to directors’ treatments as long as the approach remains true to, or betters the idea. From there they are always completely trusting in the team and process. The client, Harris Hanjalic is also amazing at completely trusting his
| ADCETERA
Remember when you got excited about banking? Remember Hungry Hippos? Slinkies? Giant, friendly, multi-coloured escargot (without garlic) crossing the road? Blue-eyed parking metres? Balloon zoo animals delighting passersby in the city? Perhaps… depending on what time of night you found yourself in downtown Jo’burg in the 1980s after a long evening out… or if you were a child in that decade. Johannesburg-based commercials director Slim, of Egg Films, applied his enchanting touch to create Standard Bank’s magical realist ad for its new app. Well-known for his creative and innovative approach, Slim succeeds in inspiring childlike joy in his depiction of the management of finances. The director and the ad department ingeniously created 90% of the girl’s vivid imagination in-camera, staying true to the 80s vibe and the organic process of what children see in their mind’s eye. Irresistible and heralding from the 80s, brightly coloured furry children’s toys, featured in the commercial, were inspired by the puppets from The Muppets and Sesame Street, slinkies and the Hungry Hippos game – things a young girl would
Standard Bank ap commercial have known and experienced during that time. Thousands (perhaps millions) of balloons were used to create enchanting, multi-coloured animals, boggling the mind, as they surround the little girl. Of those, 90% were created in-camera while small supplements were added in post.
Fantasy With all the magical additions, one would expect that the ad is saturated with VFX, used to create this fantasy city. But Slim kept things authentic. “In keeping with the 80s styling, we tried to keep as much in-camera as possible, but Sinister Studios did help with a few things, like the giant slinky coming down the building.
“The street puppets were shot on Chroma and dropped in during post, but they were real builds with the puppeteers from CFX. Similarly, the parking meters and the snail car were real but helped along in post,” adds Slim. As open briefs are almost always harder to interpret and bring to life, the director says: “the most challenging thing was deciding on which parts of the little girl’s imagination to show. We had hundreds of ideas, so the hardest part was whittling them down to what felt right for a girl in that time period, and what was possible in terms of the budget and the timeframe.” The music composed by Rich Aronson is a perfect accompaniment to the ad, featuring vocals reminiscent of Satchmo’s
gravelly sound and the way in which he used his voice for expressive purposes. Shot in downtown Johannesburg over three days, the ad was edited by Saki Bergh at Left Post Production, Sinister Studios did the VFX and Sterling Sound was responsible for the audio post production. Adam Livesey and Matthew Brink were the executive creative directors, Mike Groenewald was the creative director, Nico Botha was the copywriter and Nicola Taylor was the art director. Look closer next time you pass a public phone booth, an open manhole or rush round the corner of building, and gaze back, a Muppet might just be stealing a shy glance at you… – Martie Bester
cat jumping on and off the bus as well as when the cat is running through the city in the rain. It’s great that the creatives from Jupiter were very open to alternative approaches, hence we ended up opting for animation,” continues Xandau.
The delight is in the details in this spot with little purrs and meows adding to a light and playful soundtrack, the reflection of the moon appearing in a rippling paw print puddle and a few uniquely South African nods and references. Xandau outlined some of the inspiration behind the visuals: “As a starting point we were influenced by the illustrations of Chris Ware as well as animations by Charlotte Cambon. From there we tried to create a new style and look that would become synonymous with Lucky Pet as a South African favourite. People really seem to respond well to the South African nuances in the commercial, which I think is great.” Black Ginger post-production in Cape Town handled the animation process of the project with Darrin Hofmeyr as the animation supervisor. “The majority of the commercial – especially the cat – was executed in classic 2D animation, but a few details like the train, cars, birds and humans were executed in 3D, but then also rendered out to look like 2D,” says Xandau. A 90-second version of the commercial can be viewed on the internet, while a 60-second and a 30-second version will appear on South African satellite television. – Carly Barnes
The Quest for cute A ridiculously cute and furry feline is the star in a commercial for Lucky Pet cat food, produced by Cape Town-based production company, Golden Planes. The advert was originally set to feature a real live cat, which embarks on an epic journey to the sea in search of an oceanic feast but a call was made to execute the concept as an animation and the results are paw-sitively adorable. Director Porteus Xandau and producer Herman Le Roux from Golden Planes were given the brief by Cape Town advertising agency, The Jupiter Drawing Room, whose client was looking to increase the awareness of their product Lucky Pet cat food. “The thing that we found really sets Lucky Pet apart from competitor brands is that they only specialise in real fish flavours,” says Xandau, who worked closely with the creative team to develop a concept which would highlight this product draw card. “The campaign message is simple… “It’s fish they’re after!” Hence, the cat’s epic journey from the city to the sea,” adds Xandau.
Screen grab from The Quest
“Believe it or not, this cat’s journey was originally envisioned as a live action commercial. Of course, rather quickly it became clear that live action was going to become a logistical nightmare, especially considering the scenes with the
April 2014 | SCREENAFRICA | 17
FILM
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Made in Jo’burg: The Fastest Film Ever
QUICK SHOOT: Director Johnny Barbuzano and crew on the set of Shotgun Garfunkel
From concept to screen, South African movie, Shotgun Garfunkel: The Fastest Film Ever Made, was shot in 10 days, 10 hours and 30 minutes, utilising Johannesburgbased crew, locations, equipment, sound and post-production facilities to deliver an end product that highlights the heart and soul of Jozi, a glorious, multi-faceted, and fascinating city.
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fter winning the Best Feature Film award at Jozi Film Festival 2014 (JFF2014), facing formidable competitors such as Of Good Report, iNumber Number and Durban Poison, writer and director Johnny Barbuzano says: “We really wanted to show off Johannesburg as a character and in a way that still had not been fully explored. We are lucky to live in a place that offers anything from first world city to grungy yet dynamic inner city living”. Producer Bryan van Niekerk comments on the coming-of-age film that deals with 30-somethings stuck in the daily grind and looking for a new way to relive their lost youth: “We touch on the stuff that we’re going through personally and that our mates and contemporaries are dealing with. It’s that real-life quarter-life crisis stuff that affects the rest of our lives.” Producer Eduan van Jaarsveldt passionately adds: “The movie is about getting old and fat.”
Jozi indie film Van Niekerk emphasises that Jo’burg, as a strategic location for movies, whether local or international, is full of energy and promise. “It’s an often maligned city and it was lekker to engage with it in a way that only locals can appreciate. We wanted to make a Jozi indie film, relevant to our generation and one that resonated with a market that isn’t only keen to watch candid camera and apartheid dramas.” Making a film as fast as possible meant the filmmakers could fund it for next to nothing. According to writer and actor
Meren Reddy, “We spent a little over R12 000 of our own money for odds and ends.” Writer and actress Tiffany Jones Barbuzano adds: “We wanted to make a fast film, a record-breaking movie, but we also wanted to make a good film that resonated with audiences. Being the best feature film at JFF2014 validated what we tried so hard to do.”
Generosity and energy Jo’burgers, both inside and outside of the film industry, pulled their weight once they heard a world record was about to be shattered – and as the crew and cast discovered, everything is possible in this city of mesmerising contrast and boundless opportunity. “We found that everyone wanted to be part of something different and exciting. The generosity and energy of the people in Johannesburg was the reason for the film’s success,” says Van Jaarsveldt. Barbuzano attributes the quality and speed of the success of the film to “the art of getting lucky. South African crews are well-equipped to shoot fast. If you have a small efficient crew, you’d be surprised what local crews are capable of.” Tiffany elaborates that they were fortunate to get freebees from local gear houses, such as Nates Audio Visual and Sony SA which had just released the F55 in South Africa at the time. “It was such a team effort, with everyone pulling their weight and no time for diva attitudes. If there was a problem, we solved it as a team. It was a truly
collaborative experience and being the social creatures we are, I think it stirred all of the right stuff in us. We are so proud of the final result because we know what we all went through to make it a reality,” explains Van Niekerk. Mentions Barbuzano: “Primarily the film was made as a ‘calling card’. We wanted to show what we were able to do with no budget and little time. Hopefully this film will be a kickstarter to future projects with a budget and, adds write and actor Asher Mikkel Stoltz, “We are going to continue creating independent films that speak to what we love watching and hopefully develop a following for future projects”.
All on the same team In terms of the South African film industry, Barbuzano says that “we’re all on the same team. Our industry is too small to hate on each other the way people do. If one does well, it benefits the entire industry. People must ‘jealous down’, get on with their own shit and support their contemporaries. “Stop talking about amazing ideas and just get it done. It takes one person with a mad idea and there are so many people willing to be involved in something good, inspiring and different,” he concludes. Shotgun Garfunkel was edited and graded at Mushroom Media and the sound mix was done at Produce Sound. Retroviral and Plastic Duck Armada handled all the social media and web page hosting. – Martie Bester
| FILM
The Seoul Connection Raoul Dyssell is a Cape Town-born and raised writer / director who has just released his first feature film, which is set and produced, not in his homeland, but in the country that he has now adopted as his own – South Korea.
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n March, in the South Korean capital of Seoul, the feature debut of two of the Korean film industry’s newest talents was premiered. Titled Amiss, the film centres around the suicide of a young girl and her father’s search for answers and retribution. Told through flashbacks, the story reveals that none of the people closest to her are what they at first seem – or what they perceive themselves to be. Set in Seoul and starring a cast of Korean and American actors, the mystery thriller was co-written and directed by two immigrants who had decided to make South Korea their home – American William Sonbuchner and South African Raoul Dyssell. In April, Dyssell will proudly bring his film back to the city of his birth for a once-off South African screening.
The Korean aesthetic Dyssell discovered that he had a particular affinity with Korean cinema when he was 17, after seeing Park Chan-wook’s Oldboy for the first time. But it was Bong Joon-ho’s Memories of a Murder that drew him to Korean culture as a whole and instilled in him an obsession with the country’s cinematic aesthetic. “I was struck by the raw, visceral emotion present in many of the Korean films I saw and by Korea purely as an aesthetic, says Dyssell. “I loved the sound of the language, the acting and most of all, the nature of the storytelling and how unpleasantly real it was at times. I had decided in my first year of college – studying Film and Media Production at the University of Cape Town – that I wanted to make films of a similar nature and in my final year I decided that I would go to Korea.”
KOREAN CINEMA AFFINITY: Raoul Dyssell on the set of Amiss
A community of expats In Seoul, Dyssell found himself among the city’s large community of expats, which no doubt eased his efforts to settle in the city. “It was tough – of course there are language and cultural barriers but when you travel, you have to adapt to survive and many of the barriers I’ve faced have been overcome with adaptation. But here in Korea, and specifically in Seoul, there is a natural love for cinema. There is an ocean of volatile energy immersed within the neon lights that any artist can tap into and absorb… Seoul has become one of the most globalised cities in the world and there is a significant community of
expats who have come here to make their dreams come true.” One of these expats was William Sonbuchner, the founder of the Seoul Filmmaker’s Workshop, which drew expats and locals alike to come together and share their love of cinema. “I was surprised to realise I wasn’t the only foreigner who wanted to make movies in Korea. There’s a support base here and we are all helping each other to the top.” Dyssell and Sonbuchner joined up with several fellow immigrants to make Amiss, completing the film on weekends and at night on a very small budget. The circumstances under which it was made generated quite a buzz and drew viewers to the Seoul premiere. The film has its South African premiere in Cape Town on 4 April. There have not yet been any serious talks about distribution. The hope is that these two screenings will spark interest among distributors.
Settled for good Dyssell is now settled in Korea with no plans to return to South Africa or live anywhere else. “It’s my home now,” he says. “My wife is Korean and I have
fallen in love with the culture and the people. But as far as filmmaking goes, I don’t see myself being limited by borders and I plan to travel the world making films. I have several treatments in development at the moment, and not all of them are set in Korea. Two of them are set in South Africa, one of them a science fiction story.” Dyssell makes his living through the production company he founded, Roll the Dice Pictures. “We’ve become the go-to company for indie bands here in Seoul to have their music videos made but I’m looking to break into the K-pop (Korean pop) market too… We might be based in Korea but we’re a global company, and we plan to work with artists from every corner of the globe. Our main focus will always be feature films and specifically, genre feature films.” One of the most important commandments of writing is ‘write what you know’ and as a result the conventional wisdom has been that a writer in a foreign culture would find it difficult to write a story based in that culture. Dyssell disagrees. “I think that travelling, through the experience of new cultures, languages, settings and relationships, only moulds one into a better writer, bursting with ideas. For me, coming to Korea and walking under the bright city lights, or taking the bullet train to the other side of the country, has been very inspiring. Amiss, therefore, is a product of the collision of east and west…” – Warren Holden
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FILM
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SA heist thriller a class act Donovan Marsh’s acclaimed heist thriller iNumber Number, produced by Quizzical Pictures, gets its official nationwide release in April. Thereafter it is set for a North American run and has also been optioned for a Hollywood remake.
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Number Number began life fairly innocuously as an extension of the first season of the SABC1 show, Class Act, broadcast in 2010. This reality competition show, in the vein of Idols or South Africa’s Got Talent, set out to find a star among scores of aspiring South African actors. The format was originated by writer-director Donovan Marsh, an established filmmaker with credits such as Dollars and White Pipes and Spud to his name. In that first season, the search ended with the discovery of a new talent in the form of S’dumo Mtshali, an aspiring actor from Durban. One of the prizes awarded to Mtshali was the chance to star in a feature film, which Marsh would write and direct. “Part of the object of the TV show was to build an audience around a particular actor in the hopes that those fans would then go to the cinemas,” says Marsh. “What we wanted to do was find a leading man, an action hero, so the film had to encapsulate that.” To fill this brief, Marsh wrote iNumber Number, a very South African story that operated within the familiar parameters of international mainstream cinema’s heist and ‘buddy cop’ genres.
over and over. So for them to see it in the South African context created freshness for them. They watch it and think, ‘Wow, I’ve never seen places like this, never seen people like this or heard people speak like this.’”
From Joburg to Toronto, to the world iNumber Number was accepted for screening at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival, which acted HOLLYWOOD CALLING: Donovan Marsh on the set of iNumber Number did. After a bidding war between three major studios, Universal ultimately bought the rights to exhibit iNumber Number in North America as well as the option to remake the film. Another company, Fortissimo, then picked up the rights to sell into other territories, which it has also done. All of this was due entirely to the prestige that comes with being accepted at Toronto. The festival is a trusted platform on which North American distributors can acquire foreign content, for which they are evidently very hungry. “What I’ve learned through my interactions with Hollywood,” Marsh says, “is that they frown on their own mainstream, commercial content even more than we do. It pays the bills but they are constantly after something more interesting and that’s why a film like iNumber Number appeals to them.”
Fresh yet familiar The finished product combines the familiarity of these formats with the freshness of an authentic South African setting. It was this combination of recognition and newness, Marsh believes, that led to the film being picked up for North American distribution early in 2013 by US company, XYZ Films. “It’s a genre film so Americans are used to the conventions,” he says. “It’s a heist film and I think it lives very solidly within those conventions. We didn’t try to do anything ‘arty’ or unusual with the genre. So they recognised that and liked it. But this is also a tired genre. It’s been done
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as the portal through which the film accessed the international market. “It’s the second biggest film festival in the world, so it’s quite a big string in your bow to be accepted there,” says Marsh. “And as you’re accepted you get the attention of a lot of people. People actually compete to represent you.” XYZ Films approached Marsh even before the Toronto screening. He sent them a screener of the film and they immediately offered to sell the distribution rights for North America, as well as the remake rights, which they duly
Headed for Hollywood The international interest in iNumber Number has naturally attracted attention to its writer-director. Marsh has acquired a Hollywood agent and is assured involvement with the remake of the film (if it happens, which is not guaranteed) as an associate producer. He was originally offered the right to direct the Hollywood version but his agent advised him against it – “you don’t want to make the same film twice,” Marsh says. He has been taking
meetings with producers and studios who have been inviting him to share ideas on their projects. He is also receiving a constant flow of new scripts from his agent. Hollywood, it seems, is calling and Marsh is happy to answer its call – but with caution and an open mind. “I never really had aspirations for Hollywood,” he says. “I suppose I always wanted to make at least one Hollywood film and I don’t know whether I will manage to make it or not, but I’m now playing in that arena. I’m reading scripts, I’m involved in a lot of pitches – my agent has been amazing. Long may that live. Whether I am able to compete effectively there remains to be seen – there are a lot of competent people there – but just the fact that I’m getting the chance is amazing.” Locally, Marsh is attached to write and direct the adaptation of Lauren Beukes’ science-fiction novel, Zoo City, which is still in development, a hot property that has received a lot of international attention. In the meantime, iNumber Number is about to be tested on its home market, being released on 25 April. It will be interesting to see if South African viewers respond as well as the North American distributors have and whether the audience development strategy at the heart of the Class Act concept will pay off. iNumber Number is set for local release on 25 April. – Warren Holden
| FILM
DIRECTOR SPEAK NNYNO JOHU ZA B R BA
PASSION IGNITED: Johnny Barbuzano on set
Writer and director Johnny Barbuzano’s first feature length film Shotgun Garfunkel: The Fastest Film Ever Made, won the Best Feature Film award at Jozi Film Festival 2014. Barbuzano studied acting, directing and writing at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, originally intending to pursue a career as an actor. However, ‘meeting’ filmmaking legends such as Martin Scorsese, Kevin Smith, Quentin Tarantino, Spike Lee, Emir Kusturica, Francois Truffaut and Federico Fellini during his time as a student, ignited his passion for directing and telling stories.
WHICH DIRECTORS (LOCALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY) INSPIRED YOU TO BECOME A DIRECTOR AND DO YOU HAVE A MENTOR IN THE INDUSTRY? I love different directors for specific reasons and different genres. Currently, I’m inspired by Alejandro González Iñárritu (Biutiful, 21 Grams, Babel) and David O. Russell (American Hustle, Silver Linings Playbook). I love complex character-driven films that seem small on the surface but leave you with a huge impact long after watching the film. Locally, I think Barry Berk (Sleeper’s Wake) is extremely gifted – I think there’s a huge film around the corner for him. Akin Omotoso (Man on Ground) has a very unique and interesting voice. I’ll also make a point of watching films by Craig Freimond (Material) and Donovan Marsh (Dollars and White Pipes). For me, Donovan’s iNumber Number is the most exciting film to come out of this country in a long time. Since university, my mentor has always been casting director Moonyeenn Lee. She has an incredible love and
understanding of good film, story and acting. She has an enormous amount to offer our industry and I wouldn’t be close to where I am without her mentorship. WHAT TRULY INSPIRES YOU? I love and hate humans. I’m always fascinated by how people behave. Telling stories about people will always be my main goal. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT SHOTGUN GARFUNKEL’S WIN AT JFF? It’s always great to be acknowledged in some way. It’s flattering that someone else got and cared about your personal story and it gives you the confidence to keep doing what you’re doing. Ultimately though, films need to put bums on seats. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF AS A DIRECTOR? On one hand, I’m very fussy and critical, especially when it comes to acting. However, I’m also very chaotic and love the challenge of getting everything right in one take. I always look for roughness and immediacy in my storytelling. I always aim to create a space where actors can play and find the magic in the space, without the technical aspects getting in the way. I’ll always choose a good performance over a pretty shot. I love and respect actors, and will always take my lead from them. WHAT ARE YOUR TOP THREE FILMS OF ALL TIME AND WHY? Too many for so many different reasons. Uhm, Do the Right Thing (Spike Lee), True Romance (Tony Scott) and Amores Perros (Alejandro González Iñárritu). WHICH PROJECTS ARE YOU CURRENTLY INVOLVED IN? I’m currently working on television shows. I just finished Rockville S2 and Check Coast. I’m also developing a couple of screenplays.
HOW DO YOU CHILL OUT? I watch way too much television when my son’s asleep, or I play superheroes, hide-and-go-seek and jump on the trampoline with my son. IF YOUR LIFE HAD A SOUNDTRACK WHAT SONGS WOULD BE ON IT? Any soundtrack from director Cameron Crowe (Say Anything, Almost Famous, Vanilla Sky). WHAT IS THE STRANGEST THING TO HAVE HAPPENED TO YOU ON SET? Anything concerning extras. My wife has a theory that they’re all bred in a plant in the West Rand in Gauteng. WHAT ADVICE CAN YOU OFFER ASPIRING FILMMAKERS (DIRECTORS AND WRITERS)? Know the story you want to tell and stick to it. The only advantage you have is your own story and vision. WHAT EXCITES YOU ABOUT THE FUTURE OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN FILM INDUSTRY? We’re beginning to make a lot of different films in different genres. We’re finally coming out of the ‘socio-political’ genre’s shadow and creating a new style of South African film. WHAT WOULD SURPRISE PEOPLE ABOUT YOU? I’m the worst DIY person ever. In fact, my dishwasher has just blown up and I’d rather finish this interview than face the burning electrical smell in the kitchen. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE ONELINER FROM A MOVIE? The line from Babe: “That will do pig, that will do.” – Compiled by Martie Bester
April 2014 | SCREENAFRICA | 21
DOCUMENTARY
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Miners Shot Down: Business as usual? On 16 August 2012, police armed with 4 000 rounds of live ammunition brutally killed 34 South African miners on a wildcat strike at Lonmin platinum mine in Marikana near Rustenburg. In Miners Shot Down, awardwinning documentary filmmaker Rehad Desai questions why a simple wage dispute turned into bloody carnage.
IN GUN SIGHT: Mgcineni Noki, ‘the man in the green blanket’ before he was shot 14 times
M
iners Shot Down is director Rehad Desai’s award-winning, powerful, disturbing and insightful documentary which follows the shooting and killing of 34 miners in what is known as the ‘Marikana Massacre’, and the days leading up to it. In a culmination of events that can only be described as a mass execution by the police, the film has raised global awareness for the plight of the South African mine workers who lost their lives, their widows, those who are injured for life, and those still working and living in appalling conditions.
Defending human rights Miners Shot Down had its world premiere at the One World Human Rights Film Festival in Prague in the Czech Republic and subsequently won the Right To Know award, ‘which is presented to a film that makes an exceptional contribution to the defense of human rights’. Comprised of human rights advocates, international representatives of the non-profit sector and donors, the jury selected Miners Shot Down from 12 documentaries featured in this category. The jury commented: “Using testimonies, and live and archive footage of the tragic unfolding events the filmmaker tells the story through powerful images of miners’ protest and the police response. “The film manages to operate on a number of levels: it tells the tale of both individual struggle and tragedy, but also
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Director Rehad Desai of the reality of life in the Rainbow nation, nearly 20 years after the end of apartheid, where old racial divisions are replaced or translated into dividing lines between rich and poor. “Rehad Desai leaves no stone unturned in documenting the existence of slavery and rampant capitalism which is corrupting the state’s elites and undermining basic rights.” Before national government elections in South Africa on 7 May, Desai is striving to raise as much awareness as possible of how, as he sees it, the African National Congress (ANC) and their allies in the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) are abusing the very people who voted them into power. Additionally, he wants to highlight police corruption and a struggle hero turned elitist who, by all accounts, lobbied government to increase the police presence at Marikana and gave direct orders to officers to use live ammunition.
A hero ruined by the Midas touch
open fire. Desai recalls seeing workers’ heads blown off.
This now obsolete hero is identified by Desai as Cyril Ramophosa, Deputy President of the ANC and, at the time of the killings, a member of the Lonmin board. Widely regarded by millions of South Africans as one of the most prominent struggle leaders during apartheid, Ramophosa built the trade union NUM, fighting against the shocking living and working conditions miners faced. Although a lot has changed for Ramophosa, who now has a net worth of around R7 billion, very little has changed for the mineworkers. Says Desai: “They face terrible working conditions, it’s hot down there and tough. It takes hours to get down and they work up to 10 hours a day six days a week. After all that, they take home R5 000 a month while living in shacks that are freezing in winter and boiling in summer with little or no access to water, sanitation and electricity.” The Marikana Massacre, Desai believes, with Ramophosa and other high-ranking officials in the ANC pulling the strings, strongly brought home the message that the miners’ appalling conditions were met with the equally disturbing reality of no political allegiance.
Scene two: Execution
Scene one: An echo from the past A koppie near the Nkaneng informal settlement had become a gathering place. Sixteen miners are killed as police
Miners fled from the scene after the shooting started and were hunted down by police members on the ground and in the air. Sixteen miners lost their lives as they hid behind rocks and were shot countless times, mostly killed execution style.
Democracy’s demise? “This is the most dangerous thing that can happen to a democracy – when government and the police step into the conflict,” stresses Desai, who was heavily involved in the struggle for freedom. So many questions remain unanswered. Why were 580 police officers, including a tactical response team, deployed to Marikana? Why were they armed to the teeth, mowing down miners ‘armed’ with weapons that could not possibly endanger the lives of the heavily armoured men, as is claimed. Most importantly, why were four mortuary vans ordered from Pokeng Mortuary Services at 08h00 on the day of the massacre? “South Africa will never be the same again,” comments Desai. “This is one of the consequences of the Marikana Massacre. Government turning their guns on their support base. When I was there, it felt like being in a dystopian future in an occupied area.” Is South Africa’s democracy under threat? Desai emphasises: “If not, it should be.” – Martie Bester
| DOCUMENTARY
Big Fish students excel with powerful documentaries A ballerina with skin the colour of slick ebony flutters across the stage in Mdu Janda’s Dada the Dancing Swan, while a girl completely stripped of colour becomes well-known South African fashion designer Gert Johan Coetzee’s muse in Beauty Beyond Colour, written and directed by Stanford Gibson. Janda and Gibson, two former students of Big Fish School of Digital Filmmaking in Johannesburg, have received international recognition for their thought-provoking documentaries that address issues beyond the stereotypes of race and colour.
Dada the Dancing Swan Created as part of DStv’s Skills Development Programme, director, writer and editor Mdu Janda’s Dada the Dancing Swan, about world-acclaimed Soweto-born dancer and choreographer Dada Masilo, won a Special Jury Award at
INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION: Thando Hopa in Stanford Gibson’s Beauty Beyond Colour the 12th Sichuan TV Festival in China. Depicting Masilo in her role in a contemporary take on Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake and with comments on her success from relatives and friends, Janda depicts a woman from the township who now has the world en pointe. Janda knew Masilo when they were both children and the filmmaker recalls growing up in poverty after his father was murdered by members of the Inkatha Freedom Party. Never knowing stability, Janda found solace and education in reading and dedicating himself to the arts from a young age. Says Janda: “At the moment I am just trying to bring my stories together, to tell them and be free. I know how it feels to
be a refugee in my own country, I’ve lived in coal yards and in an empty public swimming pool with hundreds of other people. My films focus on history, culture and tradition, and I am aware of the diversity of the country. Janda is developing other projects and is involved in creating a filmmakers’ skills hub in the Limpopo Province.
Beauty Beyond Colour Auditor turned filmmaker Stanford Gibson’s documentary about Thando Hopa, a public prosecutor and model with albinism, Beauty Beyond Colour, was officially selected for major international film festivals and won Best Short
Documentary at the Mpumalanga Short Film Festival in 2013 and a Special Achievement Award from the Silicon Valley African Film Festival. ‘Designer to the stars’, Gert Johan Coetzee ‘discovered’ Hopa, making her the face of his 2013 Autumn/Winter Collection. Of the movie, Gibson says: “I did the documentary to dispel the negative notions of beauty and how people with albinism are treated very harshly in South Africa. Locally, they face extreme prejudice and in the rest of Africa are hunted for their limbs or for medicinal properties.” “I wanted to interrogate the notion of what beauty is. I think this film came to find me, it sought me out,” he continues. Gibson comes from a coloured community in the Western Cape and attended high school at the then predominantly white DF Malan High School. “I was a dark-skinned child in a community where colour was an issue,” Gibson adds. “Luckily I’m from a loving family where my parents always nurtured me, but I have always wanted to tell a story about the effects of looking different.” Gibson has started his own production company and is directing a new short called Bad Blood, focusing on the widespread, destructive use of the street drug ‘tik’ in coloured communities in Gauteng.
DOCUMENTARY
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Luscious Dosi questions social perspectives in Across the Colour Bar Writer, director and producer Luscious Dosi completed his Honours degree in writing and directing for single and multi-camera in 2012 at the South African School of Motion Picture Medium and Live Performance (AFDA) in Johannesburg where he is now employed as a lecturer in television, while also working on numerous film projects. Most notably, the film he completed in his Honours year, Across the Colour Bar, won Best Documentary at the 2014 Jozi Film Festival. In a searching and fearless
EMOTIONAL STORIES: Luscious Dosi with his award for Best Documentary at the Jozi Film Festival 2014. manner, Dosi tells the story of Ntabiseng Hibbert, a white woman who has lived in the township of Katlehong since the mid-90s. After suffering years of abuse from her husband, Ntabiseng, scared and vulnerable, fled and settled in Katlehong, where ironically, she found a place of safety where she could immerse herself in the local culture and language. “When I visited Katlehong as a child I saw Ntabiseng but it was only when I got the go-ahead for the documentary that I approached her,” says Dosi. “She’s a humble woman, and was shocked that I wanted to talk to her. But I sat down with
her, we spoke and I got to know her.” Dosi recorded her story, started writing a transcript and transformed that into a script which resulted in his 34-minute, winning documentary in which he intimately fleshes out Ntabiseng’s existence, her joys and sorrows, lending powerful structure to a story that does indeed transcend the colour bar. Comments the filmmaker: “We spent about three months on research and shot the doccie on the Sony F3 and Canon 5D in four weeks. It was often an emotional journey when she talked about her 12-year-old daughter Melissa, whom Ntabiseng’s family has never met as
Melissa was fathered by a black man.” Inspired by African cinema from childhood, Dosi grew up in a time when now defunct community cinemas such as Sans Souci in Kliptown in Soweto and the Avalon Theatre in Fordsburg dazzled him with productions from African countries. There he came across movies by Ousmane Sembène, the first film director from an African country to achieve international recognition, best known for movies like Moolaadé, which Dosi regards as inspirational. These moviegoing experiences have prompted him to tell stories with a strong human element, compelling him to tell tales of emotional suffering and prejudice which are ultimately transcended by strength and determination. “I love emotional stories that touch on humanity and am inspired by films from the Middle East, such as A Separation,” adds Dosi. “I need to be moved, I believe that that is what film should be about, changing people’s perspectives. We are working on changing society and social perceptions through the language of film.” Across the Colour Bar has been entered in the Encounters International Documentary Film Festival and the International Black Film Festival in San Francisco. Dosi’s next documentary, funded by the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), is in its production stage and shooting will commence in April. – Martie Bester
Short doccie shines with gritty authenticity
A SIMPLE CAPTIVATING MOMENT: Zolani Ndevu
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To The One I Love, a short student documentary, is a worthy example of how a simple, captured moment is able to completely captivate an audience. In May 2012 Zolani Ndevu, a young filmmaker studying at the Big Fish School of Digital Filmmaking, celebrated his 27th birthday at his home in Khayelitsha. Though surrounded by loved ones, a feeling of incompleteness tugged at him the way it had done his whole life. It was then that Ndevu decided he would not see another birthday without having found his estranged father, who had abandoned him and his mother when he was only one month old. Without a second thought, he picked up a camera and began filming what became the opening scenes of To The One I Love, which documented his journey of self-discovery and healing. “I thought maybe on that day next year, we’d be together again. I decided, let me take my camera and interview my mom, let me do this… and it became a film,” said Ndevu. Equipped with only the small amount
of footage taken on his birthday and the determination to discover his roots, Ndevu pitched his documentary idea to Big Fish, who helped fund his journey to the Eastern Cape with trusted friend and camera operator, Amanda Loqo. The two of them became an unstoppable team of sleuths-cum-producers who were faced with being unwanted visitors, armed with a Sony PMW-EX1 camera and not much else. On a grey and cold day in a small village in rural Eastern Cape, Ndevu came face-to-face with his father. The raw and at times, uncomfortably honest conversation which followed not only honoured the character which Ndevu’s mother had worked so hard alone to build, but brought a shattering reality to the story-ending Ndevu had always imagined. “The plan was that if I find him, we’re going to sit down and talk. I thought he might have other children and we could be this nice family but instead I got stuck at the back of a bakkie in the middle of a field,” said Ndevu.
While Loqo produced and shot the film, Ndevu directed and edited it, which brought him a sense of fulfilment, not only through the filmmaking process, but from sharing his experience with audiences. “Sharing that moment with everyone meant a lot to me. The healing began as soon as I finished editing the film – on days when I feel low and think ‘I don’t have a father’, I watch the film and remember that I do,” comments Ndevu who has dedicated the film to all single mothers and especially his own. The 23-minute doccie was featured locally at the 2014 Jozi Film Festival and the Tri-Continental Film Festival; and internationally at the Silicon Valley African Film Festival in the US and at Festival Plein Sud in France where it won the Professional Jury Award. “I want to encourage people to find their roots, to understand where they come from, to let go of their fears and do what their heart tells them to do,” concludes Ndevu. – Carly Barnes
| DOCUMENTARY
Medical documentary shares an awakening discovery Documentary filmmaker Rina Jooste shares the stories of patients whose lives have been transformed by Dr Wally Nel in the South African film, The Doctor and the Miracle Pill, which featured at the 2014 Jozi Film Festival. It’s hard to imagine that a small doctor’s practice in Springs could be the site of a possible medical breakthrough. Even more surprising is the reluctance in the medical fraternity to further explore the potential of the sleeping pill, Stilnox, which awoke a man from a seven-year coma. Dr Nel has dedicated the latter part of his career to treating braindamaged patients. “What this film does is really give people hope. There’s so much misery and so much hardship out there, so my aim was to tell this story in a positive manner and to show the man behind the discovery and what he has done with it,” says Jooste, who is the film’s producer and director as well as Dr Nel’s niece. A small production team which comprised of Jooste, trainee director and sound technician Herbert Mashishi and cinematographer Gaopie Kaba shot the film in Springs, Johannesburg using a Sony Z1 camera, over a few days in
CONTAGIOUS POSITIVITY: Still from The Doctor and The Miracle Pill August 2012. Izette Mostert did the offline and online edit while the audio final mix was done by Edit Café. “I had a very good team and it was a pleasure to film Dr Wally with his positive and warm attitude that is contagious,” says Jooste, who was faced with the challenge of fitting into Nel’s demanding
schedule and finding appropriate patients who were prepared to appear on camera. While it’s clear that Nel, an honest and humble man of great character, has made some positive and tangible improvements to the lives of the 800 patients he has successfully treated with
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Stilnox, the film fails to probe the really gripping issues on the table, leaving the audience with more questions than they may have had to begin with. The obstacles which Nel faces as he forges forward with his cause range from lacking the financial support required to execute in-depth research or medical trials, unwillingness on the part of the product manufacturer to promote or possibly acknowledge that their product, which is currently prescribed as a sleeping pill, has a number of miraculous and at the same time conflicting qualities, and battling undertones of doubt in the ability of the pill and in the doctor himself. Ironically this controversy, along with a collection of conflicting viewpoints and the feeling that there may be revelations lurking just beneath the surface, is what entices audiences to watch this kind of film, which only manages to skim over a vault of potentially captivating content. “This film was relatively ‘easy’ to produce, although all documentaries have their challenges, but I also chose to keep it simplistic, in line with the man I wanted to portray,” concludes Jooste. – Carly Barnes
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April 2014 | SCREENAFRICA | 25
TELEVISION
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DTT – peace at last or the calm before the storm? With the finalisation of the Department of Communications’ policy on digital migration now imminent, one may be tempted to think that the matter – debated, discussed and delayed ad nauseam over the past several years – is finally settled. However, the opposing parties are still sticking to their guns and questions still remain.
A
s the debate over digital migration has progressed over the past few years, the media has tended to portray it as a stand-off with pay TV giant Multichoice on one side and free-to-air broadcaster etv on the other. A recent war of words between Minister of Communications Yunus Carrim and Multichoice CEO Imtiaz Patel seems to reinforce this perception. But is anything ever that simple? Emotions have run high and while questions arise, few definitive answers are provided.
Lack of public engagement Karen Willenberg, Director of Regulatory and Legal Affairs at M-Net, says: “Decisions are being made today that will affect how South Africans watch TV forever, but no one is explaining the implications of these decisions to consumers. When the time comes to start digital migration, it will be too late. There has been a big gap in terms of just explaining what’s going to happen and how people are going to be affected.” It seems a public outcry is inevitable. By the time migration starts, it may well become another e-toll saga – with the public saying they were not informed and refusing to pay, and the government saying that they were and that the policy is now set in place. The Department’s response to this objection, as captured in Minister
26 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
Carrim’s retort to an open letter from Multichoice to the Department in March, essentially amounts to an ad hominem attack on the multinational pay TV broadcaster. It accuses Multichoice of being a “bullying monopoly” that is afraid of competition in the market it has dominated for years, and as such, has absolutely no place speaking for the country at large and the poor in particular. But the department then offers no counter-argument as to how it is in fact dealing with public engagement on the matter. Requests to the department for comment were not answered at the time of going to print.
STB control Digital migration is unavoidable and necessary. The entire world is making the move and South Africa was meant to be far advanced along the route already, the original deadline having been set for 2008. But the process of deciding on a policy and plan of action for the roll-out has been fraught with false starts and controversy. The most important sticking point so far has been the issue of STB control, with broadcasters and government firmly divided into camps on the issue, from which they do not seem willing to budge. It was realised very early in the process that STBs would be needed, because most South Africans still have analogue TV sets. All parties agreed that this was the right way to go. The STB will convert the digital signal to analogue so that those viewers who still have their analogue television sets will be able to continue watching. Eventually analogue televisions will be phased out completely and the necessity for STBs will fall away. Government is to put out a tender for the manufacture of the boxes and also subsidise their cost for the country’s poorest television-owning households. The debate now is whether or not the free-to-air STB should be equipped with encryption software, just as M-Net and DStv decoders are. Multichoice has opposed this proposal. Willenberg explains: “Logically you can understand why a pay TV operator must invest in encryption, it’s used to control access to content and to disconnect subscribers who don’t pay. The question is, why does free-to-air broadcasting need encryption? It’s a very curious decision to add to the cost and complexity of migration by introducing something that no other country, with the exception of Ukraine, has forced into policy.” For Multichoice and M-Net, Willenberg says, government’s reasons for the decision to include STB control do not satisfactorily
answer this question. Government’s position is that STB control will protect investment in the manufacture of the boxes and will also safeguard the business of local STB manufacturers. If STBs are stolen they can be disabled, and the inclusion of encryption will ensure that the market cannot be flooded with cheap, inferiorquality imports that threaten the livelihood of local manufacturers. It also disputes Multichoice’s claim that only Ukraine has adopted encrypted STBs. Minister Carrim stated in his recent interview with TechCentral that many other countries are adopting the same system, among them Zambia, Uganda, Botswana, Namibia, Nigeria, Malaysia and Belarus. Willenberg’s response to this: “The truth is that not one of the countries listed by the Minister has mandated encryption in policy. The difference in South Africa is that encryption is going to be required in every free-to-air STB as a matter of policy.” The policy’s recent amendment only muddies the waters even further. It now states that STB control is mandated for inclusion in all STBs but broadcasters can choose whether or not to use it. It is thus mandated for manufacture but optional for use. And, the minister insists, those broadcasters who choose to use the encryption systems must bear the costs of doing so.
The issue of competition This brings us to the cause of the ‘war’ that has supposedly been raging over STB control. Multichoice has expressed concern that the inclusion of STB control may effectively subsidise the entrance of pay-TV operators into the market. “When you launch a pay TV service,” Willenberg
says, “decoders and encryption are some of your biggest costs. Government has committed to buying 5 million boxes for the poorest TV households and now the Minister wants to add encryption to make these boxes ready for pay TV. Effectively, government will carry the cost of a decision which will benefit narrow commercial interests. We have opposed this, the SABC has opposed it and community broadcasters have opposed it – at the end of the day, only one broadcaster is in favour of it. It makes no sense to mandate encryption under these circumstances. The objection is not to anyone else entering the pay TV market, that is something anyone is free to do at any time. The question is, why should government fund the entry of other operators?” The commercial operator in question is e.tv, which is rumoured to have pay TV ambitions. When etv was approached to explain their position on the policy, they issued the following statement: “etv accepts government’s decision and we are looking forward to the finalisation of the policy. At this stage, we have no further comment.” The constant back and forth between the differing parties makes it very difficult to discern what the truth of the matter is and what the most desirable option for the common good really should be. Multichoice and government have been very vocal on what their points of view are but other roleplayers have been rather quiet and thus the full picture has yet to emerge. The arguments on both sides carry considerable weight and so it looks as if the implications will only become clear once the roll-out starts, or certainly on the day when the switch is thrown and renegotiating is no longer an option. – Warren Holden
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CAMERAS & ACCESSORIES
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The changing face of the camera industry? Nowadays, a camera is a camera, right? Well not really; a mobile phone could be classed as a camera for filming video and stills, while a traditional stills camera can also be a tool for cinema production – all in high definition. Now HD is giving way to 4K, and not only has the 4K revolution changed the way we acquire footage, it has also changed the way we purchase our cameras.
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f high definition content has already become a standard even in households these days, just how demanding are video resolution requirements in the field of professional videography? Well, to some, video cameras that shoot in full HD may still suffice; however, with the advent of 4K professional video cameras, others may not think the same anymore.
Modular camera systems
HARDWARE UPGRADES: Sony’s F55 will soon be enabled for Apple ProRes and Avid DNxHD codecs
Cameras on the high end of the marketplace have become modular. Not so long ago Sony’s DXC-D35 series emerged as a camera head to which a matching recording ‘dock’ could be mounted. With many formats available to choose from, an ENG shooter could dock a DVCAM, BetaSP, or Beta SX recorder, and so was able to shoot any format required by the broadcaster. Back then there were many advantages to modular design, allowing the camera to record multiple format types. These days this isn’t such a problem because all newly released camcorders record to a file system, and most non-linear editing systems (NLEs) will take most formats with ease provided you are up to date with your software. When RED first released their innovation, the ‘Meccano’ concept, it was seen as revolutionary. The idea behind the design was an infinitely configurable camera, with a number of add-on modules available. Since then many cinema-style cameras have followed suit. Add-on recorders have become the norm, with some cameras designed to take additional modules that blend in seamlessly with the body design. Arri’s range of cameras has taken things further and enhanced designs so that even the sensor can be replaced in the field, and its recording media type is also upgradeable.
4K explosion
PERFECT FOR ENG: Panasonic’s new AJ-PX270, which allows wireless production workflow via LAN
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When Sony announced their F55 and F5 back in October 2012, the big buzz was around 4K. These two modular type cameras made it seem like – as Sony said at the time – the future had arrived. Bringing with it a new workflow based around XAVC, it was clear that they would be the centre of a major strategy for years to come.
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But what’s really exciting is what’s new and upcoming, and Panasonic features prominently in this regard. Long overdue, Panasonic has finally re-entered the cinema realm announcing that their shiny new 4K Varicam will be making its debut at NAB 2014. The Varicam is also a modular system where the camera head can be connected to dockable recording modules and other accessories. In addition to the 4K Varicam head, which has a Super 35mm sensor, the new system features a new 2/3” 1080p head for high speed shooting, which Panasonic calls ‘The Varicam HS’. It can record up to 240fps in AVC-Intra 100. The 4K head, the Varicam 35, has a resolution of 4096 x 2160 (17:9) and the camera features a single CMOS sensor, unlike the Varicam HS which is 3MOS based. It can record 4K RAW but it can also record 4K, UHD, 2K and even right down to 1080p. Panasonic also claims a very impressive sounding 14 stops of dynamic range. In the smaller camcorder range, Panasonic has also launched its first handheld, cloud-based ENG camera with wireless connectivity, enabling recorded content to be shared almost instantly and accessed from anywhere. The AJ-PX270 removes the need for traditional video uplink, perfectly positioning it for the growing live stream freelance news12:13 gathering market. creen Africa and ad 03-14* 3/27/14 AM Page 1
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The camera enables a wireless production workflow via LAN, with additional 3G/4G/LTE application. It will be available from around September 2014.
The world’s first DSLM When Canon first introduced the 5D Mk2 to its DSLR range, its video mode was very much an afterthought designed for journalists, yet it still created a storm. Suddenly, despite the limitations, users could shoot incredibly film-like video with shallow depth of field, a wider dynamic range, and far superior low light capability than many traditional camcorders that may have cost many times the amount. Panasonic are about to break the mould, yet again, with the launch of their new mirrorless flagship, the Lumix GH4. It’s labelling the camera the ‘world’s first Digital Single Lens Mirrorless (DSLM) with 4K video recording’. Capable of recording Cinema 4K (4096 x 2160, 24 fps) and standard QFHD 4K (3840 x 2160, up to 30fps), Panasonic is targeting this high-end Micro Four Thirds camera toward pro filmmakers who utilise equipment like this for a living, as well as advanced hobbyists looking to create 4K home movies. Sony has just declared that they will be adding two new codecs to the F5 and
FIRST 4K DSLM: The Panasonic Lumix GH4
F55 cameras: Apple ProRes and Avid DNxHD. These two formats are the most desired in the industry due to their NLE compatibility and overall quality. Sony already include some great codecs in the F5 and F55 cameras, including XAVC, MPEG2, SR Codec and RAW with the C
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AXS-R5 recorder. However, ProRes and DNxHD support will definitely mean a faster workflow for many productions. This is a hardware upgrade, so it won’t be free – no pricing is available as yet. Things are changing in the camera industry, that’s for sure! – Ian Dormer
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Sony goes ‘Beyond Definition’
4K FOR THE FUTURE: The Sony PMW F-55 family At CABSAT, the main production and broadcast trade show for the Middle East, which was held in Dubai, UAE in March, Sony Professional showcased the company’s “Beyond Definition” vision through a wide array of cameras, professional monitors and workflow solutions. The PMW-F55 was an important part of Sony’s exhibition at CABSAT. It forms part of the company’s 4K Live Production solution. A live demo of the 4K Live
Production system was demonstrated at Sony’s stand. It included the F55 4K system camera chain configuration and the 4K slo-mo server. For production companies to get the full benefit of this function, Sony offers the BPU-4000 baseband processor and SCZ-2002 slo-mo software and PWS-4400 server as part of the production system. With the knowledge that broadcasters around the world are still transmitting in HD rather than 4K, Sony devised the BPU-4000
processor which works with HD camera Control units to allow producers to exploit 4K production technology in order to maximise their HD productions. The system, in addition to allowing simultaneous HD and 4K shooting, as well as live 4K to HD down conversion, includes useful tools like HD cut from 4K footage, which allows reframing, image stabilisation and digital zoom with no loss of HD quality. As Sony’s official press release on the
CABSAT exhibition said: “Being deeply committed to bringing high quality content to the mainstream consumer market, Sony ensures the quality of content recorded in 4K to allow broadcasters, production companies and videographers of all sizes to build a futureproof catalogue of high-end content straight away.”
Two exciting new products in Cine Photo Tools’ inventory Cine Photo Tools is an industry leader, stocking quality products for the photographic and VDSLR market at great prices. It recently announced the arrival of two innovative products that are considerable talking points in the industry. The DJI Phantom is a quadcopter designed for video and stills and has created quite a buzz in the tech world. It is an intelligent, lightweight, remotecontrolled drone that can record great video and photo stills from a thousand feet in the air.
SHARP GLASS: Samyang’s family of cinema lenses
30 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
The Phantom is currently all the rage among both videography heavyweights, such as Philip Bloom and Chase Jarvis, and hobbyists. The range of DJI Phantoms are user friendly and fun to fly. They can be used for journalism and sports – particularly activities such as surfing or rock climbing – wildlife shoots, property development footage, concerts, weddings and much more. The Phantom enables videographers to take their shoots to new heights – literally. Using this device, crews can capture amazing shots from entirely new perspectives. The phantom comes in four models. The Phantom 1 and Phantom 2, to which GoPro action cameras can be attached, and the FC40 and Phantom 2 Vision, which have quality cameras built into them. The second hot new product in Cine Photo Tools’ inventory is the new Cinema Lens Kit by Samyang. Samyang is renowned for their quality lenses at affordable prices. Due to the popularity of these lenses among videographers, Samyang has introduced four new Cinema Kits containing multiple VDSLR lenses. These kits offer value for money
REACHING NEW HEIGHTS: DJI Phantom quadcopter as the cost of the lenses is less than it would be when you buy them individually. These kits come standard in hard protective cases. The Samyang Cine Kits come in four different variations: • Samyang Cinema Kit 1: VDSLR 14mm T3.1 ED AS IF UMC, VDSLR 24mm T1.5 ED AS IF UMC, VDSLR 35mm T1.5 AS AS UMC. • Samyang Cinema Kit 2: VDSLR 14mm T3.1 ED AS IF UMC, VDSLR 35mm T1.5 AS AS UMC, VDSLR 85mm T1.5 AS IF UMC. • Samyang Cinema Kit 3: VDSLR 8mm T3.8 UMC Fish-eye CS II, VDSLR 16mm T2.2 AS UMC, VDSLR 35mm T1.5 AS UMC.
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Samyang Cinema Kit 4: VDSLR 14mm T3.1 ED AS IF UMC, VDSLR 24mm T1.5 ED AS IF UMC, VDSLR 35mm T1.5 AS AS UMC, VDSLR 85mm T1.5 AS IF UMC, 500mm F6.3 DX Mirror. Cine Photo Tools represents the following brands: Redrock Micro, Switronix, Edelkrone, Flolight, Small HD, Quickertek, Sanho Hyper, Savage Paper, Samyang, Chimera, California Sunbounce, Westcott, Zylight, DJI Phantom, Glidetrack, Paralinx, Glidecam, Kinotehnik, Eizo and Broncolor. For more information on these and more of Cine Photo Tools’ offerings, contact 021 462 6933 or visit: www.photohire.co.za.
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Visual Impact drives SA reality production Since the advent of reality television in South Africa, Visual Impact has consistently supplied gear and services to this specialised sector of the industry. In fact, the Johannesburg and Cape Town-based equipment rental facility’s association with the genre goes back to the late 90s before the label, ‘reality’ had even been begun to be applied. Back then Visual Impact provided gear for several seasons of Gladiators, a show which may be seen, in many ways, as a precursor to the reality television genre as we now know it. Well over a decade later, Visual Impact is still the place that the majority of producers in this sector go to for their gear. It currently lists around 16 reality
television productions – both current and upcoming – among its clients and projects. These include one of the country’s most successful shows at the moment, MasterChef SA, as well as international series that have been shot in South Africa, such as Sweden’s Top Model and Germany’s Der Bachelor. Visual Impact deals with all the brand names currently in demand in the industry, but its speciality is Sony, of which it is an authorised dealer. The camera equipment it provides to reality television productions, therefore, are predominantly Sony products. Both MasterChef SA and Idols make extensive use of the PDW-700, which, equipped with the ‘Power HAD FX’ progressive CCD, is able to deliver extremely high quality HD images. Although the industry standard is currently moving towards 4K, this high-end HD camera provides more than suitable quality for the HD and SD broadcasts that are currently the norm in South Africa. In addition to the PDW-700, Sony’s PMW-500 HD CAM EX kits are also extremely popular among Visual Impact’s reality TV clients. Sony’s first XDCAM HD422 camcorder with solid state recording capacity, the PMW-500 supports full-HD 422 50mbps MXF record and playback. The camera’s chassis, a development of the PDW-700 design, is ideal for reality TV shoots
COMPLETE REALITY TV SOLUTIONS: Visual Impact’s gear in operation on the set of Fear Factor because it is lightweight and easily maneuverable. The PMW-EX3 has been much in demand for shows such as Fear Factor, Boer Soek ‘n Vrou, and Bar One Man. While this semi-shoulder camcorder has been discontinued by Sony, Visual Impact’s existing stocks are still being ordered for future productions, including the upcoming Kitchen Queens. Aside from the Sony camera contingent that serves the bulk of Visual Impact’s reality television production clients, the company also supplies GoPro action cameras to the likes of Fear Factor and, when it comes to lensing, Canon’s range of ENG lenses, including the HJ17 HD, HJ22 HD, HJ11 and HJ40 HD, are ideal for reality shoots. Among the sound
recording devices that Visual Impact offers to its reality clients are the PIX 240 and the Convergent Design Odyssey 7Q. The newest addition to Visual Impact’s reality TV production equipment inventory is the Sony PMW-400, a shoulder-mount camcorder that is lightweight and ergonomic, fully catering to a reality crew’s need for the most mobile camera possible, while still capturing high quality HD images. As well as supplying this gear, Visual Impact also offers numerous services to their clients, including live mixing, data wrangling, transcoding and final conform. Visual Impact prides itself on not merely renting out equipment but actually partnering with their clients in the various productions they service.
SOUTH AFRICA COME TO VISUAL IMPACT FOR ALL YOUR BROADCAST NEEDS
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Panasonic debuts new 4K camera Panasonic recently unveiled a new 4K camera / recorder, VariCam® 35, that incorporates a newly-developed super 35mm MOS image sensor and the company’s AVC-ULTRA family of video codecs. The new camera’s superb image handling in multiple formats including 4K, UHD, 2K and HD make it an unparalleled tool for high-end filmmaking, commercials and episodic production as well as live events. The 4K camera module unit (AUV35C1) is separate but dockable to the recording module unit (AU-VREC1). This system flexibility can be expanded with an umbilical cable between the 35mm 4K camera and the AVC-ULTRA recorder, providing ‘box’ camera functionality for jibs, cranes and other ‘remote’ camera needs. This common recorder module is also interchangeable with Panasonic’s new 2/3” 1080p camera, enabling professionals to switch between 35mm and 2/3” camera heads to best suit their creative needs. “Evoking the VariCam heritage of gorgeous, cinematic image rendition, this VariCam 35 establishes new standards for 4K production,” said Steve Cooperman, product manager, Panasonic System
Communications Company of North America. “With its expanse of formats ranging from flawless 4K RAW output to more practical 4K, UHD, 2K and HD capture, the VariCam 35 represents a matchless option for premier digital capture.” The VariCam 35 utilises a new Panasonic super 35mm MOS sensor for 4096 x 2160 (17:9) 4K image capture. This imager, when combined with the AVC-ULTRA codecs for 4K, enables very manageable and practical 4K production file sizes. The new imager boasts 14+ stops of latitude, and faithfully captures high-contrast, wide dynamic range imagery without compromise. Powerful colour management capabilities provide a much extended colour gamut for impeccable image fidelity, and permit support for an Academy Colour Encoding System (ACES) workflow for full fidelity mastering of original source material. The VariCam 35 will deliver an unprecedented breadth of recording formats, including 4K and UHD in AVC-ULTRA 4K, and 2K and FHD in AVC-Intra 100/200. Addressing the need for high-speed file exchange, the camera encodes high-resolution proxy files in parallel with 4K and 2K production
FULL FRAME 4K: Panasonic’s VariCam 35 formats, enabling fast, efficient offline editing, at bit rates from 6Mbps down to 1.5Mbps. Wireless workflows for proxy streaming and metadata management will also be available. The VariCam 35 will use Panasonic’s new expressP2 card for high frame rate and 4K recording. The camera is equipped with a total of four memory card slots, two for expressP2 cards and two for microP2 cards. The new expressP2 card can record up to 130 minutes of 4K/24p content. The microP2 card is designed for recording HD or 2K at more typical production frame rates. Professional interfaces include: 3G-HD-SDI x4 for 4K QUAD output; 3G-HD-SDI x2 for RAW output; an
Telemedia offers top range Hitachi broadcast cameras Based in Johannesburg, Telemedia is a broad-based media broadcast facility that offers studio space, transmission services, outside broadcast equipment and studios, and a sales department that offers various products in the fields of production and broadcast. Among its offerings in the cameras field are Hitachi’s range of broadcast cameras. The Hitachi range of professional broadcast cameras has a solution for every application. Whether there is a
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BIGGEST SHOOTER: The SK-HD2200 is at the top of Hitachi’s range of broadcast cameras
studio or EFP requirement, the Hitachi cameras offer a solution to meet technical requirements and budget. Hitachi’s top of the range cameras, SK-HD2200 and SK-HD1200 (hand held version of the SK-HD2200) offer 3 x 2/3 inch, 2.3 million pixel 1 080 line progressive IT-CCD’s with 16 bit A/D
convertors. It also offers 3G HD-SDI signal handling from end-to-end and switchable between progressive and interlaced formats. There is also a range of control panels to choose from depending on functionality needed, CCU to camera connection is done via SMPTE-311M Hybrid Optical Fibre cable.
HD-SDI out for monitoring (downconverting from 4K); and two XLR inputs to record four channels of 24-bit, 48kHz audio. A multi-connector facilitates docking the camera head to the recording module. In another striking design innovation, the VariCam 35 boasts a removable control panel to facilitate real-time control and easy access when the camera is in a fixed position. The VariCam 35 features a standard 35mm PL mount. The VariCam 35 will launch in autumn 2014, with pricing to be announced. For more information about Panasonic professional video products, visit www.panasonic.com/broadcast.
Part of Hitachi’s high-end offering is their HD1500 High Speed HD production camera; used for super slow motion applications. The HD1500 offers superior signal to noise performance when compared to rival cameras at normal and 3 x speed. One feature that is unique with this product is that it uses 6Gbps data transmission instead of 10Gbps; this allows an additional 400m cable length between the camera and CCU. The Hitachi HD1000 and HD5000 range of cameras focuses on HD-TV studio and field production applications. This range of cameras offers 1080i and 720p HD formats. Due to the multiapplication role of these cameras the specifications can be customised depending on technical and budget requirements. Some decision-making points include the following: • Imaging Device: 2.3 M Pixel or 1 M Pixel CCDs • A/D Convertors: 14 – or 16-bit • Viewfinders: CRT ENG CRT Studio and LCD Studio • Camera control units • Studio adaptors • Single camera body dockable units: Fibre or Triax camera adaptors; HDTV COFDM wireless camera back transmitter with camera control or P2 HD recording adaptor.
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3,2,1 Action!
There was a time when there were only a few action cameras on the market. In the past several months, however, the product category has exploded.
Drift Innovation has had a number of cameras on the market but have upped the ante with their new Drift Ghost-S. The new camera has a 7-element, a spherical, swivelling lens on the front that lets users level out their shots, 2-inch Gorilla Glass viewfinder / playback screen on the side, and basic control buttons on top.
GoPro is one of the manufacturers that has always attracted a lot of consumers, thanks to its Hero rugged shooters, and may have led the charge in the past, but nowadays it is by no means the only player in the field.
Garmin is a company that’s probably best-known for its satellite navigation devices, but has also entered the action cam market with its VIRB Elite camcorder, which, quality wise could actually give the GoPro HERO a run for its money. The base VIRB model shoots at either 1080p/30fps or 720p/60fps. It features a 1.4-inch colour viewfinder / playback screen that’s illuminated with reflected ambient light, and can reportedly run for three hours on one charge of its 2,000-mAh lithium-ion battery, and can record up to seven hours of 1080p video. Recording is started and stopped simply by sliding one prominent switch on the side – a feature that users of the harder-to-figure-out GoPro should appreciate.
JVC is looking to take a bite out of the market with its rugged new GC-XA1 ADIXXION camcorder. Leveraging its decades-long digital imaging prowess, its new lightweight video recorder includes a range of features that leaves the competition behind. Highlights include four levels of rugged protection, built-in Wi-Fi, a Super Wide lens, and Full HD video recording.
Sony recently announced its entry into the mini camera game with the introduction of the HDRAS30V. This cam films action through a Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar 170-degree lens and it smooths out the bumps and jars with integrated SteadyShot image stabilisation and 3-Way Shake cancelling, a cool feature for those hectic moments. It also has a waterproof Live-View wrist remote accessory for optimum viewing. If GoPro is the name that people most associate with action cams, Contour would have to be a close second. They released their latest camera, the Contour +2. The +2 is capable of shooting in a variety of formats including 1080p Full HD, plus it has a 170-degree lens (135 degrees if shooting in 1080p) that can be swivelled independently of the rest of the camera. 34 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
Not wanting to be left out, Polaroid is now also offering a rough-and-ready, mount-it-anywhere video camera – in fact, it’s offering three. The XS100 is the fanciest of the bunch, offering a choice of 720p, 960p or 1080p HD video, and 3MP, 5MP or 16MP still photos. One of its more interesting features is an ‘auto rotation G-Sensor so the camera will always capture the best shot, no matter its position’. It’s not too clear what is meant by that, although one would assume that either the lens or the image sensor automatically rotates to keep the shot level, regardless of the horizontal angle of the camera itself.
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Toshiba has gone and thrown its hat (or helmet, perhaps) into the action cam ring. This year the company unveiled its new Camileo X-Sports model. The rugged little camcorder bears more than a passing resemblance to the GoPro HERO. Like the HERO, it comes with a removable watertight housing that allows it to be submerged to a maximum depth of 60 metres. Even without that housing, the bare camera is shockproof to a drop height of 1.5 metres.
Perhaps the most surprising of them all is the launch of the Panasonic A100 HD Action Cam. Panasonic is pushing the limits on what people will wear on their faces with a relatively large 4K video camera that you strap on to the side of your face. Launched at the 2014 International CES in Las Vegas in January, the 4K waterproof point-of-view camera can record images with four times as many pixels as current highdefinition 1080p video cameras at full frame rate and is connected via wire to a device that you wear on your arm.
GoPro is probably the clear winner in the action cam race so it isn’t surprising that their technology is often mimicked or even copied. Radiant Images decided to tear apart the Hero3 Black Edition and build a new device, the Novo action camera. While it is a rip of the GoPro Hero3 Black Edition, the specifications have not remained the same, as the company has added a custom processor, allowing cinematographers to disable the auto-exposure feature. Additionally, the aperture can be manually handled with the help of various C-mount lenses from Micro Four Thirds cameras The camera has been developed in collaboration with View Factor Studios, a company that specialises in engineering cinema and TV products. However, the digital cinema camera is available only for renting. Cinematographers can loan it for US$295 per day or US$885 per week at the company’s official website. – Ian Dormer
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MEDIA ASSET MANAGEMENT
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ARCHIVING
Managing your assets effectively
Media asset management – as varied and complex as the requirements may be – is, in the long run, about solving two challenges: storing various types of digital content in a reliable, disaster-free and future-proof way and thereafter, accessing and retrieving what is needed, when it is needed and in the necessary format. All other aspects of asset management – anywhere from ingest, indexing, mass access storage in high and low resolution, through to long-term archives – ultimately serve one or both of these goals.
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ur industry is an ever-changing one but what remains a relative constant in most areas is the continual generation of assets, the workflows that evolve around their creation and ultimately how these assets are stored and handled. Broadly speaking, asset management can now be categorised as either digital asset management (DAM), a term that covers enterprise asset management across a wide range of media types, including images and documents; media asset management (MAM), which covers systems that emphasise video and audio capabilities; and production asset management (PAM), a subset of MAM systems that targets work in progress rather than long-term archival capabilities. A wide range of solutions are available, with entry level pricing from a few thousand Rand, up through enterprise systems costing well over R10 million. The systems at the low end of the scale tend to be out-of-the-box solutions offering quick installation and training, while the larger deployments often involve a high degree of customisation for a specific site’s requirements, a project that could take years to implement. By now, most broadcasters, as well as large and small production companies alike, should have some kind of asset management in place. The continuing trend of file-based acquisition, digitising of non-digital assets and subsequent re-versioning of content for multiple platforms, has made asset management more important than ever before. There are about a dozen or so core functions that are important factors in the body of today’s management systems with ingest, indexing, content management database, search engine, high resolution storage, low resolution storage, low resolution browsing and preview, deep archive recovery, streaming and downloading and invoicing at the top of the list.
Improving capacity for live workflows In today’s environment, many media asset management systems are strong on metadata handling and archival workflows, but are less well suited to work in progress and so we see a trend shifting towards a more live, collaborative workflow. For instance, one needs to set up, quickly and dynamically, comment threads around an asset, email (both automatic and manual) alerts as any new comments are posted, and even send out links for review to new participants who aren’t ongoing users to make them aware of any new media or changes within the system hierarchy. The ever increasing divide and shift from scripted and planned shows to sports and reality means that more and more production teams have to work away from the main broadcast facilities equipped with media asset management, therefore the need for remote access via a common browser through a collaborative, cloud-based application is needed. Just as in the broadcast field, the movie industry is also seeing an accelerated shift to small, cost-effective teams. Simply having a shared storage pool, searchable metadata for various takes, and the ability for dailies to be reviewed immediately by producers from a remote location, are big advantages over the previously much relied on Fedex-based workflow.
Diverse options There are literally thousands of MAM systems and applications out there, each one providing a function and role. However, there probably isn’t a perfect system that ticks all the boxes. Every user has different requirements so systems that are adaptive sell better than those that are less so.
It is becoming increasingly important for those looking into MAM systems that you really understand what you are looking for, which includes understanding their metadata requirements. It sounds simple enough, but, done properly, requires time and effort. People, processes and policies are important regardless of which MAM system you use. It is also essential that you think carefully about the selection of a MAM vendor, making sure they can support the metadata strategy or at least support several common metadata standards and specifications. As in so many management change scenarios, the biggest hurdle is often the people who will be asked to use and administer a media asset management system. Generally speaking, before the introduction of a system, they will have developed their own ad-hoc workflows without the help of an asset management framework. Most often, these are based on standard folder structures and internally devised best practices for the folder organisation. Some MAM and PAM vendors provide approaches so foreign to they fail to get 100% buy-in, resulting in wasted capital investment. Recent MAM project failures at companies such as the BBC (who spent $150 million on a MAM project that was then shelved due to lack of use) have sent shock waves through our industry, casting fear into the hearts of technology leaders with the unenviable task of trying to implement a centralised MAM system. A whole new approach to managing media may be required to avoid these failures in the future, win the hearts of the creative users and ultimately ensure the success of your business. – Ian Dormer
ARCHIVING
| MEDIA ASSET MANAGEMENT
CLEAR content and workflow management Broadcasters, production companies, ad agencies and various media organisations are confronted with more and more content, which is created faster and will keep on growing at a rapid rate. This touches on the necessity to produce and edit content faster but also to re-use content that has been archived, for instance multi-content platform operations and versioning. CLEAR™ basic workflow Users want to be able to search and find their content on a production storage or archive, which usually contains hundreds of thousands of assets. They are able to find content by easily filling in one or several keywords in a single search screen, Google style, or a very specific, advanced search, by searching several metadata fields. After finding the right content the user can directly start using it for content preparation and processing, content management, content production, multi-platform content delivery, rights management and monetisation. The content can be previewed and enriched by adding metadata (on collection, item or even video frame level) in order to make it more easily locatable at a later stage. The user is able to export the content to one or several locations, such as a gallery or play-out. Users are able to annotate content frame accurately and create hard cut editing timelines. These annotations and timelines can be exported to various edit systems to
continue the editing process. CLEAR™ is a service that offers a flexible deployment model in terms of a public, private or hybrid cloud, is ready to deploy now, is scalable and customisable to specific business needs, and is backed by an organisation with a global infrastructure and huge experience in content preparation and processing. CLEAR™ allows content owners to add new revenue streams, drive efficiencies, reduce cost and exploit content by enabling them to migrate to file-based workflows and capitalise effectively on multi-platform opportunities.
CLEAR™ user environment The user interface is a HTML-5 webpage opened in a standard web browser, eg. Safari, Chrome, Explorer or Firefox. There is no need for installing any client applications on your workstation. The content is previewed by using a low resolution proxy. The high resolution content is downloadable and will be used by the system in the background for
exporting it to pre-defined locations, as mentioned in the paragraph above. It is also possible to transcode the high resolution content to other file formats in the cloud or locally for repurposing the content or delivering versions of the content for approval or distribution.
CLEAR™ metadata and automation One essential aspect of finding content is metadata. Users often don’t want to fill metadata in because it takes too much of their valuable time. Therefore we should automatically exchange metadata ‘from and to’ different applications. A good media asset management system should be able to start automatic actions based on metadata, eg. moving content from and to different locations or change specific user rights and permissions to content. Metadata enables you to keep content divided between different departments and productions and can keep track of content for rights management. As it is automated it saves your organisation time and money as the amount of manual actions will decrease. For instance, it is possible to automatically import and ingest content from several locations, such as an FTP site. Your content and metadata can be shared with your media asset management system directly.
CLEAR™ integration CLEAR™ implements a content workflow management system with a media backbone as a middleware application. CLEAR™ technology can be deployed in a hybrid-cloud or totally cloud-based solution and will integrate to most clients’ existing architecture to avoid major custom development. This
improves the effectiveness and maintainability of solutions due to the fact that it consists of generic instead of unique technology. The technology is open to connecting via API to existing infrastructure that contains an API or metadata to share information. This API is a programmable interface, enabling communication with other technologies. These APIs are very well documented and provide the possibility to add, renew, modify or change application layers. The CLEAR™ backbone is commonly configured as a layer either at the client’s premises or in the cloud. CLEAR™ controls the database and all movement of content to various storage locations such as archives and production storages. It is also possible to configure automated QC and integrate with existing QC systems. The CLEAR™ backbone has an open API to be able to integrate third party solutions. The applications running on top of the CLEAR™ backbone, such as ingest, editing, news room and play-out, can be replaced, added or renewed quite easily. The CLEAR™ backbone is capable of managing various standard IT storages, such as tape libraries and disk storages, but also high performance production storages for video editing. Digitising an archive using CLEAR enables valuable content to be available online 24 hours a day, seven days a week, accessible to anyone, anywhere in the world with the correct rights and privileges. CLEAR makes it easier for customers to view its content, and quicker and more cost-effective to receive it, opening the customer’s unique archive to be used, viewed, accessed and preserved for generations to come.
April 2014 | SCREENAFRICA | 37
MEDIA ASSET MANAGEMENT
Is archiving important?
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ARCHIVING
STORAGE SOLUTIONS: Xendata SX Archive Server
We process more data now than ever before and as video resolutions increase, the requirement for more space will continue to grow exponentially. Technology is helping us to adjust the way we store, operate and manage our information in order to keep up with the rapid growth of data. Some solutions include clever software like CAT VD or Dalet to help us index, categorise and search the content. Storage appliances are also becoming more advanced as our requirements change.
38 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
Tiger Technology’s TBox
Thecus N16000PRO
A
dopting a more holistic approach to data storage is also important to manage sustainable (often collaborative) workflows and keep long-term storage costs to a minimum. When it comes to storage here are few things to consider: 1. More space isn’t always the answer, our data normally magically grows to fill up any unallocated terabytes. 2. Professional storage is not the same as consumer storage. When it comes to performance, reliability and data integrity, professional products are worth the upfront investment. If you don’t believe that, just ask anyone that has had to pay for data recovery. 3. Define the purpose of the storage before you buy – there are thousands of alternatives out there. Choose what you need according to your priorities. Think seriously about a tiered storage approach and archiving, it’s a very effective way to ‘recycle’ your existing storage. 4. What after-sales support exists in South Africa for the product? Is it supplied and installed by a reputable reseller and backed by an established distributor? How long would it take to bring the system back online if there was a problem? So let’s look at how one might introduce a tiered structure with different storage systems, each with a unique purpose. The idea is that content is moved to less expensive storage over time in order to free up space for current project requirements. Before we go any further it’s important to clarify that archiving is different to backing up. Backing up entails copying information and protecting against data loss. Archiving is simply moving data to a more suitable long-term storage medium. Online storage is typically a really fast RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Discs) where content for current projects is stored, compiled and edited. Single users will normally connect with Thunderbolt or SAS, whereas a team of users needing to access the content concurrently will probably access the storage via Fibre Channel or 10GBe. TBOX is a great example of an online storage appliance that offers up to 16 users concurrent access to the storage, support for all major editing workflows (including AVID) and enough performance to edit 2K footage. A single
box ships with up to 64TB of space and is scalable to 320TB by adding expansion units. TBOX also includes a basic MAM called ProjectStore that allows users to index and search the content, create low res proxy videos and archive projects to alternative storage on the network. This is where near line storage becomes useful – it’s essentially a slower type of disc-based storage that is also accessible to users on the network and is significantly more cost effective per gigabyte than online storage. Rather than continually expanding the online storage volume whenever it runs out of space, non-current content is moved over to the near line volume (where it is still available to users) and the online storage can effectively be redeployed for new projects. The easiest way for all users to have access to near line storage is via a network, which is why many companies opt for Network Attached Storage (NAS). Thecus manufacture an excellent range of NAS products, some of which have 10GBe capabilities and can be deployed as very basic online storage units. When it comes to long-term storage of media, the best solution is still LTO tape. Although it’s cost effective to store old projects on portable hard drives, there are several down sides to this approach. Hard drives have a short shelf life and many will not detect after standing on a shelf for five years, not to mention that it’s also very difficult to keep track of what has been saved on each drive. LTO tapes are a little different to hard drives because they require a tape drive for reading and writing data and store content in .TAR or .LTFS file formats. LTO6 tapes have a capacity of 3TB and have a shelf life of at least 25 years, they are ideal for keeping data safe for long periods of time. This is ideal for raw footage and completed projects that are not needed on a regular basis. Good archiving policies will free up volumes of space in online and near line storage arrays. The process of archiving to tape is made easier with software like Bru PE. Xendata is an advanced software solution that gives LTO archives the functionality of disc based storage which means that all content can be managed by MAM software, archived to tape, easily searched or retrieved almost instantly. – Ryan Martin, Director, Syntech
| TRACKING TECHNOLOGY
Panasonic Varicam HS
Miranda Telecast CopperHead 340K camera-mountable fibre transceiver
Released concurrently with Panasonic’s Varicam 35 cinema camera, the Varicam HS is well-suited to the production of documentary and sport programmes. This third-generation VariCam® camera incorporates the company’s AVC-ULTRA family of video codecs and high speed 1080p image capture of up to 240fps to produce extraordinary high-definition imagery for the most demanding documentary, sports or SFX slow-motion applications. Features: • Innovative modular design. The VariCam HS 2/3” camera head docks with the AVC-ULTRA recording module to provide the full functionality and ergonomics of a conventional production camera / recorder. • This system flexibility can be expanded with an umbilical cable between the 2/3” camera module unit (AU-V23HS1) and the recording module unit (AU-VREC1), providing ‘box’ camera functionality for jibs, cranes and other ‘remote’ camera needs. • A range of high-quality recording formats including AVC-Intra Class100 (recording as 1080/24p, 30p or 60p format with VFR (up to 240p), AVC-Intra Class200 (up to 30p/60i) and AVC-Intra Class4:4:4 (up to 30p). • Four memory card slots, two for expressP2 cards and two for microP2 cards. • Professional interfaces include: RGB4:4:4; a 3G-HD-SDI out to support 1080/60p, an HD-SDI out for monitoring; and two XLR inputs to record four channels of 24-bit, 48kHz audio. • Removable control panel to facilitate real-time control and easy menu access when the camera is in a fixed or remote position. • B4 lens mount enabling use of a variety of prime lenses and servo zooms.
Miranda Technologies introduced its Telecast brand CopperHead 3404K camera-mountable fibre transceiver at CABSAT 2014 in Dubai. Designed to take advantage of lightweight, easy-to-install fibre, the 4K UHDTV-ready CopperHead 3404K transceiver requires only two strands of fibre optic cable to carry all bi-directional signals, including four 3Gb/s HD/SDI paths, from camera locations to truck or control room or around a remote production site. Importantly, the dual-strand bi-directional system enables 4K cameras to be easily multi-purposed for ENG, digital cinematography and studio applications without the constraints imposed by copper connections. The CopperHead 3404K system includes the camera-mountable transceiver, base station and remote camera control panel, which collectively enable a range of high-end cameras to be fully connected and remotely controlled via SMPTE 311M fibre. The 4K CopperHead has already been instrumental in recent uses for network coverage of major sporting events.
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April 2014 | SCREENAFRICA | 39
TRACKING TECHNOLOGY
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Blackmagic MultiDock with Thunderbolt 2™ Technology
Blackmagic Design has released a new model of the Blackmagic MultiDock with super fast Thunderbolt 2 technology, replacing the previous model. Blackmagic MultiDock is a four-disk docking solution and high-speed disk array featuring an attractive machined metal rack mount design with an easy-to-access ‘cartridge’ style design that enables customers to work more efficiently with high capacity solid state drives. Each disk dock features an independent SATA interface chip for extremely fast data transfer speeds. MultiDock is fully compatible with solid state disks (SSDs) recorded in HyperDeck broadcast recorders, the Blackmagic Cinema Camera and more. Blackmagic MultiDock uses Mac OS X and Windows driver support so SSDs will mount like regular built in hard disks. This ensures 100% compatibility with popular software tools including DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut Pro, Premiere Pro, Avid, Smoke and more. Customers can even stripe multiple disks together and build a super fast SSD RAID array. “The Blackmagic MultiDock is a fantastic solution to managing storage in a busy broadcast or post-production environment. Now with Thunderbolt 2 technology you get amazingly fast transfer speeds of up to 20Gb/s, that’s enough bandwidth to easily handle the highest resolution video formats. “It’s fantastic when using disks independently or when striping them together as a large disk array,” says Grant Petty, CEO, Blackmagic Design. “Blackmagic MultiDock is an incredible solution to the problem of managing disks and the amazingly fast transfer speeds will make editing, design and colour correction even faster!”
Visual Unity’s vuMedia and vuMobile end-to-end OTT solutions
40 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
AJA Ki Pro Mini
AJA’s KiProMini offers a lightweight, easy-to-use way to bring the onset, ready-to-edit workflow to a shoot. Attaching to almost all cameras, it captures footage in Apple ProRes or Avid DNxHD as per the needs of the production, allowing for instant playback and edit on set. Through this small, handy accessory, AJA promises to have delivered the “fastest path from camera to editorial”. Features: • 10 bit, full raster recording: compared to 8-bit recording devices, 10-bit 4:2:2 recording (when supported by the codec) provides better quantisation, giving a superior representation of the original scene and allowing for more flexibility in post-production when adjusting colour and balance. • Records in Apple ProRes or Avid DNxHD, thus eliminating any need to convert files for post-production – footage is instantly ready for the edit suite. • Familiar, intuitive operation – easy to incorporate into your existing setup without worrying about a learning curve. • Playback and edit on set: recorded shots can be viewed immediately without the need for separate video assist equipment • Flexible mounting options to suit all cameras and shooting situations.
Leading OTT platform and multiscreen solution provider, Visual Unity Global is showcasing the latest versions of its award-winning vuMedia™ and vuMobile™ platforms at NAB 2014. Visual Unity’s vuMedia™ is an end-to-end OTT platform that allows broadcasters and content owners to control how their brand and assets are managed, delivered and monetised in the multiscreen environment. Highly scalable and modular, vuMedia™ delivers a live viewing experience on the web or any mobile or connected device. It also enables comprehensive Video on Demand services, social network integration and secures the distribution of content – all of which can be deployed into existing workflows and business processes. The vuMobile™ is a cloud-based mobile web publishing and mobile marketing platform. With vuMobile™ clients can build their own mCommerce (mobile commerce) store presence within five minutes. Through a modern responsive design, clients are able to categorise different types of products (for example consumer electronics or e-products) and choose from more than 40 payment systems. vuMobile™ incorporates capabilities that are designed to rapidly mobilise businesses and empower partners and resellers. The latest improvements to vuMedia™ and vuMobile™ include a more streamlined user experience, enhanced payment and advertising capabilities, additional content monetisation options, improved statistics, and much more. Visual Unity will also be showcasing their new vuDiscovery™ service. This option is a robust recommendation engine integrated within vuMedia™, helping content owners and distributors to enhance their revenue streams through search and discovery. This modern recommendation engine combines viewing and purchasing habits, demographics, a collaborative engine, and other metrics, to provide suggestions that fuel viewing into the long tail.
| BOX OFFICE
Figures supplied by SAFACT
The diverse sounds of the highest SA box office earners Pad na Jou Hart Three South African films are still showing nationwide in South Africa, with Afrikaans-language film Pad na jou Hart dominating with earnings of R10 107 327 after five weeks on circuit with 43 prints. The soundtrack for the movie features Afrikaans group Adam, Joe Foster, Die Heuwels Fantasties, Riku Lätti, Bouwer Bosch and Karen Zoid. Pad na Jou Hart is a Ster-Kinekor release.
Vrou Soek Boer Newly released romantic comedy, Vrou Soek Boer, directed by Maynard Kraak and starring Nico Panagio, Lika Berning and Bok van Blerk in the lead roles, has earned R2 995 409 after two weeks with 48 prints. Also featuring an Afrikaans-only soundtrack, singers such as Kurt Darren, Heinz Winckler, Ray Dylan, Elizma Theron and Nicholis Louw, contributed. The movie is distributed by Times Media Film.
Elelwani Venda-language film Elelwani still continued its climb at the box office with a limited number of prints and earned R292 800. Film composer and songwriter Chris Letcher created the beautiful score for Ntshavheni wa Luruli’s film. Letcher has been nominated for a 2014 South African Film and Television Award in the category Best Music Composition in a Feature Film for Elelwani. Indigenous Distribution released the movie nationwide.
International films Among three films gaining a foothold at the box office is The Lego Movie (including 3D) which earned R3 246 779 after its first week of screening with a print run of 109. Songs such as ‘Star Wars / Blockade Runner’, derived from John Williams’ famous Star Wars score; ‘How Ya Gonna Keep ‘Em Down On The Farm’ written by Joe Young, Sam Lewis and Walter Donaldson and performed by the late Judy Garland; and ‘Everything is Awesome’ written by Shawn Patterson, Joshua Bartholomew and Lisa Harriton and performed by Tegan and Sara featuring The Lonely Island are included on the soundtrack. Times Media Films released the film.
After a week on circuit, action drama fantasy film Three Hundred 2: Rise of an Empire, has conquered R7 828 610 in funds with 107 prints. Filmmakers decided on electronica project Junkie XL, largely the work of Amsterdam-based remixer Tom Holkenborg, for the soundtrack. The movie is released by Times New Media.
Distributed by Ster-Kinekor, new American romantic comedy About Last Night took R1 310 100 in its first weekend with 49 prints and features a soundtrack comprising a list of well-known songs such as ‘Feel So Good’ by Jamiroquai; ‘A Million’ by John Legend; ‘Never Stop’ by The Brand New Heavies; and ‘Feel the Love’ by Rudimental featuring John Newman.
Horror movie I, Frankenstein (including 3D), released through Times Media Films, had a moderately successful opening weekend of R694 618 with 45 prints. The soundtrack was largely compiled by Johnny Klimek, Reinhold Heil and Lisa Gerrard, with some of the standout cues being ‘Naberious Wants it Alive’; ‘Where Does Life Begin?’; ‘Bring Me Frankenstein’s Monster’ and ‘Ride of the Gargoyles’.
A Ster-Kinekor release, art house and Oscar-nominated film August: Osage County opened strong with takings of R588 555 on 26 prints. Starring a formidable cast, the movie features an alternative catchy soundtrack with songs such as ‘Last Mile Home’ by Bon Iver; ‘Lay Down Sally’ by Kings of Leon; Eric Clapton’s ‘Don’t Let Go’ and ‘The Decision’ by John Fullbright. – Compiled by Martie Bester
April 2014 | SCREENAFRICA | 41
WEB NEWS
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WWW.SCREENAFRICA.COM
Ajax receives live production workflow from VidiGo in Amsterdam ArenA
VidiGo Arena Solutions, a cost-effective live production workflow for stadium broadcast facilities, offers an innovative, modern and easy-to-use solution for Amsterdam ArenA, the state-of-the-art multifunctional mega theatre and home of Ajax football club. The Arena Solutions workflow comprises VidiGo Live and the VidiGo Match App. Easy to use, this fully
The Writers’ Guild of South Africa Muse Awards honours best performance writers On Saturday 15 March, the inaugural Writers’ Guild of South Africa (WGSA) Muse Awards celebrated the best performance writers in South Africa for their film, television and stage scripts at an event at the Barnyard Theatre in Cresta, Johannesburg. • •
• • •
Best TV Comedy Script: Fidel Namisi for Tooth and Nails Best TV Drama Script: Joshua Rous for High Rollers, Episode 101: The Prodigal Best Stage Play Script: Gisele Turner for eLimboland Best Feature Script: Shirley Johnston for Felix Best Spec Script (unproduced work): Kelsey Egan for The Chemist (feature film)
integrated solution can be operated by one person. Mark van Leest, Media Manager of Ajax TV, says of the services offered by VidoGo: “We were looking for an efficient solution that fitted into our existing workflow. A solution that would not only provide us with the possibility of showing the score, but also additional content like line-ups, statistics, commercials mixed with camera inputs.” “Traditional solutions are often complicated and hard to integrate with existing workflows. It can take up to three different systems and a whole production crew to mix camera input, videos and graphics,” comments Reinout Lempers, CCO of VidiGo. “With VidiGo Arena Solutions we offer a unique all-in-one solution in a box.”
Writers responded to a call for entries into the six categories in the last quarter of 2013. Both local and international judges evaluated the submissions and the winners in five categories were announced at the event. No winner was selected in the Documentary category and all results were verified by WGSA auditors, Bermont and Company. Zama Mkosi, CEO of the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), delivered the keynote address. The event was sponsored by M-Net, MictSeta, NFVF, Gauteng Film Commission, Barnyard Theatre, Kohl Graphics, Plum Productions, Panavision, Budget Rent-a-Car and Van and PUMA Video. Producers who are interested in the nominated and award-winning spec scripts can contact WGSA at admin@writersguild.co.za.
Hollywood film executives scout locations in South Africa Principal executives from Disney, Paramount, Warner Bros. and the Producers’ Guild embarked on a 10-day tour in South Africa which ended on 1 March, to explore potential locations for future movies and television productions. Vance van Patten, Executive Director of the Producers’ Guild; Mary Ann Hughes, Vice President of film and television production planning at Disney; Sara Spring, Senior Vice President of feature production at Paramount; and Kate Beyda, Senior Vice President of physical production at Warner Bros. met with government representatives as well as industry professionals and visited local production houses and facilities while in the country. Van Patten said: “Our visit has been very productive in exploring and analysing benefits of bringing motion
picture and TV productions to South Africa.” Cyril Ndaba, the South African Consul General based in Los Angeles, said that South Africa had become an increasingly appealing filmmaking and production destination due to the country’s diverse landscapes, talented and experienced local crews and the fact that South Africa is an English-speaking nation. In addition to these features, the South African government recognises the potential of a successful film industry to boost its struggling economy, and has introduced a number of incentives aimed at attracting international productions. Foreign productions which are shot on location in the country qualify for an uncapped 20% rebate, as well as a 22.5% reduction if the post-production takes place in South Africa.
M-Net appoints Nkateko Mabaso as Director for Local Interest Channels in South Africa Africa’s leading television content provider, pay channel M-Net, has appointed Nkateko Mabaso as Director for Local Interest Channels in South Africa. Mabaso will succeed Yolisa Phahle – who has just been named M-Net’s CEO for South Africa – on 1 April. Patricia van Rooyen, CEO of M-Net sub-Saharan Africa, said Mabaso joined M-Net in 2010 as Marketing Manager for Vuzu and Channel O. She commented: “He made a great contribution to the successful launch of the acclaimed Mzansi Magic channel and his role soon evolved into that of the Head of Marketing and Public Relations for Local Interest. In his new position, reporting to Phahle, Nkateko will be a key leader of the South African team responsible for ensuring that M-Net
Nkateko Mabaso delivers only the most relevant, most compelling content.” Mabaso successfully completed M-Net’s leadership programme, Media Leaders @ Work, in 2012.
L-S-B Broadcast Technologies demonstrates Virtual Studio Manager at Cabsat L-S-B Broadcast Technologies, a German company which manufactures control systems for radio and television production, demonstrated the key features of its Virtual Studio Manager (VSM) in a simulated master control room (MCR) environment at the CABSAT professional content management event in Dubai in March. VSM manages OnAir and rehearsal requests for studios, and monitors the signals and devices. As it is able to represent an additional studio as a virtual resource, productions settings and 42 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
workflows are able to be created and tested without using the physical resources. The stored settings can then be recalled to any available physical studio and control room using VSM’s boxing function.
Pooling helps simplify and automate signal management within a MCR. VSM is able to integrate a collection of devices between a signal source and target by automatically recognising, simplifying and automating them in the signal path out of this pool. Should one of the selected devices fail, it is identified as faulty until the fault is remedied while VSM automatically re-routes the signals to other devices in the pool without any operator involvement. Individually configured graphical user interfaces, which also represent streams in
real time, are how control and monitoring is achieved in an operational environment. By pressing a single button, the boxing function is able to store hardware and software configurations of complete studio and production units as a single entity for retrieval. Boxing is therefore the ultimate solution for disaster / recovery and production preparation in a production setting, enabling every available studio to be used as a back-up studio, even when the hardware installed isn’t the same.
WWW.SCREENAFRICA.COM
| WEB NEWS
Satellite owner SES reaches 291 million Minister Carrim brands MultiChoice television homes globally
Global satellite owner and operator SES (NYSE Euronext Paris and Luxembourg Stock Exchange: SESG) had increased its worldwide reach of television homes in 2013 to 291m and in Europe to 151m, according to the results of SES’ annual market research, including the detailed Satellite Monitor studies in Europe. Compared to the previous year, this represents an increase of 5 percent both worldwide and in Europe, strongly driven by the development in Africa, Middle
Study reveals that mobile is a crucial tool for moviegoers The Interactive Advertising Bureau’s (IAB) mobile centre inMobi in the US and Asian mobile research company Decision Fuel have conducted a study that shows the value of mobile platforms in a moviegoer’s cinema experience. When it comes to sourcing information on movies and entertainment, 56% of moviegoers cited that mobile phones were their device of choice before computers and print media. A staggering 87% stated that they also used mobile platforms to find out more about a film after seeing or hearing it advertised on other media.
East and, especially, India (+18 percent) and in Asia-Pacific (+7 percent). In Latin America, the household reach grew by 5 percent, and by 3 percent in North America. Of the direct reach, the strongest relative growth came from the AsiaPacific region (+21 percent) and Africa, Middle East and India (+18 percent), which confirms satellite’s constant growth in reach and its leading role as a broadcasting infrastructure in general and as digital and High Definition (HD) broadcasting infrastructure in particular. “As a leader in video broadcasting, DTH, digital transmission and HD, SES plays a critical role in the provision of communications infrastructure globally and is well positioned to further drive digitalisation and the deployment of high performing video neighbourhoods in mature as well as demanding emerging markets,” says Ferdinand Kayser, Chief Commercial Officer of SES
The preferable method of purchasing tickets remains to be in-person box office purchases at 35% while movie tickets purchased on PCs are slightly higher at 34% than those bought using mobile phones at 30%. Joe Laszlo of IABlog wrote: “Mobile moviegoers use their phones at all stages throughout the movie trip process – during pre-show activities such as planning and purchasing, at the theatre to ‘check-in’ and after the show to plan other events. “All of these stages in the movie path-to-purchase are opportunities to reach these people and influence what they go see, incentivise them to spread the word, and encourage their next trip to the theatre.”
a “bully monopoly”
Communications Minister Yunus Carrim has accused MultiChoice and its partners of trotting out the “same old, tired issues” over digital terrestrial television and labelled the pay-television broadcaster a bullying “monopoly” in an article that appeared on TechCentral. Carrim’s reaction was triggered by MultiChoice and two industry associations, the National Association of Manufacturers in Electronic Components and the Association of Community Television South Africa, which accused him of advancing the “the narrow commercial interests” of “certain” players, clearly referring to free-to-air broadcaster e.tv, in full-page Sunday newspaper advertisements. Carrim told TechCentral that the MultiChoice advert was “astonishingly inaccurate and serves to substantially weaken the case of those opposed to the government’s policy”. He continued by saying that at the heart of the dispute are the fears of a huge monopoly about competition. Carrim emphasised that the policy was not his personal, subjective decision, but that Cabinet had adopted it in 2008. He
Vrou Soek Boer takes over R1.2m at SA box office New Afrikaans release Vrou Soek Boer, directed by Maynard Kraak, has earned more than R1.2m during its opening weekend at the South African box office. This means that almost 31 000 viewers went to watch the film, which is an entertaining love triangle
Yunus Carrim stated that Cabinet had adjusted the policy so that broadcasters should be free to decide whether to use the control system in the set-top boxes or not. The Minister added that the boxes would have a control system for industrial policy and other reasons and that those using the system would pay for it. According to Carrim, communications regulator ICASA fully supports the policy on set-top box control. He added that if control is dropped, the roll-out would be delayed by a year – an initiative that should have launched in September 2008. Carrim cited that many other countries, such as Zambia, Uganda, Botswana, Ethiopia, the Seychelles, Malawi, Nigeria, Namibia, Tanzania, Kenya, Malaysia Ukraine, Belarus and Slovakia are using the same system, or are about to.
targeted at delighting audiences of all ages. Filmed in Mpumalanga, the movie centres around young business woman Mareike (Lika Berning) who leaves the city to run a bakery in the countryside. Soon she has to make a difficult choice when two suitors, Neil (Nico Panagio) and Stander (Bok van Blerk), try to win her heart. Released through Times Media Films on 8 March, Vrou Soek Boer took the third spot in the weekend’s Top 10, and screens nationwide in South Africa.
April 2014 | SCREENAFRICA | 43
PR ODU CT IO N
FOR FURTHER DETAILS VISIT www.screenafrica.com
Small ads 01-14* 1/28/14 12:45 PM Page 1 C
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PRODUCTION UPDATES ORDER OF INFORMATION 1. Title 2. Production Company 3. Director 4. Genre
IN DEVELOPMENT 80 MINUTES Periphery Films Dir: Simon Taylor / Julia Taal Feature ARE AGANENG/ASAKHANENI Michics Global Communications Exec Prod: Mishack Motshweni Talk Show A LION IN THE BEDROOM Two Oceans Production Prod: Giselher Venzke / Bertha Spieker Feature AT THE CREEK WITHOUT A PADDLE Zen Crew Prod: Laura Tarling Documentary
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BREAD AND WATER Periphery Films Dir: Simon Taylor / Julia Taal Feature Documentary OUR OB FLEET
CAMPING Two Oceans Productions Prod: Giselher Venzke & Bertha Spieker Feature CAPE OF GOOD HOPE Two Oceans Production Prod: Giselher Venzke / Bertha Spieker Feature CHILDREN OF FAMOUS ACTIVISTS Current Affairs Films Prod: Jane Thandi Lipman Feature CINDERELLA Two Oceans Productions Prod: Giselher Venzke/ Bertha Spieker Feature
You can reach us at: Tel: +27 (0) 11 431 3053 Fax: +27 (0) 86 689 9233 Cell: +27 (0) 83 426 6634 Email: mojapelepe@gmail.com www.mojapeleproductions.co.za
DAISY Bamboo Media (PTY) LTD Dir: Marguelette Louw Feature DIE VERHAAL VAN RACHELTJIE DE BEER Nostalgia Productions Prod: Brett Michael Innes Feature DIE VERVOERDER Grey Cloud Productions Dir: Jacques Brand Prod: Jarrod de Jong Feature ENTREPRENEURS Footprint Media TV Prod: Cheryl Delport Magazine ESCAPE Current Affairs Films Prod: Jane Thandi Lipman / Beata Lipman Feature
Unit 3, Harbour Place, 1061 Schooner Road, Laser Park, Honeydew
EX PATS Current Affrairs Films / French Connection Prod: Jane Thandi Lipman Series FORSAKEN DO Productions Prod: Marlow de Mardt / Brigid Olën Feature
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GRIZMEK Two Oceans Production Prods: Giselher Venzke / Bertha Spieker Feature
RACHEL WEEPING Nostalgia Productions Prod: Johan Kruger/ Brett Michael Innes Feature
HEAVEN – AFRICA 2 Two Oceans Production Prods: Giselher Venzke / Bertha Spieker Feature
SARAH GRAHAM: BITTEN 2 Okuhle Media Dir: Chris Lotz Series
HHOLA HHOLA Vuleka Productions Prod: Julie Frederikse/ Madoda Ncayiyana Feature
SEBOKENG MPA (Motswako) Dir: Charls Khuele / Zuko Nodada Feature
HIGH SCHOOL MODELING Michics Global Communications Exec Prod: Mishack Motshweni Feature
SIN BIN Diamond Hill / Engage Entertainment / Coco TV Prod: Sisanda Henna / Stephen Lorenzo Documentary
HOTEL SONGOLOLO The Media Workshop Dir: Benito Carelsen Series
THE DANDELION ShootAway Production Prod: Patrick Walton Drama
IIQ Sukuma Media Dir: Bonginhlanhla Ncube Feature
THE DREADED EVIL EYE FROM PAST TO PRESENT AND ACROSS CULTURES Blue Marble Entertainment Dir: Eugene Botha Documentary
KING SEKHUKHUNE Sukuma Media Prod: Leonard Sekhukhune / Bonginhlanhla Ncube Feature Film LEADERS OF AFRICA The Expeditionary Force Dir: Nicholas schofield / Alexis schofield Documentary LEKKERKAMPPLEKKE Grey Cloud Productions Dir: Jacques Brand Prod: Jarrod de Jong Variety MANCHE, THE AFRICAN SAINT Get the Picture Prod/Dir: Jacky Lourens/ Fiona Summers Documentary MOM’S CHOICE Sukuma Media Dir: Bonginhlanhla Ncube Feature Film NEW BEGINNINGZ Sukuma Media Dir: Bonginhanhla Ncube Documentary NONGOLOZA/ THE BLOOD KING AND THE RED DRAGON Current Affairs Films Prod: Jane Thandi Lipman / Mtutuzeli Matshoba Feature PALACE OF THE FAITHLESS White Heron Pictures Dir: Themba Sibeko Feature PASSARES (BIRDISH) White Heron Pictures / Casa De Criacao Cinema Prod: Themba Sibeko Feature PIPPIE SE TOWERKOMBUIS Grey Cloud Productions Dir: Jacques Brand Prod: Jarrod de Jong Variety PONTE Nostalgia Productions/ Black Irish Productions Prod: Jamie Ramsay/Brett Michael Innes Feature
THE EXCHANGE Engage Entertainment PROD: Stephen Lorenzo Feature THE GIFT Ferguson Films Prod: Shona & Connie Ferguson, Bobby Heaney TV Feature Film THE GREAT KAROO Current Affairs Films/ White Pine Pictures Prod: Jane Lipman Series THE HITCHERS: A GHOST STORY Blue Marble Entertainment Dir: Eugene Botha Short Film THE MOUNTAIN OF THE NIGHT Nostalgia Productions Prod: Herman Mabizela & Brett Michael Innes Feature THE REGGIES RUSH Nostalgia Productions Prod: Brett Michael Innes Feature THE SALES LAB Time Frame TV Prod: Vanessa Yelseth, Jasmyn Asvat Series THE SCORES ARE IN Current Affairs Films Prod: Jane Thandi Lipman Game Show TIENERWERELD Grey Cloud Productions Dir: Jacques Brand Prod: Jarrod de Jong Variety TURN THE TABLES Footprint Media TV Prod: Cheryl Delport Magazine WAY TWO ROLL Way To Roll Pictures Dir: Freddie Strauss Feature WEER DEBRA Khaki Productions Prod/Dir: Christelle Parrott , Wynand Dreyer Series
PRODUCTION WELCOME TO ART Michics Global Communications Exec Prod: Mishack Motshweni TV Series
MARRY ME IN MZANZI Blue Marble Entertainment Dir: Eugene Botha Series
CARTE BLANCHE SHORTS TIA productions Prod / Dir: Tarryn Lee Crossman News
WESTGATE SHOPPING MALL ATTACK (Working Title) Media Village Productions Prod: Diane Vermooten Documentary
SAKEGESPREK MET THEO VORSTER SEASON5 Dirk Mostert Camera Production Prod/ Dir: Dirk Mostert Series
COOL CATS Red Pepper Pictures Prod: Cecil Berry Children’s Show
WHIPLASH Get the Picture Prod/Dir: Jacky Lourens / Meg Rickards Feature
SEATBELT MEDIC FC Hamman Films Dir: FC Hamman Commercial
ZEN FILM CREW MANAGEMENT ZEN Film Crew Management Prod / Dir: Laura Tarling Commercial
IN PRE-PRODUCTION ABLAND PROPERTY DEVELOPERS FC Hamman Films Dir: FC Hamman Marketing Video ALEX ON 7TH Xcut Studios Dir: Engelbert Phiri Documentary ANDOLEX Xcut Studios Prod: Guy Bragge TV commercial ATTACHMENT PARENTING Blue Marble Entertainment Dir: Eugene Botha Insert DIE LAASTE URE: INCONNU FRENCH FILM FESTIVAL Grey Cloud Productions Dir: Jacques Brand Producer: Jarrod de Jong Short film DOMESTIC BLISS 2 Blonds and a Redhead Filming Prod: Anne Myers Advertising Funder Project EL ELJON PROJECTS FC Hamman Films Director: FC Hamman Marketing Video ESPAFRIKA PRESENTS THE CAPE TOWN INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL 2014 ESPafrika Prod/Dir: Rashid Lombard / Yana Lombard / John Bright Documentary GENERATION FREE Okuhle Media Dir: Jemima Spring Series HIDDEN HOLOCAUST IN THE DUNES: GENOCIDE IN NAMIBIA Blue Marble Entertainment Dir: Eugene Botha Series IHAWU LE SISWE Black Drop Prods Prod/ Dir: Sechaba Morojele TV Series JUB JUB DOCUMENTARY (working title) Baxopath Media Dir: Nolitha Tshinavha Documentary LOVE MORE: POLYAMORY IN SOUTH AFRICA Blue Marble Entertainment Dir: Eugene Botha Series KNYSNA West Five Films Prod/ Dir: Maynard Kraak; Andre Velts Feature Film
STICKS+STONES (WORKING TITLE) Fireworx Media/ Tunc Prodcutions Prod: Bridget Pickering Telenovela THE MESSENGER FOOTPRINT MEDIA TV Prod: Annalise Van Rensburg Series UNASHAMEDLY ETHICAL Media Village Productions Prod: Diane Vermooten Awards & Gala Evening WORKERSLIFE NETWORK MARKETING FC Hamman Films Director: FC Hamman Marketing Video
IN PRODUCTION 3 TALK Urban Brew Talk Show 20 AND FREE X CON Films Dir: Munier Parker Documentary 50/50 Clive Morris Productions Current Affairs 53 EXTRA M-Net Inhouse Productions Dir: Navan Chetty Magazine AFRICA 360 eNews News Head: Patrick Conroy Current affairs AFRO CAFÉ SEASON 7 Bonngoe Productions Prod: Pepsi Pokane Music
CORTEX MINING FC Hamman Films Prod Man: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video COME DINE WITH ME SOUTH AFRICA Rapid Blue Prod: Kee-Leen Irvine Reality CUTTING EDGE SABC News Current Affairs DINNER DIVAS 2 Blonds and a Redhead Filming Prod: Anne Myers Series DITOKELO TSA MEDUPI LMOL Production Dir: Lizzy Moloto Feature DIY MET RIAAN Prod: Riaan Venter-Garforth Magazine EASTERN MOSAIC Red Carpet Productions Prod: Saira Essa / Mark Corlett Magazine END GAME Fireworx Media/ Tunc Productions Prod: Bridget Pickering Dir: Akin Omotoso/ Thandie Brewer/ Thabang Moleya Feature EXPRESSO (SEASON 2) Cardova Prod: Paul van Deventer Series
FOX NEWS CHANNEL Betta Beta Communications Prod/Dir: Tommy Doig News
GENERATIONS Morula Pictures Prod: Mfundi Vundla Series
BONISANANI Grounded Media Talk Show CARTE BLANCHE (INSERTS) Modern Times Prod: Sophia Phirippides News
You move pictures We move you
FAITH TODAY Impact Christian Media Prod: Carl Schultz TV Series
BIG BROTHER THE CHASE Endemol South Africa Reality
BRAVO! Homebrew Films Prod: Jaco Loubser Magazine
www.atlasstudios.co.za
FACILITY MANAGEMENT LECTURES (A4FM) Panache Video Productions Dir/ Prod: Liesel Eiselen Educational
FRENZY Red Pepper Pictures Prod: Morena Sefatsa Variety
BODA BODA THIEVES Switch Films Prod: James Tayler Feature
t +27 [11] 482 7111
FACE OF GEMINI Footprint Media TV Prod: Cheryl Delport Series
ARTSCULTUREX TALENT 1000 CHAMPIONSHIPS Michics Global Communications Exec Prod: Mishack Motshweni Series
BINNELAND Stark Films Prod/Dir: Friedrich / Elsje Stark Series
Cnr. Frost avenue & owl street | Milpark | Jo’burg
TEM/913/E
ZAKOUMA Two Oceans Productions Prod: Giselher Venzke/ Bertha Spieker Feature
SLENDER WONDER INFORMATION VIDEO Grey Cloud Productions Dir: Jacques Brand Information Video
U PDAT ES
GOOD MORNING AFRICA Planet Image Productions SA Prod/Dir: Wale Akinlabi Magazine GOSPEL GOLD Engage Entertainment Prod: Sthembile Mhlongu Music GROEN Homebrew Films Prod: Jaco Loubser Wildlife HAD BETTER DAYS Uniquely Novel Productions Prod/Dir: Deon VD Merwe Feature Film
HECTIC 99
Okuhle Media 913 Tempest Screen Africa Print Ad FA.indd 1 Prod: Wilna van Schalkwyk Magazine
HITACHI POWER AFRICA MEDUPI & KUSILE Betta Beta Communications Prod/Dir: Tommy Doig Documentary
HOPE NHU Africa 2014/02/04 Prod: Vyv Simson / Donfrey Meyer Documentary HOUSE CALL Izwe Multimedia / Urban Brew Prod: Annalie Potgieter Talk Show
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IGNITE Footprint Media TV Prod: Cheryl Delport Reality IMIZWILILI Ukhamba Productions Prod: Alfred Mpofu Music INKABA Urban Brew Studios Prod: John Kani Telenovela ISIDINGO Endemol South Africa Dir: Raymond Sargent / Johnny Barbazano Series JAN SMUTS: AN INTERNATIONAL ICON AHEAD OF HIS TIME Tekweni TV production Prod/Dir: Sandra Herrington / Neville Herrington Documentary JOU SHOW Homebrew Films Prod: Jaco Loubser Talkshow comedy KOKKEDOOR 2 Homebrew films Prod: Jaco Loubser and Paul Venter Cooking reality series
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KOLLIG Homebrew Films Prod: Jaco Loubser Magazine KONA The Directors Team (Pty) Ltd Prod/Dir: Laurence Lurie / Cathy Sykes Series KOOLCON CORPORATE VIDEO FiX Post Production/ Marketing AV Marketing Video KWELA Pieter Cilliers Productions Prod/Dir: Pieter Cilliers Magazine LATE NITE NEWS ON E.TV Diprente Productions Prod: Tamsin Andersson Series LIVE Urban Brew Music Unit C5 RobeRtville Mini FaCtoRies 255 nadine stReet RobeRtville RoodepooRt 1709
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MOTSWAKO Carol Bouwer Productions Prod: Grant Paul Roy Talk Show MUVHANGO Word of Mouth Prod: Pieter Grobbelaar Feature MY NAME IS FUNEKA Sabido Productions Dir/Prod: Catherine Rice Documentary MZANSI INSIDER Bonngoe Productions Prod: Pepsi Pokane Magazine NET1 – SASSA Betta Beta Communications Prod: Tommy Doig Corporate NEWS NIGHT eNews Prod: Nikiwe Bikitsha Current Affairs OSCAR PISTORIUS DOCUMENTARY INSERTS TIA Productions Dir/ Prod: Tarryn Crossman DOCUMENTARY PASELLA Tswelopele Productions Dir: Liani Maasdorp / Werner Hefer Magazine PBS EXTENDED NEWS PROGRAMMING Current Affairs Films Prod: Jane Thandi Lipman Feature PHOENIX RISING... THE BUSINESS OF STYLE Phoenix Entertainment and Production Prod/Dir: Koketso Sefanyetso Reality POWER COMBAT ZONE Mixed Motion Entertainment Dir: Dieter Gottert Sport
LIVE LOTTO SHOW Urban Brew Game Show
PROJECT MV Zen Crew Prod: Laura Tarling Music
MANDELA’S GUN DV8 films Dir: John Irvin Feature
RANDS WITH SENSE 2 Blonds and a Redhead Filming Prod: Anne Myers Education
MARANG ESTATE: MIXED USED DEVELOPMENT NOV/ DEC Our Time Productions Dir: Jaun de Meillon Documentary
RHYTHM CITY Quizzical Pictures Prod: Yula Quinn Soapie
MASHELENG1 LMOL Production Dir: Lizzy Moloto Feature MASHELENG 2 LMOL Production Dir: Jonny Muteba Feature MASSMART CSI REPORT SummerTime Productions Prod/Dir: Roxanne Rolando / Sean Gardiner Corporate Video MATRICS UPLOADED Educational Improvement and Study Help (EISH) Prod: Lisa Blakeway Educational MI CASA “TURN YOU ON” Star Productions Dir: Mzi Kumalo Music Video
46 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014 Composite
MILLIONAIRES Two Oceans Production Prod: Giselher Venzke & Bertha Spieker Feature
RHYTHM CITY INTERACTIVE Quizzical Pictures / e.tv Prod: Viva Liles-Wilkin Interactive Platform Media RIVONINGO Asi-B Films Prod: Asivhanzi ‘Asi’ Mathaba Children’s Show ROCKING FUTURE SummerTime Productions Prod: Sean Gardiner / Tanya Vandenberg Educational Video ROLLING WITH KELLY KHUMALO Red Pepper Prod: Cecil Barry Reality ROOTS Ukhamba Communications Prod: Alfred Mpofu Music
SAINT & FREEDOM FIGHTER Blue Marble Entertainment Dir: Eugene Botha Documentary SA’S GOT TALENT Rapid Blue Prod/Dir: Kee-Leen Irvine Reality SA TOP MODEL FOR A DAY Michics Global Communications Exec Prod: Mishack Motshweni TV Series SOUTH AFRICAN TOURISM Rapid Blue Prod: Kee-Leen Irvine Reality / Commercial SCANDAL Ochre Moving Pictures Prod: Romano Gorlei Soapie SCHOEMAN BOERDERY – MOOSRIVIER Khaki Productions Prod/Dir: Christelle Parrott / Wynand Dreyer Documentary SELIMATHUNZI Sikhoyana Productions Prod: Baby Joe Correira Variety SHIZ NIZ Red Pepper Pictures Prod: Allen Makhubele Variety SHIFT Urban Brew Talk show SISTERHOOD Red Pepper Pictures Prod: Andy Leze Variety SIYAKHOLWA – WE BELIEVE X CON Films Dir: Munier Parker Edutainment SLENDER WONDER DOCTORS CONFERENCE Grey Cloud Productions Dir: Jacques Brand Prod: Slender Wonder Corporate Video SLENDER WONDER PATIENT TESTIMONIAL VIDEOS Grey Cloud Productions Dir: Jacques Brand Corporate Videos SOCCER ZONE SABC Sports Head: Sizwe Nzimande Magazine STUDY MATE Educational Improvement and Study Help (EISH) Exec Prod: Lisa Blakeway Educational THE CHAT ROOM Eclipse Prod: Thokozani Nkosi Talk Show THE CODE BREAKER NHU Africa Prod: Vyv Simson / Donfrey Meyer Documentary THE COMMUNIST REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA Jam TV, Creative South Africa, Nkhanyeti Production Prod: Barthelemy Ngwessam Documentary THE JUSTICE FACTOR eNews Prod: Debbie Meyer Current Affairs THE LAST GREAT TUSKERS NHU Africa Prod: Vyv Simson / Donfrey Meyer Documentary THE REAL GOBOZA 7 Urban Brew Entertainment
PRODUCTION THE REVOLUTION BETRAYED Shadow Films Prod/Dir: David Forbes Documentary
AFROX FINANCIAL RESULTS FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video
THE RUDIMENTALS Periphery Films Prod: Simon Taylor Feature
AFROX RAU INSIGHT FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video
THE STORY OF LITTLE FOOT Paul Myburgh Film Prod: Paul Myburgh Documentary
AFROX SHEQ INDUCTION FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Commercial
THE TECH REPORT Homebrew Films Prod: Jaco Loubser Technology Magazine
BUA NNETE Owami Entertainment Dir: Charles Khuele Short film
TOP BILLING Tswelopele Productions Prod: Patience Stevens Magazine
CHALLENGE SOS 2 Blonds and a Redhead Filming Prod: Anne Myers Reality
TOP TRAVEL (SEASON 3) Cardova Prod: Bradley van den Berg Series
COLLIDE Media Village Productions Prod: Ardeen Munnik TV Series
TROOPSHIP TRAGEDY (Working Title) Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Marion Edmunds Documentary
FORMIDABELE VROUE: ANNEKIE THERON Khaki Productions Prod/Dir: Christelle Parrott/ Wynand Dreyer Documentary
TSHIPE BORWA MANGANESE MINE Betta Beta Communications Prod / Dir: Tommy Doig Documentary UNFRIEND Two Oceans Production Prod: Giselher Venzke & Bertha Spieker Feature VASELINE EXPERIENCE Xcut Studios Dir: Lee Anne Theron 4D AV production VILLA ROSA Spectro Productions Dir: Luhann Jansen / Andries van der Merwe/ Leroux Botha/ Isabel Smit Series VOLKSPELE SOUTH AFRICA Grey Cloud Productions Dir:Jacques Brand Prod: Bertie Brink Documentary WARD 22 TIA Productions Prod/Dir: Tarryn Crossman Documentary
FORMIDABELE VROUE: CISSY GOOL Khaki Productions Prod/Dir: Christelle Parrott/ Wynand Dreyer Documentary HEAR ME MOVE Coal Stove Pictures / FiX Post Production Dir: Scottnes L.Smith Feature HOME OF THE LEGENDS L. Dukashe Productions Prod/Dir: Lumko Dukashe / Lulu Dukashe Documentary IQILI Impucuzeko Prod: Sharon Kakora Feature JOYOUS 18 RM Recording Prod: Lindelani Mkhize Other
WEEKEND AM LIVE SABC News Current Affairs
JULIUS HAS A DREAM Creative South Africa, Nkanyethi Productions,Jam TV Prod: Bathelemy Ngwessam Documentary
WORLDSOUTH Leago Afrikan Arts Foundation Dir: Sakhile Gumbi Documentary
LIFE UNDER THE FLAG Lifeundertheflag.Com Prod: Prince Angelo Doyle Documentary
YILENGELO LAKHO Prod: Nndanganeni Mudau Current Affairs
NEW LAND Plexus Films/ Four Corners Media Dir: Kyle O’ Donoghue TV Series
ZOOM IN Footprint Media TV Prod: Cheryl Delport Talk show
IN POST-PRODUCTION A BUSHMAN ODYSSEY Onetime Films Prod: Richard Wicksteed Documentary A DIFFERENT COUNTRY Sabido Productions Dir: Lisa Henry Documentary series A LOVE LETTER TO LUXOR Shadow Films Prod/Dir: David Forbes Short Film AFROX CO2 PLANT FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video
NORTHMEN Two Oceans Productions Prod: Giselher Venzke & Bertha Spieker Feature NYAOPE GANGSTERS LMOL Production Dir: Lizzy Moloto Feature PERFECT SHISHEBO Quizzical Pictures Prod: Nthabiseng Mokoena Series PLAY MORE GOLF FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Commercials PUSHI – PASSION LMOL Production Dir: Lizzy Moloto Series
ROCKVILLE SEASON 2 Ferguson Films Prod: Shona & Connie Ferguson, Bobby Heaney TV Series SAFE BET Sukuma Media Producer: Nokuthula Sakhile Mguni / Bonginhlanhla Ncube Feature Film SANOFI Xcut Studios Prod: Guy Bragge AV production SIYAYA Francois Odendaal Productions Prod/Dir: Francois Odendaal Series SLENDER WONDER FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video SLENDER WONDER MJ LABS FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video SOLO FLIGHT Two Oceans Production Prod: Giselher Venzke/ Bertha Spieker Feature SPUD 3: LEARNING TO FLY Rogue Star Films Dir: John Barker Feature SWARTWATER Quizzical Pictures Prod/ Dir: Joz Malherbe TV Drama
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UPCOMING EVENTS
|
APRIL 4–5
SHOWBIZ, ENTERTAINMENT AND ARTS (SEA) EXPO
4 – 5
SOUTH AFRICAN FILM AND TELEVISION AWARDS
7 – 9
MIPTV
9 – 13
AFRYKAMERA AFRICAN FILM FESTIVAL
22 – 24
DIGITAL RADIO BROADCASTING SUMMIT
Nasrec, Johannesburg www.seaexpo.co.za
Gallagher Estate, Johannesburg www.nfvf.co.za
Cannes, France www.miptv.com
Warsaw, Poland www.afrykamera.pl
Cape Town www.bspmediagroup.com
24, 25, 27, 28 SOUND ON SCREEN MUSIC FILM FESTIVAL
The Bioscope Independent Cinema, Johannesburg www.flamedrop.com 26 – 2 MAY
SOUND ON SCREEN MUSIC FILM FESTIVAL
Labia Theatre, Cape Town www.flamedrop.com
MAY 6–7
CLOUD WORLD FORUM AFRICA 2014
15
SCREEN AFRICA GOLF DAY 2014
14 – 25
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL
THE LIGHTHOUSE RUN SummerTime Productions Dir: Tanya Vandenberg Documentary
20 – 21
THE BROADCAST SHOW AFRICA
THE MESSAGE Reel Edge Studios Dir: David Golden TV Drama Series
20 – 21
SATCOM AFRICA
21
NET PROPHET
THE CHEETAH DIARIES SERIES 4 NHU Africa Prod: Vyv Simson / Donfrey Meyer Documentary THE CALLING LMOL Production Dir: Lizzy Moloto Feature
THE SHORE BREAK Marie-Verite Films and Frank Films Prod: Ryley Grunenwald and Odette Geldenhuys Documentary
The Maslow, Johannesburg www.cloudwf.com
CMR Golf Club, Johannesburg ellen.oosthuizen@pixie.co.za.
Cannes, France www.festival-cannes.com
Sandton Convention Center, Johannesburg www.terrapinn.com
Sandton Convention Center, Johannesburg www.terrapinn.com
Artscape Opera House, Cape Town www.netprophet.org.za
THE TRANSPORTERS Sukuma Media/ Reality Motion Pictures Dir: Bonginhlanhla Ncube Documentary UNDER THE MOUNTAIN Plexus Films Prod: Miki Redelinghuys,/ Lauren Groenewald Short film VKB LANDBOU BEPERK FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video WHEN I WAS WATER Shadow Films Dir: David Forbes Documentary
www.xtprocases.co.za
Equipment Protection
Manufacturer of • Flight Cases • Aluminium, Wooden & Tubes • Polyethylene Fabricated Flight Cases
XJ-1 Eternal Film Productions Prod: Marius Swanepoel/ Dana Pretorius Feature Screen Africa relies on the accuracy of information received and cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions which may occur. E-mail production updates to: online@screenafrica.com
Donald +27 (0)11 071 2169 +27 (0)82 648 7633
Address: 5 Daisy Street, Florida Ext 2, Florida, Johannesburg, 1709
April 2014 | SCREENAFRICA | 47
SOCIAL
|
AFRICA MAGIC VIEWERS CHOICE AWARDS 2014
Bikiya Graham Douglas – Best Supporting Actress
Desmond Elliot – Best Supporting Actor
Funke Akindele – Best Actress in Comedy
Osita Iheme – Best Actor in Comedy
Tope Tedela – Best Actor Drama
TROPFEST
Yvonne Okoro Ken Attoh Shirley Frimpong Mansa – Best Movie 2013 Tropfest screening at Cinema Nouveau in Brooklyn, Pretoria
Natalie Mendelsohn (Australian High Commission)
Michael Laverty with guests Tiffany Homeshaw and Ashley Comins Weaver
Michael Laverty (MD of Tropfest) with HE Graeme Wilson (Australian High Commissioner to SA) and Prof Cheryl de la Rey (Vice-Chancellor Principal of the University of Pretoria)
WGSA MUSE AWARDS
Kelsey Egan with her award for Best Spec Script for The Chemist
Fidel Namisi with his award for Best TV Comedy Script, Tooth and Nails
SAFTA NOMINEE ANNOUNCEMENTS
John Delinger in action on stage
Joshua Rous accepting his award for High Rollers, Best TV Drama Script
Actors reading spec scripts on stage
WGSA founder and chairperson Harriet Meier
Andile Mxaka
Jessica Nkosi, Terry Pheto and Mampho Brescia
48 | SCREENAFRICA | April 2014
Leeanda Reddy
Tumisho Masha
Roberta Durrant and Jerry Mofokeng, Overall Judging Chairpersons for the 2014 SAFTAs
Shona Ferguson and David Kau
G O L F
D A Y
2 0 1 4
Book your 4 Ball and Hole Sponsorship NOW s
te a D New
Date:
Thursday 15 May 2014
Venue:
CMR Golf Club in Maraisburg, Roodepoort
Networking function prize giving:
CMR Clubhouse
Sponsorship:
R6 500 ex vat (Hole 1)
R5 000 ex vat (all other holes)
Green Fees:
R350 per player (includes VAT, cocktail snacks and prize giving and R50 donation to Rhino Fund)
Halfway house:
For your own account
Bookings for 4 ball and sponsorship:
Ellen Oosthuizen
Competition format:
Better Ball Stableford
Start time:
Shotgun start @ 11:30am
Contact:
Ellen Oosthuizen
Cell:
+27 (0)83 268 6868
E-mail: ellen.oosthuizen@pixie.co.za
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