BROADCAST, FILM, TV, COMMERCIALS, NEW MEDIA & TECHNOLOGY NEWS
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VOL 27 – Nov–Dec 2015 R38.00
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“WE WANTED THIS YEAR’S CAMPAIGN TO BE ABOUT HEART, GOOSE BUMPS AND FEELING”
THE BRIEF It was simple. Create an epic, large-scale campaign for the Rugby World Cup 2015 for our clients, SuperSport and DStv. The creative department at Admit One, headed up by Henre Pretorius and Paul Backhouse, felt compelled to execute something emotional and heartfelt for a rugby tournament, which is generally marketed as hard core and rugged. “We wanted this year’s campaign to be about heart, goose bumps and feeling,” said Paul Backhouse. And out of that the “Our Hearts Are In It” campaign was born. PART ONE - LAUNCH TVC The campaign’s launch story centred on the Springboks running out onto Twickenham stadium for the Rugby World Cup 2015. The Boks take to the centre of the pitch to sing the national anthem. They stand to attention and hold their hands to their hearts, signalling their pride and passion for South Africa. The “hand to heart” act spreads around the stadium, then the country, then, the world. The result is a world of rugby getting behind their team with one simple gesture. The launch promo stirred passion in the country at a time when everyone was feeling a little glum and ignited the fuse that got South Africa stirring for the Rugby World Cup 2015. PRODUCTION The production of the campaign lasted for a massive six months and was shot in several countries around the world. Not an easy task, but well executed by the production team of Juanri Topham and Ruette Steyn. The first phase of the promo included the Springboks. This was shot at Media Film Services Studio in Cape Town. The Boks’ schedule in a World Cup year is manic and the production team was tested to fit the oneday shoot into everyone’s calendar. Even though the Boks aren’t actors, their performance felt real and true because they understood what we were trying to execute with regards to concept. The green screen shots were later composited for postproduction by agency Birthmark, creating the effect of 70 000 screaming fans at Twickenham Stadium in London. Postproduction is always a tough and gruelling process, but the guys at Birthmark worked tirelessly day and night to achieve the right look and feel.
While all that was going on behind the scenes an Admit One Productions film crew travelled around the world, shooting everyone else you see in the two-minute promo, as phase two of the launch TVC. First, the crew took a road trip around South Africa shooting local fans in a fast, on-the-fly, guerilla-style set-up. Then they travelled to Europe, crossing off Paris, Cardiff, London, Monaco and finally Dublin, laughing along the way with famous comedians, bowing to princesses and enjoying pints with rugby royalty. PART TWO - STORIES The second part of the campaign was centred on 14 stories in an interview-style format celebrating the 20 years since the Springboks played in their first World Cup in 1995. The stories came from a variety of people, telling us why their “hearts are in it” as well as revealing fascinating anecdotes about past experiences with the tournament. The stories and interviews oozed passion and authenticity. Some made you laugh; some pulled at your heartstrings and others were just a privileged glance into secrets and once-off moments one would normally never discover. The talent used ranged from All Black legends Jeff Wilson and Justin Marshall, Springbok ‘95 World Cup hero Chester Williams to World in Union singer PJ Powers and Minister of Sport, Fikile Mbalula. Overall the SuperSport campaign was a resounding success. The slogan spread like wildfire on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Newspapers and bloggers picked up on the buzz and spread the love themselves. Even when the Springboks suffered a surprise loss to Japan in their first game, the slogan and SuperSport campaign gave South Africans a little nudge and reminder to back the boys no matter what because, undoubtedly, Our Hearts Are In It. What a privilege to be involved in a project like this. Admit One Productions would like to thank our clients, suppliers and the fans of World Rugby who made this campaign truly special.
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| IN THIS ISSUE
14 Bryan Little captures Africa’s ‘maker culture’
28
16 My Father’s War – a story of reconciliation
SA history as you’ve never seen it
20
36
Elements of Cinema: Baring it all
News
MIPCOM 2015: TV is coming to the digital party
Film Finance World stimulates
Mastering Station................................ 10 Red Raven Lightweight
valuable industry interaction............... 5
4.5K camera......................................... 10
GauTV launches on DStv..................... 5 ‘The Voice’ to launch in
ADCETERA
PRODUCTION FACILITIES
FESTIVALS & MARKETS
Building a formidable legacy............. 24
MIPCOM 2015:
DOCUMENTARY
TV is coming to the digital party.... 36
Al Jazeera focuses on
TV CONNECT
women empowerment...................... 27
Connecting the continent................. 38
French-speaking Africa.......................... 6 Maggie Gyllenhaal to star in
Necessity breeds invention.............. 12
2015 Jameson First Shot films............ 6 Out in Africa produced film
It’s always about the story................ 13 Bryan Little captures
Television
BROADCAST TECHNOLOGY
SA history as you’ve
Africa’s ‘maker culture’...................... 14
never seen it........................................ 28
What the 4K is HDR?....................... 39
releases in SA.......................................... 6 Durban FilmMart 2016 calls for projects.............................................. 6 New trade union to launch for SA artists.................................................. 6 SA receives three iEmmy nominations............................... 6 Streamstar multi-camera production switcher for live streaming.................. 8 EVS IP4Live, IP-based live production strategy............................... 8 Panasonic AV-HS6000 2ME video switcher........................................ 8 Ross Ultrix Router................................ 8 Rohde & Schwarz Clipster
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Director Speak: Tristan Holmes....... 13
A model new advertising agency..... 15
New Media
INDUSTRY REPORT
Live Streaming out of this world..... 40
The complex success of the
FILM My Father’s War – a story of reconciliation.................... 16 Screen adaptations in contemporary South Africa......... 19 Elements of Cinema: Baring it all............................................ 20 Ethiopia’s first Oscar entry............... 22 Nabil Ayouch: ‘There is a phenomenal hypocrisy’...................... 23 Director Speak: Catherine Stewart.............................. 26
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African diaspora.................................. 30 ‘Afrimation’ and the Pan-African Pantheon......................... 31 Afrocalypse Now................................ 32
APP-titude............................................. 42
POST-PRODUCTION Stylus Post and Lucan Visuals........... 43
Regulars
TELEVISION
Box Office................................................... 44
Lasting impressions............................. 34
Production Updates..................... 45 – 47 Events................................................... 47 Social............................................................ 48
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From the editor
The Team
The spirit of the independent filmmaker
Editor
Unbelievably, the end of 2015 is upon us. It appears to have been a challenging year for the industry, with the broader economic situation clearly impacting the funding and budget woes that are already form part of almost every conversation among filmmakers and content creators – although, in all fairness, we are looking better off than some other sectors of the economy as far as annual growth is concerned. In contrast to the constraining power of economic problems, technology continues to surge forward, making an ever stronger case for the idea that it is easier and cheaper to produce high quality content than it has ever been. As an example, in this issue we feature the kykNet drama series Bloedbroers, which offers an excellent example of how to achieve a heightened cinematic aesthetic with limited resources. Scarcity of funds is a problem across the continent and it is one that filmmakers are increasingly learning to live and work with. There are currently at least two African productions in the running for Best Foreign Language Oscars: Lamb from Ethiopia and Thina Sobabili from South Africa. We have already featured the latter film, written and directed by Ernest Nkosi and pulled together with little more than the sheer determination of its cast and crew. In this issue, we take a look at the Ethiopian film – the first in the country’s history to receive this kind recognition, and also the only one from the east African region. These and many other productions from around the continent all prove one vital point: despite all the obvious and oft-lamented shortcomings of the industry, good work can still be done. I remain somewhat in awe of the resourcefulness and unflinching determination of the industry’s content creators. Their passionate (often irrational – and that’s a good thing in this case) commitment to telling a story through the motion picture medium remains the lifeblood of the industry – as it always has been in all film industries since the medium first took off. This kind of spirit has long been a necessity for the independent filmmaker, though often less so for those involved in other parts of the industry. It seems to me that, under the current conditions, it is now necessary for almost everyone in every part of Africa’s filmmaking and broadcast value chains, to take on some of the spirit of the indie filmmaker. Convergence was one of the major trends this year – in all parts of the industry and both for better and worse. On the consumer side, online content delivery platforms are dissolving the old barriers between television, cinema and digital media. It is now up to content owners and distributors to decide how they will make the most of this development. On the professional side, there are some very interesting – troubling, for some – tendencies towards a consolidation of parts of the industry that had traditionally been separate. What are we to make of the fact that major ad agencies are now doing their post-production in-house, for example? Where will that leave dedicated, bespoke postproduction houses going forward? Technological advances are also fast eroding the distinction between the broadcast and information technology industries, as IP is steadily nudging SDI off its perch as the broadcast standard. These are only some of the questions and concerns that we are taking into 2016. The overall impression is of a film and broadcast industry in a state of flux, with exact outcomes still a mystery. That’s a scary place to be but also an exciting one. In the midst of all this uncertainty, one thing remains unchanged: there is still a market for good content, regardless of how the content reaches its audience or how it is funded. This means that all those involved in the production, distribution and broadcast of that content are assured a place in the future – once we can all make sense of the current economic and technological challenges, that is. So I hope we can all fight on in the New Year and take heart from the ever-improving quality of our work. I wish you all success in 2016, as well as just a little (more) of the indomitable spirit of the independent filmmaker. – Warren Holden
SCREENAFRICA
Sub-Editor: Tina Heron
Publisher & Managing Editor: Simon Robinson: publisher@screenafrica.com
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Warren Holden is a writer and journalist whose lifelong love of film and television prompted him to study for his BA in Motion Picture Medium at AFDA Johannesburg, specialising in writing and directing. After graduating, he worked for three years in the television industry before following his aptitude for writing into the world of publishing. He then worked for five years as assistant editor on the arts and culture publication Classicfeel, before taking the helm of Screen Africa, where his experiences in the separate streams of motion picture and publishing have finally come together. In addition to his work on Screen Africa, he is also hard at work developing stories for film and television and studying for a second degree in economics and African politics.
Deputy Editor Carly Barnes is a writer, journalist and self-professed documentary geek. Before joining Screen Africa, Carly completed a BA honours degree in Live Performance at AFDA Johannesburg, was named one of Mail & Guardian’s Top 200 Young South Africans (2011) and wrote and performed a one woman show at the Grahamstown National Arts Festival. She ran a small entertainment and production company for more than six years before she began a professional writing career – as a contributor to Oprah Magazine. When she isn’t blogging, exploring the local festival scene or dreaming about travelling abroad, Carly is connecting with creative leaders and filmmakers who are shaping the future of content creation on the continent.
JOURNALIST Chanelle Ellaya is a writer and a journalist. She completed her BA Journalism degree at the University of Johannesburg in 2011. While writing is her passion, she has a keen interest in the media in various capacities: In 2012 she co-presented the entertainment and lifestyle show Top Entertainment on TopTV and later that year she was handpicked as part of a panel of five dynamic young Africans to interview Winnie MadikizelaMandela on a youth focused television show called MTV Meets. Chanelle is an avid social networker and a firm believer in the power of social and online networking. Between writing and tweeting, she finds time to feed her love for live music.
CONTRIBUTORS Sam Charo is an independent writer, producer and filmmaker based in Nairobi, Kenya. His passion is sharing great stories about the continent with rest of the world.
Claire Diao is a French and Burkinabe cinema journalist. She covers the African film industry for various international media and moderates the Afrikamera Festival in Berlin each year. In 2015, she co-founded Awotele, a digital magazine that focuses on African cinema.
Ian Dormer – Born in Zimbabwe, Ian has been in the TV business since the 1980s, having served in various positions at the SABC, M-Net and SuperSport. Ian currently works and resides in New Zealand.
Louise Marsland is a veteran editor and journalist with over 20 years experience in the advertising, media, marketing and communications industries. Based in Cape Town, South Africa, she worked as the editor of AdVantage magazine, as well as Bizcommunity.com. She is currently publishing editor of TRENDAFRiCA.co.za.
Christopher J. Wheeler is a writer and educator, who is currently working towards a Ph.D. in film and philosophy. In 2014, he graduated with an MA in Media Theory & Practice from the University of Cape Town and has since been lecturing media students while continuing his research.
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Film Finance World stimulates valuable industry interaction The second Film Finance World took place on 28 and 29 October at Atlas Studios in Johannesburg where both emerging and seasoned filmmakers converged to discuss various aspects of financing and producing film and television projects. In his keynote speech Andile Mbeki, CEO of the Gauteng Film Commission (GFC), highlighted some of the challenges which the local industry faces, including a lack of strong scripts, industry cohesion, intellectual property protection for content creators, and business minded industry players. Mbeki also highlighted that the GFC would be aggressively exploring new distribution models and unconventional platforms in an effort to increase monetisation opportunities for filmmakers. Conference session subject matter ranged from industry specific financial and legal framework, to insurance policies and music licensing, and technology, marketing and distribution. This offered
attendees a scope of information and an opportunity to actively engage with organisations and speakers. FILMMAKERS CONVERGE: Film Finance World 2015 In a panel discussion, representatives from the Industrial distributers work and building Development Corporation (IDC), relationships with them. KwaZulu-Natal Film Commission, and A vibrant audience discussion arose Max-D Productions offered guidance on from a session on distribution, when an the fundamental aspects which should be audience member raised that many black in place when filmmakers approach a filmmakers feel they are being advised on potential investor. Some key elements what films black audiences want to watch mentioned by Trishana Thevnarain of the by distributers who are mostly white. A IDC were passion, a strong script in its number of filmmakers questioned final stages, a realistic budget and whether distributers were in a position to recoupment schedule, as well as say they truly understood the market. understanding a film’s market relevance “There needs to be a better way of and sales estimates. David Brown of deciding what films work for a black Max-D Productions highlighted the audience,” said a producer in the importance of understanding how audience. “Why should black movies be
GauTV launches on DStv On 19 October, GauTV – Gauteng’s dedicated television channel – launched on DStv channel 265. The channel is designed to reflect the diverse culture of South Africa’s ‘Place of Gold’ – from Sandton, the richest square mile in Africa, to the Bekkersdal township – showcasing this diversity to the public through a variety of locally produced talk shows, general entertainment and magazine programming. Thabo Shole-Mashao, GauTV’s spokesperson and head of News and Current Affairs, says that the channel’s mission is to depict the province with its diverse culture; to disseminate information about Gauteng; and to document the tapestry of its mobility, “You have people constantly moving in Gauteng, catching taxis, trains, moving in their own cars, chasing their dreams every single day, and we want to showcase that. We want to tell our own stories, we want
POST PRODUCTION
to entertain in a way that only Gauteng entertains. GauTV should be a beacon of information for anyway wanting any Gauteng-specific information – if you want to know who the officials are for certain areas, if you want to know where the hottest clubs are, if you want to know where the best restaurants are, and what opportunities exist within the province, you should be able to find that information by tuning into DStv channel 265.” Shole-Mashao says that the idea for the channel originated within the production house, Zallywood Productions: “About three years ago, the province began to see major developments, and it became apparent that there were plenty of new opportunities, coupled with Gauteng’s rich history and diverse cultural tapestry that needed to be documented in a way that depicted the province for what it
truly is.” Zallywood Productions currently produces the larger part of GauTV’s local content – content encompassing a variety of South Africa’s official languages, including English, Afrikaans, Setswana, SePedi, Tshivenda, Xitsonga and isiZulu. Shole-Mashao says that as the channel’s resources grow, plans will be implemented to acquire content from other local content producers. Founder of Zallywood Productions, Dr Victor Phume, comments, “We look forward to delivering a quality channel filled with great entertainment for DStv customers. We hope to showcase fresh
South Africa
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allocated low budgets and Afrikaans movies allocated high budgets? As an industry we have to get out of the mind-set of segregating ourselves.” Sheer publishing delivered an informative session which clarified some of the confusion surrounding music rights in productions. Mpumi Phillips emphasised the importance of having a music supervisor involved in a production: “You need to have that intermediate who has relationships with record companies, publishers and artists to help you prepare budgets, source music, make sure you have the relevant contracts in place and negotiate fees.” In a session on taking advantage of technological developments, Marius van Straaten of Visual Impact explored some of the advances in filmmaking gear which are allowing producers to create better quality work at a lower cost. Van Straaten closed with some thoughts on future trends in the industry: “There are going to be lots of new cameras – with higher frame rates and continued higher resolution. Cameras will no doubt be wifi and LAN integrated.” – Carly Barnes
new talent alongside established household names. We look forward to telling the unique stories of the people of Gauteng.” Some of the locally produced content on GauTV includes the trendy talk show Assertiveness, a show presented by the youth of Gauteng, dealing with prominent social issues as well as day to day happenings that are facing the province’s young people. Viewers can also tune into Showbizz 411 for the latest entertainment scoop, a talk show hosted by Lexi Van of Big Brother fame, encompassing weekly celebrity and entertainment news, exclusive interviews with local celebrities, music and movie reviews as well as fashion news. GauTV is available to DStv Access, Family, Compact, Extra and Premium customers, on DStv channel 265 from 06h00 to 18h00 daily. – Chanelle Ellaya
ANIMATION / DESIGN / VFX
WWW.BLADEWORKS.CO.ZA November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 5
NEWS
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‘The Voice’ to launch in French-speaking Africa
Voxafrica, the Pan-African television station, will launch the first season of The
Voice in West and Central Africa. The Voice is currently the world’s largest and most popular music show format. Produced and aired in over 180 countries, the show will run for 17 weeks and will give hopefuls across Africa the chance to audition and showcase their talents in French-speaking African countries. Led by some of the most famous artists from the African music scene, The Voice Afrique Francophone offers its winner the chance to record an album with Universal – a global music industry giant.
Maggie Gyllenhaal to star in 2015 Jameson First Shot films Maggie Gyllenhaal will play the lead in this year’s Jameson First Shot winning films. Now in its fifth year, the Jameson First Shot Competition aims to uncover the globe’s most gifted, undiscovered filmmakers with compelling stories to tell. Together with Kevin Spacey and Trigger Street Productions, three talented winners have the opportunity to turn their scripts into short films which will premiere in Los Angeles with an acclaimed cast and crew in attendance. The competition is all about giving talented filmmakers a break – a first shot at the industry. It asks aspiring filmmakers to tell the stories that they want to tell and make the film they want to make. Participants are undiscovered filmmakers with big ideas and an insatiable desire to create. This year Jameson is expanding the competition to give more undiscovered
Maggie Gyllenhaal talent the chance to enter their work. Entrants living in the following countries are all eligible: UK, Ireland, India, Australia, Canada, South Africa, Bulgaria, Kenya, Russia and the US. The competition is currently open to entries and the rules, including length and theme, can be found on the Jameson First Shot website (www.jamesonfirstshot.com).
Durban FilmMart 2016 calls for projects Submissions for projects for the 7th edition of Durban FilmMart (DFM) are now open. The deadline for submissions falls on 14 December 2015. A joint project of the Durban Film Office, the eThekwini Municipality’s industry development unit, and the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), DFM aims to raise the visibility of African cinema, stimulate production on the continent, and facilitate project collaboration between African filmmakers. Since its inception in 2010, DFM has helped facilitate more than 90 African co-production projects, many of which have subsequently been produced as
acclaimed films. Selected DFM projects will undergo a two-day packaging and mentoring programme followed by two days of one-on-one meetings with a panel of film financiers, buyers and distributors. The programme is open to full length feature and documentary films with Africans in key creative roles that are looking for co-producers, financiers, sales agents and funders. A selection committee will review all submissions for consideration, and will select ten fiction feature projects and ten documentary feature projects that are in development to participate. Filmmakers must note that it is important that all projects have both a producer and director attached to them.
New trade union to launch for SA artists A new independent, democratic and militant trade union for artists, media and creative industry workers will Basil Dube be launched in Johannesburg on 3 December 2015. The South African Media Creative and Cultural Workers Union (SAMCCWU) is a progressive trade union organisation that will represent, protect and fight for the rights of filmmakers, writers, musicians, arts educators, craft workers, television crews and technicians, workers in radio broadcasting and tourism as well as those employed in government arts and culture departments, cinema and production houses, and academic institutions.
SAMCCWU national convenor Basil Dube said that despite the positive developments that have occurred recently such as the release of the Copyright Review Commission headed by Judge Farlam, and the Copyright Amendment Bill, there was a need for a strong, vibrant and militant labour union that will strive to improve the working conditions of workers in the media, creative industries and its allied sectors. Dube said that SAMCCWU will be the new home of South African artists and will fearlessly campaign for an improvement of their working conditions.
SA receives three iEmmy nominations
Out in Africa produced film releases in SA The first feature film produced by the Out in Africa Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, While You Weren’t Looking, has released at selected Cinema Nouveau theatres and at Ster-Kinekor Maponya Mall. The film won The Pink Apple Audience Award in Zurich and earned director Catherine Stewart California’s QFilms Jury Award. While You Weren’t Looking is Stewart’s feature film directing debut. The film is set twenty years into the new South Africa as ageing academic Mack (Lionel Newton) looks for Salute, a young freedom fighter he sheltered and loved. Salute (Fezile Mpela) has moved on: he is now Joe, married with a child, and rising in government and political party structures. Affluent mixed-race lesbian couple Dez 6 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
A scene from While You Weren’t Looking (Sandi Schultz) and Terri (Camilla Waldman) struggle to maintain their own desires and ambitions while looking out for their teenage daughter, Asanda (Petronella Tshuma). As their daughter falls for Shado (Thishiwe Ziqubu), a girl from a different background, Dez and Terri must cope with their own hypocrisies and secrets, which threaten to unravel the seemingly perfect world they’ve crafted. While You Weren’t Looking was shot by Amelia Henning on location in and around Cape Town.
Nominations for the 2015 International Emmy Awards were announced by the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences at Mipcom. There are 40 nominees across ten categories and 19 countries, with South Africa garnering three nominations for MasterChef South Africa, Puppet Nation ZA and Miners Shot Down. Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on 23 November 2015 in New York. MasterChef South Africa Season 3, produced by Lucky Bean Media and Quizzical Pictures and featured on M-net, was nominated in the Non-scripted Entertainment category and is up against the UK’s 50 Ways to Kill your Mammy, Argentina’s Barones de la Cerveza and Belgium’s Flying Doctors.
In the Comedy category Canada’s Sensitive Skin, Columbia’s Familia en Venta, France’s Fais Pas Ci, Fais Pas Ca and Brazil’s Doce de Mae will compete with Puppet Nation ZA. Produced by Both Worlds and featuring on StarSat, the satirical news programme has received a number of awards since its creation in 2008. Austrian documentary Africa’s Wild West – Stallions of the Namib Desert; Mexican documentary Antes de que Nos Olviden; and UK documentary Growing Up Down’s are nominated alongside Uhuru Productions’ Miners Shot Down. Rehad Desai’s Marikana documentary has earned international recognition at a number of notable festivals.
Introducing Blackmagic URSA Mini, the lightweight Super 35 4.6K digital film camera with 15 stops of dynamic range! Introducing URSA Mini, a handheld Super 35 digital film camera with an incredible 4.6K image sensor, global shutter and a massive 15 stops of dynamic range! The super compact and lightweight design is perfectly balanced, making it comfortable enough for all day shooting. URSA Mini lets you shoot at up to 60fps, features a 5" foldout viewfinder, dual RAW and ProRes recorders, and more!
Incredible 4.6K Sensor URSA Mini can capture images at a resolution and dynamic range that goes well beyond that of traditional motion picture film so you can shoot your own epic, cinematic masterpiece! You can capture images up to 4608 x 2592, which is larger than 4K DCI, with 15 stops of dynamic range so you get incredibly clean pictures with amazing detail in everything from the darkest shadows to the brightest highlights! URSA Mini can record 4.6K at up to 60fps, or 1080 HD at up to 120fps.
Lightweight and Portable URSA Mini’s perfectly balanced body is made out of space aged magnesium alloys so it’s rugged, yet lightweight and comfortable enough to be used all day. You get a super bright 5" fold out touch screen for on-set monitoring, that can also display overlays for timecode, histograms, audio meters, focus peaking and more! URSA Mini features full size, professional connectors, even 12G-SDI, so you don’t need custom cables, plus high quality stereo microphones and a side grip mounted on a standard rosette.
www.blackmagicdesign.com/sa Electronic Viewfinder, lens and accessories sold separately. *All prices subject to VAT, exchange rate fluctuation and import duties.
Completely Customizable Blackmagic URSA Mini is completely customizable so you can create a rig that’s built specifically for your production! Add accessories like the Blackmagic URSA Viewfinder and Blackmagic URSA Mini Shoulder Kit, or choose from hundreds of third party accessories. URSA Mini has 9 standard ¼" threaded mounting points on the top and bottom of the camera so you can mount it directly to a tripod as well as add accessories such as rails, matte boxes and more.
Non-Stop Recording You never have to stop recording because URSA Mini features two CFast 2.0 recorders! When one card is full, recording automatically continues onto the next. URSA Mini uses the latest, incredibly fast CFast 2.0 technology for recording speeds up to 350 MB/s. Wide dynamic range images are saved as 12-bit RAW files, which are perfect for high end grading and effects work, or as broadcast quality ProRes, for easy post production workflows with minimum storage requirements!
Blackmagic URSA Mini Models Blackmagic URSA Mini 4K EF US$2,995* Blackmagic URSA Mini 4K PL US$3,495* Blackmagic URSA Mini 4.6K EF US$4,995* Blackmagic URSA Mini 4.6K PL US$5,495* All models include DaVinci Resolve 12 Studio
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Technology
Streamstar multi-camera production switcher for live streaming
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Panasonic AV-HS6000 2ME video switcher
Panasonic’s 2ME video switcher was introduced at IBC 2015 as part of its live production line-up
Streamstar is an easy-to-use, software-based production switcher expressly designed for streaming live production. Working in partnership with a variety of production hardware brands, including JVC, Blackmagic and AJA, the system offers the following: Easy and flexible content capture • HD-SDI inputs • HDMI/ DVI inputs • IP Video Stream inputs • JVC streaming cameras integration • External desktop capturing with keying • Unlimited media library • Instant, transcode-free playback Production tools • Fast intuitive touch screen interface • Switching-mixing modes • Platforms for monetisation of content • Slow motion/ variable speed replay • Scoreplus – live scoring and titles generator • Audio mixer • Remote production capabilities High quality streaming • Built-in H.264 encoder • Full HD streaming • IP stream output • Full HD internal recording • Presets for popular CDNs and streaming platforms
• 32 inputs (DVI×2) and SDI×16 outputs; all inputs have built-in frame synchronisers • Colour correctors are installed at eight inputs and four outputs • Up-converters at four inputs and down-converters are installed at two outputs • Equipped with four DVE and two DVE (2D) per ME to handle backgrounds and keys • AUX1 to AUX4 buses are equipped with MIX transitions • Equipped with real-time high-quality chroma keying that employs Primatte® algorithms. Standard 1 channel, expandable up to four channels • Four keyer per ME (total eight channels) also capable of PinP • Four downstream and four upstream keyers • Equipped with four independent MultiViewer displays • Single MultiViewer can display a maximum of 16 video sources • Source names, tallies, audio level meters, and safety markers are displayable • Web server function: The switcher can be set and operated via LAN connection • Shot, event and macro memory allow to preset and recall frequently used effects • Video clips and still images can be registered up to four channels each, allowing them to be easily used for CG wipes • Plug-in software, external device control capability can be added in accordance with the operation workflow • Operation with two additional panels is possible by IP connection • The switcher can be set by the 10,1-type touch-operated Menu Panel AVHS60C3G (optional) or by a PC monitor and USB mouse.
Ross Ultrix Router
EVS IP4Live, IP-based live production strategy
Currently being showcased at a number of international trade shows, IP4Live is EVS’s proposed solution to the IP transition in live production, maintaining the use of existing infrastructure. The demos given at IBC and, more recently, SMPTE, made use of XT and XS production servers, the DYVI IT-based switcher, IPDirector content management software and the C-Cast distribution platform to show how existing workflows could use hybrid SDI-IP set-ups and off-the-shelf components to facilitate 4K/UHD transport over IP. Together, these form a multi-I/O server architecture that serves both as a recording platform for clips, playlist management, slow motion, highlights, graphics tools and as the backbone of a studio production infrastructure – capable of recording, enriching, managing and distributing content across multiple platforms. 8 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
Designed to bring the high-end features of large-scale systems to small and medium size operations, the Ultrix is the world’s first complete 12Gb/s switcher with 1Tb of bandwidth. • Compact form factors • High bandwidth, capable of routing signals from 270 Mb/s up to 12 Gb/s • Multiformat support – Signal range from mono analog audio to 12Gb/s UHD in the same frame – Coax, fibre, IP, and other interfaces available • Software enabled. Sophisticated features added via software licensing, providing ease of use while preserving investment on hardware purchase. Software licenses available for the following: – Ultriscape Multiviewers – Ultrimix Advanced audio fabric – Ultrispeed High speed data • Reliable • High performance • Compatible with existing Ross infrastructures • Third party integration via industry standard protocols
News
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Technology
www.screenafrica.com
Rohde & Schwarz Clipster Mastering Station At IBC 2015 Rohde & Schwarz introduced the ‘new generation’ of its Clipster master station. Timeline, timecode and conforming • Multi-track video (2D/3D) and audio timeline • Separate metadata timeline for subtitles and closed captions • Full editing features including EDL and FCP XML • Burn-in for customisable text, timecode, keycode and frame numbers • Timecode or fame readout • Automatic colour matching • 3D depth histogram and Stereo Analyser STAN • Timeline archiving function Effects • Format conversion in real time • Zooming (up- and downscaling) in real time with multiple scaling algorithms • Panning, cropping, rotation and flip/flop • Scaler and EDL-control for color correction systems • Stereoscopic correction toolset • Colour processing for RAW files (e.g. RED®, ARRI, Sony) • Six vector, primary and secondary colour correction with shapes • 3D look-up tables for colour management • Dissolves and SMPTE wipes in real-time • Colour space conversion in real time (YUV <-> RGB <-> X’Y’Z’) Mastering • Real-time review including subtitles and/or closed captions • Intelligent high-speed transwrapping and transcoding of JPEG2000 essences • DCI Mastering with full DCI compliance (supporting Interop, Transitional1 and full SMPTE) • Hardware-based DCP encryption • DCI subtitling (incl. depth animation, editing) • DCI audio labelling including D-Box support • Automated DCI compliance validation • IMF Mastering following SMPTE specification (incl. application layer #2 extensions) • AS-02 Mastering with closed captions (aux. data and VANC) support • Direct capture to AS-02 • Subtitle and closed captions conversions to and from .SCC • All mastering formats are handled as project files for efficient remastering
Spycer® • Automatic metadata extraction of clips in watch folders • Metadata and DPX header editing • Platform-independent file sharing • Search in local drives or in the whole network • Defragmentation of volumes or file sequences • Metadata and DPX header editing I/O tool • Manual and interval capturing • Log and capture via RS-422 • Batch capturing and autoconform (EDL) • Capture list creation from an EDL, logging or importing Excel files • VTR emulation mode • 3:2 pull-down creation and removal • Recording directly on the NTFS Windows® file system • Multi-format recording on a single partition Audio • Sample rate conversion and time stretching • Unlimited audio tracks for editing • Sample and frame-based editing I/O, Sync and Remote Controls • SD-/HD-SDI input and output in YUV(A) or RGB(A) 8/10/12 bit (single-/dual- link) • Analog RGBS/YUV output, DVI connector • SD down-converted output in PAL/NTSC • 16 channels of 24 bit digital audio, 48 kHz I/O (AES/EBU and embedded audio) • Two analog stereo monitor outputs • RS-422 in & out
Red Raven Lightweight 4.5K camera Red recently began taking pre-orders for this latest addition to its camera family. The Raven is the smallest Red camera to date. Like its bigger siblings it is fitted with the Dragon sensor but is in a lightweight package that is well suited to use with drones, gimbals or fast shooting for documentaries and lower-budget features. The price difference between the Raven and the Epic is sizeable. The Epic sells for around US$29 000, while the Raven will be available, body only, for US5 950. The camera is scheduled to ship in February 2016. Features: • 9.9 Megapixel Red Dragon sensor with an array of 4608 (h) by 2160 (w) • 16.5 stops od dynamic range • Records up to 120 fps at 4.5K and up to 240 fps at 2K • Compatible with Adobe Premier, Avid Media Composer, Da Vinci Resolve, Edius Pro, Final Cut Pro, Vegas Pro and REDCINE-X PRO • 1.6kg body (body plus Media Bay and Canon Lens Mount)
10 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
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ADCETERA
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Report on the South African commercials industry
Necessity breeds invention Just imagine being told that in four days you would need to produce and deliver a commercial which was due to go on air in a week. Freak out? Melt down? Reach for the nearest bottle of… water? You might, and you’d be completely justified in doing so. Or you could take the challenge as an opportunity to reignite your filmmaking bravery and boldly go where few people would dare, just as the team at Spitfire Films did.
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reative agency DDB came up with the concept for a Heritage Day campaign, which was pitched to and approved by the SABC. The idea was that, as South Africans, beautifully diverse as we may be, we ultimately share the same meshed and blended journey in our heritage. To bring this alive on screen different eclectic characters were featured, sharing what you might assume to be demographically specific statements in unusual groupings – a white Afrikaans boy saying he pays labola for example. With a clear vision of the brief, director Peter Heaney and his small crew set off to create the spot in record time, thankfully with a lot of spontaneity and creative licence in hand. For Heaney, who didn’t have a detailed storyboard or location scout at his disposal, nor a wardrobe fitting or casting done and dusted, getting a strong and reliable crew was at the top of his priority list. “I walked out of the brief and asked producer Cherice Whewell to check DOP Adam Bentel’s availability immediately.
12 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
Stills from SABC Heritage Day TVC
Adam and I go way back, he’s never flustered, works quickly and his eye on this kind of a job is invaluable. With him and my editor Ryan Norwood Young in place I could breathe a lot easier.” As is so often the case, the ability to capitalise on solid industry connections and relationships is an incredibly helpful asset in this kind of situation – or any for that matter! This enabled Heaney to shoot in Maboneng at the drop of a hat. A shoot of this nature can be daunting and chaotic; it can also offer filmmakers a number of beneficial creative challenges they rarely face when a project undergoes the usual preparation it would under normal circumstances. Both Bentel and Heaney say their previous experience gave them the confidence to follow their instincts and make quick decisions when necessary. “Modern South African television is not blessed with the sorts of budgets that commercials are, and thus we have to take a lot more on, and achieve a lot more, a lot quicker!” says Heaney. “As a TV director I was completely comfortable with seeing a location for the first time on shoot day, working with actors I hadn’t had a casting with, and shooting without
a storyboard. Long form is a great place to learn how to think on your feet and keep the whole picture in your head at all times.” Bentel adds: “I have done a lot of long form drama series’ and feature film work and this has allowed me to think on my feet and above all, be brave and make bold choices.” Casting was carried out through friends, industry recommendations and Contractors artist management. Professional actors were used to minimise the amount of direction needed on set. But producer Whewell remarks: “The nature of this job still involves a strict process between the agency and the client. Sometimes the process can be tricky when the deadline is so tight, and in this instance the priority of the job was to get client approval on the cast, wardrobe and most importantly the dialogue.” The team maximised on their time by carefully selecting the equipment needed and ensuring there was a strong team support structure. If someone needed help on another aspect of the production, whoever was available at the time would fill in and assist where possible. “When working like this, the crew really shows its mettle. Departments mix together so that
a holistic approach to filmmaking is used. I would have to pull the focus while the focus puller held the bounce board and the gaffer held the 1/2 Grid Cloth over the actress. Everyone carried the gear from location to location and it was really cool to watch this ‘family’ work together,” says Bentel. Bentel shot the ad using the Sony A7R MkII which he says is an incredibly small but versatile camera. “We had bounce boards and white cloth for fill light and a small battery powered LED Panel in case we needed something after the sun set. We also used a set of Russian LOMO Cine Lenses which took the digital edge off the A7R MkII’s sensor and gave the images a more cinematic feel,” he adds. For Heaney, shooting under these constraints evokes a much more organic process. “You’re not hamstrung by too many pre-conceived ideas and you can really embrace everything available to you on the day. You have to be prepared for problems too obviously, but there is seldom one you can’t solve if you’re thinking clearly and having fun. I still maintain that some of my best work has come from these sorts of shoots,” he concludes. – Carly Barnes
| ADCETERA
Director Speak
What location would you really like to shoot at?
Tristan Holmes
Hong Kong.
Are you ever tempted to delve into long form narrative filmmaking?
His journey into film started in front of the camera as a TV presenter, but Tristan Homes is now an accomplished commercials director at production company Star Films. His latest work includes ads for Garmin, Tusker and Vodacom and perhaps soon, a feature film…
In process. Coming to a theatre near you…
What are three songs you can’t get enough of? Bon Iver – ‘Holocene’, The National – ‘Fake Empire’, The National – ‘I Need My Girl’.
What five brands would you love to direct ads for? Coke, BMW, Dior, Apple, Lexus.
What is your background and how has this shaped you as a director? I have always been a keen performer and my time in front of the camera as a presenter probably set me on this course.
Describe the moment when you decided you wanted to become a director? Sitting in the movies and watching Romeo and Juliet as a teenager. Corny sure, but we all start somewhere, right? : )
What is your favourite SA advert to date? Laurence Hamburger’s banned SABC1 ad. Best ever. Also loved the old Metro FM ads. They don’t make ‘em like that anymore.
What inspires you? Honest people, dreamers and people who use their abilities to create things of value in this world.
Tristan Holmes
What are your least favourite parts of the job? Politics and finishing the job. It’s always so hard to stop and say, ok I am done; this is ready.
Who would play you in a Hollywood blockbuster and why? Heath Ledger. Because Heath Ledger.
What do you do when you are not directing commercials? Take pictures, smile, wander around aimlessly. Stare at Netflix. Dance like it’s nobody’s business.
Which five film characters would you invite to a dinner party? Daniel Day Lewis in: There Will Be Blood, Gangs of New York, Nine, My Left Foot, Unbearable Lightness of Being.
It’s always about the story For director and filmmaker Maurice Marable, no matter the medium or mode of delivery, the approach to a project unfolds from one core creative essence: the story. When it comes to creative endeavours, Marable has quite the brag list. Title sequences, music videos, on-air promos – check! Feature documentaries, short films, viral videos – check! TV series, commercials, rebrands – check! The founder of Brim + Brew, which creates and executes promotional campaigns for broadcast networks, is also a creative consultant for HBO and a director for commercial production company Brother. Marable is this year’s SABC sponsored keynote speaker at PromaxBDA Africa, where he will share his knowledge and experience as a shape-shifting creative with a keen audience of over 350 TV professionals at the Maslow Hotel in Johannesburg. While he was still a film student, Marable got the opportunity to work as a production assistant on a movie produced by Spike Lee. He left film school (with a plan of returning one day), and moved to New York to work on the project and kick-start his career in the film industry. Though his sights were set on
becoming a Hollywood director, he had no idea the road ahead of him would be filled with so many unanticipated prospects and high-profile campaigns. “I thought I was going to just make a movie and become a Hollywood director. That did not happen, but what did happen turned out to be even more special,” he remarks. Across the board Marable says his process begins with understanding the audience. “I draw my inspiration in the research,” he says. “I want to know as much as possible about the target audience. I want to know what is currently trending with them, what are they reading, what makes them laugh, smile, etc. Then I go back to the show that needs promoting and find those unique connections and attributes that the target audience will love.” But Marable believes a concept needs to go beyond being emotionally relatable – it needs to offer an audience something new and unexpected which will leave a lasting impression. “Creatively, it is always
Maurice Marable
about the story. I ask myself the same question with each project: ‘What is the best way to tell the story in order to get the audience to connect to the characters, the show, the plight…’ The only difference is the amount of details to oversee.” A vibrant career in showbiz has taught Marable to never stop learning. He advises burgeoning creatives with the following fundamentals: Make sure the writing is good; research, research, research; remember filmmaking is a visual storytelling medium; go for maximum emotional impact; make the characters relatable. “Every project deserves your full respect and attention. This business is not just about being creative, it is also about knowing how to communicate and work with many different types of people,” he adds. Marable concludes: “I always look forward to being inspired by the young voices of PromaxBDA Africa; the energy, the people and the creative thinking they bring.” – Carly Barnes November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 13
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Bryan Little captures Africa’s ‘maker culture’
Africa’s emerging maker culture
The ever-evolving creative Bryan Little recently directed a new commercial for Vigo – Namibian Breweries’ new non-alcoholic malt drink. Fly On The Wall’s Filipa Domingues co-produced the futuristic spot with Cyclone Films and With Milk.
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itled The World Needs More of You, the spot is described as a celebration of urban Africa’s ‘emerging maker culture’, bringing together creatives from all over Africa to collaborate on the Vigo VCloud, an installation – set to travel South Africa as part of the larger campaign – that converts biometrics into music, turning people’s pulses, brain waves and muscle movements into deconstructed instruments. “We came up with the idea of a futuristic machine, the Vigo VCloud,” Little explains, “that could sample people’s biometrics, like their heart beat, brain waves, and muscle movements, and use that data to live power ‘maker-built’ instruments in the ‘cloud’ and essentially create a music track from everyone who is plugged into the system, creating a soundtrack that would be the ‘pulse’ of each city. A beautiful idea really.” The music was created from recordings of the ‘cloud,’ explains Little. “The instruments were a strange collection of strings suspended in Perspex boxes,
14 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
ping-pong balls dropping on tangkis, and PVC pipes played by robot armatures. Simon Kohler, my go-to sound guru, created the beat from recordings of the instruments in the cloud.” Little describes ‘maker culture’ as open source; inclusive and exciting, adding that it is about a DIY approach to technology and culture production: “A maker will take apart a 90s Nintendo and re-wire it to make beats to use in an electro track. A maker might connect 200 LEDs on a rod, controlled with a self-coded Arduino chip to make a pixelstick that can be used in photography to ‘light paint’ images magically in the air. It’s the realm of hackers, coders and makers… The maker culture is where real relationships and boundaries are explored between people and technology.” The concept for the campaign took over six months to develop and resulted from a strong collaboration between Little, the advertising agency Adforce Namibia and South African-born artist Daniel Hirschmann and his London-based design and technology consultancy
Hirsch & Mann – the ‘maker company’ that created the actual Vigo VCloud installation. Little explains that the agency chose to involve him in the project quite early on in the conceptualisation phase, allowing him a lot of creative freedom. Once the concept had been secured his job was to create a ‘trailer’ type advertisement that would intrigue people, enticing them to go and engage with the installation when it comes to their city. The ad looks extremely futuristic encompassing LED technology, pixelsticks projection mapping and the latest ‘maker toys’. “Conceived and created by the Brooklyn-based ‘maker team’ Bitbanger Labs, the pixelstick has become hugely popular in stills photography. What I wanted to do was to use the stick to create animated imagery, a sequence of pixelstick images that moves in the frame. I called on the tech gurus at Lucan Visuals and (I think) we tried something never done before. We ended up with an epic little sequence of a lion charging across a downtown Jozi rooftop.” “We also hacked the Sony Xbox Kinect cameras, filming with them live and projecting into the studio space as a live visual element as the team was building… LED technology has exploded into pop culture and I wanted that aesthetic to be a big part of the commercial. We wrapped dancers in programmed LEDs; we had animated LED bicycle spokes. Everything glowed to the ethereal, vibrant, visual twang of the little
programmable light sources,” he adds. An ad that truly celebrates vision, energy, innovation and creativity, the spot is intended to feel futuristic, rooted in a strong local identity, a look and feel that translates onscreen into an atmosphere that is both real and magical – a world that represents “the pockets of urban culture that exist within our contemporary African cities.” The spot was shot over five days predominantly in and around downtown Johannesburg, and in a tavern in Soweto. DOP Grant Appleton shot the ad using Panasonic’s Anamorphic E-series lenses, and while the end result could fool the viewer into thinking that heavy special effects were used, everything was actually done in camera. “The pixelstick looks like a special effect but it is in camera. We had some sky replacements, like the starry galaxy that the guys at Lucan did for us. The Kinect Xbox imagery consisted of projections and the projection mapping was also all in camera,” explains Little. The ad is a fresh and original creative expression that the commercials market has been lacking in recent times: “It’s a saturated slice of the urgent feeling on the streets to design our own world,” Little concludes, “one that responds to our inspirations and needs, rather than applying relentless pressure to conform to ways of thinking that don’t work. I think music and dance and fashion are avenues of expression and at the moment the streets are jiving.”
| ADCETERA
A model new advertising agency Can independent agencies save the industry from itself? Some creatives believe so, others believe the time of the independent agency is over, that they will not survive the domination of the global advertising networks.
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angea Ultima is a new advertising agency born in September 2015 and led by three of the industry’s brightest agency heads, a veritable dream team: Haydn Townsend (chairman and CEO); James Cloete (creative partner) and Gareth Lessing (creative partner), all multiple award winners for work on South Africa’s best known and global brands at South Africa’s biggest agencies. Townsend is the chief strategy officer and major shareholder of Pangea Ultima, a chartered marketer and psychology graduate who has worked as a brand manager and strategist, then deputy MD at Ogilvy Johannesburg, and chief strategy officer at Jupiter executive chairperson at BLK OPS, which is now part of Pangea Ultima. James Cloete worked at some of South Africa’s most well-known ad agencies, was ECD at DraftFCB in 2009, before joining 7 Different Kinds of Smoke, and is now also part of Pangea. Lessing has worked as a creative at TBWA Hunt Lascaris, Lowe Bull Jhb (where he was executive creative director), and DDBSA (ECD and exco). They describe themselves as the ‘creative brain’ of a collaborative grouping of complementary partner agencies, including 7 Different Kinds of Smoke, BLKOps, Ever and Moonchild. Pangea Ultima intends building up its collaborative agency network to include all through-the-line agency partners in content, advertising and digital. The model is not new really; it is more of a return to the model in the industry 20 years ago before media, branding and production split out of the advertising
Pangea Ultima team leadership: Gareth Lessing, James Cloete and Haydn Townsend
agencies into separate companies and digital disrupted everything again. “We’re a bit of a ‘dream team,” explains Lessing. “We are probably the only agency with the three key points in an agency sitting in the same room, running the agency: creative, strategy and art direction. It’s like going back to the old days where the strat person sat in on the team.” Even the name is significant for their ‘new’ model – Pangea was the name of the giant landmass that existed billions of years ago before seismic forces wrenched it apart to form the continents we recognise today. Lessing and his partners are concerned that clients now hire up to seven different agencies to meet all their below- and above-the-line needs, get seven ideas and pick one, so that there is not one thought or idea being implemented, from a business card to a YouTube ad. “Often when a team in an agency crack an idea, the idea doesn’t stay the same. It is not something that comes out of your heart and soul. It’s never kept true to what the idea was. Pangea Ultima will always be the custodians of that creative idea and we will see it all the way through. We are one creative hub.” Besides the creative problem, Lessing says an issue for them is that clients are paying double mark ups for each agency… for five account managers, five executive creative directors and so on.
They believe the current advertising agency model is broken. “It is a frustration for us. It is too fragmented. Twenty years ago when we all started out in the advertising industry, everything was still in the building. It can’t work if there is a different brand experience at every touchpoint. The current model makes everything schizophrenic. Even within clients: they have an activation team, an above-the-line team, a digital marketing team… “How can that honestly be a working model for brands? Twenty years ago we were closer and had more control over the idea for brands. We used to sit with media and work out which media was the best for that idea. Now there are so many different touchpoints and different agencies in the mix for each brand that it doesn’t really work. You cannot have so many agencies and still make one idea work.” Lessing and his new partners believe that the creative agency of the future will have to be able to solve the brand problems and brand communications problems through one idea and then be a partner with the implementation guys. When a brief comes in for Pangea Ultima, or their of our partner companies, they solve it strategically, crack it creativity and then decide how they are going to implement it, whether through sponsorship, digital, or an event. “We are doing everything under one roof. Our
partners are right next door to us. We can go to the client with an idea, have all these partners to execute it, but we will oversee it going into the market,” Lessing reiterates. “That is our model. We are pooling talent and resources to be more effective for clients.” Lessing says clients are loving the fact that there is an idea attached to the work. “Clients have often not got a creative concept and idea for activations and events where the brand message is clear.” The impact for clients is twofold, he explains: “We make client’s lives easier so they don’t have to have four status meetings with all their agencies, dealing with one account manager, and no double mark-ups; and we will be able to eradicate any disconnect in the brand and have a holistic communications idea that runs through all mediums, one idea, one message. “This model of having partners that are independent, but all devoted to each other, seems like the model that will work,” Lessing emphasises. If anyone can change the SA advertising landscape in which only three top independent ad agencies remain after the global acquisition spree, and create a new agency model, it could be Pangea Ultima with its talent-rich and experienced leadership. – Louise Marsland November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 15
FILM
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SOUTH AFRICA
A HEALING FILM: Behind the scenes of My Father’s War
16 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
SOUTH AFRICA
| Film
My Father’s War –
a story of reconciliation Director Craig Gardner’s war drama My Father’s War recently wrapped shooting, with principal photography taking just 24 days. Gardner explains that the project is particularly close to his and producer Peter Lamberti’s heart and they hope that it will resonate with audiences in much the same way.
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y Father’s War deals with a troubled young man Dap (Edwin van der Walt) who has a series of dreams in which he is a combat soldier in the South African Border War. In these dreams, Dap meets his father Dawid (Stian Bam) at the same age, who was actually a soldier in the war. Through these dreams, Dap gets to know his father and his experiences during those trying times, giving him insight and compassion for his father which he has always lacked, and the ability to let go of his life-long feelings of abandonment and resentment, which in turn leads to forgiveness and reconciliation. Gardner says that the idea of making a film that would help facilitate healing across generations involved in the South African Border War appealed to him enormously. “The subject matter has relevance even though the war ended many years ago. There are a lot of emotional wounds that still need closure,” he says. However, the conceptualisation of the film’s premise didn’t originate solely with him: “My business partner, Peter Lamberti was a recce during the war and had always wanted to do a movie about it. I wanted to broaden the appeal so that the film could reach as large an audience as possible. “Father/son movies have always struck a chord with audiences around the world, so we decided that this would form the foundation for the story. The challenge was how to incorporate a decades-old war with a contemporary relationship. How do you bridge that gap? Without giving it away, that’s the premise of My Father’s War.” With the foundation of the film firmly secured in his mind, Gardner, who directed and wrote the film says that “the rest was fairly easy”. The script was written within seven weeks, in
consultation with Lamberti regarding the content that included and focused on the war sequences. Once the script was finished, it took another two years until principal photography began. “The writing process was very straight forward; I knew how I wanted the film to end and how it would start,” explains Gardener. “Without sounding glib, the rest was about fitting the rest of the jigsaw puzzle together. The hardest part about writing the script was going through all the emotions of the characters. It was exhausting!” Gardner explains that differing camera techniques as well as dissimilarities in the grading will serve as an artistic signal differentiating the contemporary scenes, which are set in 2003, from the film’s war scenes. “The main character describes his dreams as being real, so although they take place in the 1980’s they will look as if they are happening right now,” he explains. “All the war scenes are shot hand held at a 45 degree shutter angle, so they have a feeling of immediacy and visual clarity. The contemporary scenes have a completely different look and feel. Nothing is shot hand held and the grading of the movie will clearly differentiate them from the war scenes.” Shot in and around Johannesburg, the Hennops area and the Vaal River, DOP Tom Marais made use of both the F55 and an Alexa camera – depending on the shooting requirements – to capture the film’s simplistic yet distinct look and feel, using a dolly and tracks in the 2003 sequences. “There are no clever camera moves or angles that draw attention to themselves,” Gardner says. “The key in this film is allowing the audience to immerse themselves in the story and anything that takes their attention away from the characters and the drama was an absolute no-no. There are a number
of scenes that are filmed in one continuous shot, without cutting, to help facilitate this.” Interestingly, a third of My Father’s War was shot in both Afrikaans and English; Gardner sings his cast’s praise in being able to perfect and exercise their craft with such ease in two languages: “All the domestic scenes were shot in Afrikaans and English. We believe that this is a first – a movie filmed in two languages. The actors amazed us all with their ability to do scene after scene of heavy dramatic and emotional conflict in one language, and then another.” The film is partially financed by the dti and M-Net, but Gardner says that without Lamberti: “there would be no My Father’s War,” adding: “We also have an American partner because this film will be released internationally. But the person who really put his money where his mouth is, is Peter Lamberti… The movie was facilitated by his production company, Aquavision Television Productions. Peter also owns Lion Mountain Media, of which Lion Mountain Films is a subsidiary. He and I are partners on the film.” My Father’s War seeks to teach its viewers that it is near impossible to understand the precursors that fuel the actions of another person if you haven’t walked in their shoes. Additionally, the film seeks to demonstrate the redemptive power in communication and understanding within a family. Lastly, the father/son theme has historically been proven to touch people’s hearts and transcend territories and Gardner says that he hopes this will resonate with moviegoers all over the world. My Father’s War will be theatrically released at Ster-Kinekor cinemas in 2016, with M-Net holding the African broadcasting rights. – Chanelle Ellaya November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 17
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LITERARY TO VISUAL MEDIUM: Anchien Troskie’s novel Dis Ek, Anna comes to life on the silver screen
18 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
| Film
Screen adaptations
in contemporary South Africa Since the beginning of cinema, producers, writers and directors have turned to novels for source material. A vast number of international films – Hollywood included – are taken from the written word. Yet South African filmmakers have been slow to exploit our own literary heritage, despite the fact that it is a very rich one – covering English, Afrikaans and indigenous languages.
It is ironic that Hollywood and European filmmakers have made more films based on South African books than we have locally. That aside, in recent years, more and more literary film adaptations are coming out of South Africa, and with great success. Locally, in just the past year, Sara Blecher’s screen adaptation of Anchien Troskie’s (writing under the pseudonym Elbie Lotter) disturbing semi-autobiographical novel Dis Ek, Anna and its sequel Die Staat Teen Anna Bruwer, has been winning critical acclaim on the festival circuit. The screen adaptation of Cynthia Jele’s feel good romance novel Happiness is a Four Letter Word is currently in post-production set to premiere early in 2016; and Charlie Human’s critically acclaimed sci-fi/fantasy novel Apocalypse Now Now is to be adapted for the big screen as a CanadianSouth African co-production in 2016. There are always mixed expectations regarding film adaptations; die-hard fans of a particular book are anxious that the screen adaptation won’t match what they have conjured up in their imagination, and then there’s the on-going debate about which is better – the book or the movie… It is extremely difficult to take a story from a literary medium and successfully turn it into a visual one. When it works, it often transcends the original source material. When it doesn’t, it either fails miserably or is considered mediocre by fans of the literary source.
South African popular literature Original screenplays have become more of a gamble for producers, who attribute the growing trend mainly to the recent ‘boom’ in quality South African popular literature, dealing with ‘immediate local
social issues’, that resonate with today’s cinema-going audience. Bongiwe Selane, along with Helena Spring and Junaid Ahmed, is part of the producing team for the screen adaptation of Cynthia Jele’s 2010 novel Happiness is a Four Letter Word and comments: “The book felt new in a sense that nothing like that had ever been done in a South African context… Its greatest appeal was how different it was in the context of South African literature that would usually deal with the socio-political occupation of a new country, but focused on a more social aspect of what is currently occupying and happening in a new modern South Africa.” Niel van Deventer, producer of the 2015 Afrikaans film Dis Ek, Anna, agrees that the growth in outstanding relatable narratives has been a major draw card for South African producers turning to books for film concepts, but adds that financial risk is also a contributing factor. “I think that a lot of brilliant, relatable stories already exist in books and that it is sometimes easier to turn a novel into a screenplay, but it might also be that books already have a following, which makes the movie not quite the financial risk to make and try and sell… Unfortunately in South Africa we will almost always have to look at the affordability of turning any story into something for screen.”
Visuals and resonance Selane and van Deventer say that the most important aspects to consider when attempting to successfully adapt a literary medium for the big screen, is how the writing translates visually, and its relevance in a contemporary society. Selane comments: “After reading it (Happiness is a Four Letter Word), I thought it read very ‘visual’ and would
translate well into a chick-flick much in the same vein as Sex and the City and Waiting to Exhale… I was attracted by the world of the story, its relevance in a transitional democracy and its portrayal of a South Africa in the present rather than the past.” Van Deventer further explains that relevance in society is a key factor when looking to adapt a novel for the big screen. The relevance of the issue of child abuse, which is addressed in Dis Ek, Anna, was a selling point for the producers when reading the book. “The books (Dis Ek, Anna and Die Staat Teen Anna Bruwer) read very visual and I could see them being made into a film from the first time I read them. It also addresses child abuse and after some research we came to the realisation of how important but unaddressed it is.”
Screenwriting Given that a book is a lengthy written medium it is often a difficult process when deciding which situations, characters and conflicts to condense into a 120-minute film. In some cases, such as with the screen adaptation of Happiness is a Four Letter Word, the author of the novel lends a hand on a consultancy basis to assist with the screenwriting process, and to authenticate story beats and characters. “Cynthia Jele stayed on board on a consultancy basis… and was involved in every story change or alteration we made. We worked amazingly well together to keep the main themes and plot-lines intact. She however didn’t write the screenplay, Busisiwe Ntintili was the screenwriter for Happiness,” says Selane. Alternatively – as with the adaptation of Dis Ek, Anna – the author chose not to be involved at all, leaving the entire screenwriting process in the capable
hands of screenwriter Tertius Kapp.
Escapism and audience expectations Selane says that it is always difficult to stay 100% true to the novel and producers have to take creative liberties when deciding what needs to be included or excluded to make the book filmic. She explains: “For instance – the novel involves a multi-plot story of four friends, but in the film, we decided to combine two characters into one so that we have three leads instead of four. This was a deliberate decision to allow enough screen time for each character and their partners so that the story is fleshed out more. It’s really a matter of deciding what translates to the screen and what is it that would make audiences go see the film, even those who didn’t read the book.” Selane adds that the most important thing to understand is that, at the end of the day, a film is about escapism. “We do our best to capture the world, the theme and the characters in the novel, but a film is ultimately about entertainment, about escapism and these are some of the things we have to grapple with when deciding what will work and what won’t. Film is also about casting – making sure that a particular actor will capture the character truly – and someone who’d read the book will have a very different idea of who would play which character. So there really isn’t an exact science, but just trusting that the cast will resonate with the characters in the book.” Van Deventer adds that while it is crucial to do what is best for the film, it is advised not to place too much emphasis on the audience’s initial reactions, adding that: “if the film is well made, they will see it, appreciate it and love it.” – Chanelle Ellaya November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 19
FILM
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SOUTH AFRICA
Elements of Cinema: Baring it all
Catherine Stewart on directing:
EXTREME VULNERABILITY: Still from While you Weren’t Looking
Sex scenes have got to be the most difficult of all to execute. It’s hard to even talk about them without blushing, never mind presenting them to an audience in a way that is authentic, intimate and true to the narrative. The film While you Weren’t Looking features the stories of different lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender relationships which are interwoven and presented in the context of the new South Africa. Main characters Asanda, (Petronella Tshuma); and Shado (Thishiwe Ziqubu); are finally able to express their attraction for each other in this scene. 20 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
Nodi Murphy on writing: In this scene it was important to complete the circle of chemistry between the two characters, and for our Tom Boy character to be revealed as a woman. Scripting a sex scene is simple, one can simply write “they have sex” and give some stage directions of where, what time of day, urgent or slow, the mood, and perhaps some information on the emotion. Then you leave it to the director, cinematographer and actors to interpret. The director needs to bring the paper to life and the actors need to feel comfortable. Also, there is the audience and their expectations to consider. This is a story that caters for a niche that see themselves so rarely as complete, talking, walking, eating, beings who also have sex.
A scene with a sexual encounter between characters requires extra preparation, sensitivity, clarity, and care from a director to be able to ask the actors for the extreme vulnerability they must bring to their performance. In many ways a sex scene in cinema is a dance between the actors and the camera; it requires rehearsal, timing, blocking, choreographing, storyboarding and planning. I ask for a closed set, with as few people present as possible and I make sure that the crew who are present are completely supportive and respectful of the actors. The actors wear merkins (pubic coverings) and I don’t shoot anything that isn’t absolutely necessary for the scene and the story. My ferocity about this makes the actors feel safe with me and trust me. In this scene I wanted a fragile camera, hand held, through the doorway as Asanda unbound Shado. Then once the sensuality became intense between them I wanted close ups of body parts, so close you couldn’t always tell what you were looking at – an arm or a cheek or a breast, and a ‘shift and tilt’ effect with the lenses where things on the same focus plane would move in and out of focus, mimicking the way you can’t really see a person when you are very, very close to them. The intimacy itself distorts your vision and the boundaries between yourself and the other person blur.
SOUTH AFRICA
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Amanda Law on producing: Catherine Stewart (on behalf of Ronelle Loots) on sound and editing:
Amelia Henning on cinematography and lighting:
Ronelle cut the shots to the rhythm of the music and also to the emotional rhythm of Asanda’s journey of exploration into overwhelming, powerful, new sensual territory. For Asanda the sex scene is a moment when she moves completely outside her comfort zone and upbringing. It must feel to her like jumping off a cliff. But it must also feel inevitable, and unavoidable, almost as if she made the choice long ago and is now acting on it. So there needed to be something hypnotic about the the rhythm of it. Ronelle and I talked about how the pacing of shots and choice of shots affected the emotional shape of the scene. We did several different versions before we felt we got the balance just right and found a rhythm that expressed the hesitation and nervousness of exploration and then the diving into experience as the music and the sensual journey itself takes over.
The way one approaches shooting a sex scene depends on the intimacy or energy level of the characters. What is their intention? Is it lust, love, fetish, rape, innocent or X-rated? That is what determines and motivates the camera dynamics. The entire film was shot on an Arri Alexa, with Arri Alura lenses. For the sex scene, Shift Tilt prime lenses were the obvious choice. Using these lenses creates an extremely shallow depth of field which enhances the subtle choice of focus on chosen parts of the body and leaves the majority of the frame soft. This helped especially to portray Asanda’s sexual innocence. The township house had no electricity and 100% candle light was used for illumination. This enhances skin tones and creates a wonderful romantic, warm light. Obviously lighting is pivotal in setting the emotional ambiance of the scene.
Petronella Tshuma on acting: As with any role I play, there’s a lot of character preparation that I do before finally breathing life into a scene. In the initial stages, as an actor you try to understand your character’s truth and ask yourself (in character): ‘who am I?’, ‘What is my objective?’, ‘Why?’. The same fundamentals go into a sex scene; but with more sensitivity. I prepare for months or weeks, depending on the time. Mental and physical preparation is key for me and just before a scene I meditate. Taking off my clothes and opening myself up to telling the character’s truth takes a lot of courage. Thankfully, I’ve worked with supportive actors (Thishiwe Ziqubu and Mothusi Magano) who have made me feel safe; and amazing directors (Catherine Stewart and Jahmil Qubeka) who have taken into consideration my insecurities about my body and made sure I was fully comfortable.
Although audiences appreciate a good sex or love scene, there’s nothing sexy about shooting either one of them. One of my chief concerns is always whether there is good chemistry between the actors involved, as this translates directly onto screen. Another is to always be respectful of the process, and the boundaries that the cast is willing to work within. On the day, the best thing a producer can do is stay away, and allow the director and actors to work within the relationship of trust that they have developed. Sometimes less is more, and the challenge is finding the balance that allows your story to be pushed forward, while still enticing and provoking the audience. You also need to be aware of your target audience and have an understanding of what the Film and Publications’ ratings classifications are. Each country has their classification and some countries are stricter than others. You also have to make sure that everyone is covered contractually. – Compiled by Carly Barnes November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 21
FILM
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ETHIOPIA
Ethiopia’s first
Oscar entry
SEARCH FOR HOME: A scene from Lamb
Yared Zeleke’s Lamb deals with many prevalent issues in sub-Saharan Africa: the loss of a parent, migrations and uprooted families, poverty and competition for human survival. The first Ethiopian film to be included in the official Cannes Film Festival selection, it also recently became the first film from the country to be in the running for a Best Foreign Language Film award at the Academy Awards. 22 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
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et in 1980s rural Ethiopia, with its picturesque mountainous landscape, Lamb tells the story of a boy who, after losing his mother during a drought, moves in with distant relatives while his father seeks employment in Addis Ababa. The 9-year-old protagonist, Ephraim (Rediat Amare) has a pet sheep named Chuni, who offers him companionship and whom Ephraim must find ways of protecting. Couched in easily recognisable rural conflicts, the film is a deeply humane exploration of a boy’s search for a place to call home. Director Yared Zeleke was born in Ethiopia but left the country for the United States when he was only ten. The nostalgic longing and loss of companionship he felt during those early years away from home, seem to have parallels with the themes in his debut feature film. “For a great number of years, this film was in my mind and I wanted to do something that I have personally experienced and dealt with as a child.” Yared says. “I have been interested in my culture’s uniqueness and I wanted really to incorporate my own experiences and life as a young man in this film.” The 36-year-old holds an M.F.A. in writing and directing from New York University. Previously, he worked for various NGOs in his native country, the US, Norway and Namibia, and eventually decided to pursue filmmaking. An experienced editor, he as edited documentaries for the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO). He was involved with the
director Joshua Atesh Litle on his award winning documentary The Furious Force of Rhymes in Ethiopia. For a while Zeleke has been writing, directing and producing short documentaries. He adds, “For me Lamb is about relationship, family and the pain of losing the people we love and care about and more so the ones we need to protect.” The film was entirely shot in Ethiopia with Amharic dialogue. “Initially funding was a challenge because it’s rare for anyone to even know Ethiopia and least of all want to be involved with a story about a kid and his pet sheep.” Zeleke wrote the screenplay in collaboration with Geraldine Bajard. It was shot by Josee Deshaies, a FrenchCanadian cinematographer who is mostly known for collaborating with Bertrand Bonello and has been twice nominated for the César Award for Best Cinematography. Lamb was edited by Veronique Bruque and the music is by Christophe Chassol who previously scored The Incident, a 2011 French horror film. “It was a great honour to be involved with people who are into indie films,” says Zeleke. “I have always had a knack for independent films and am glad I had a chance to work with creatives who previously have been doing their own productions.” An Ethiopian-French-GermanNorwegian co-production, the film runs for 94 minutes and is distributed by Haut et Court, in France and is a model for successful filmmaking collaboration. “This film was made possible because
I had to talk to people near and far whose interest resonated with mine, and it was in these meetings that I got to meet people who led me to other people who wanted to do what I wanted to do. But it was not easy.” Ethiopian audiences have become more and more interested in locally-made films over the years. “I believe the time has come for Ethiopia to go beyond the negative knowledge that the world holds against it, the prejudice that the global eye has about suffering and despair and poverty and start appreciating the country for what it is and not its challenges, because every country has got challenges.” Zeleke plans to start a collective hub for filmmakers and writers in his native country, a creative centre where up-and-coming filmmakers will be trained and nurtured in the writing, directing and production of films both fictional and non-fictional. The hub will have a strong focus on teens from tough disadvantaged backgrounds and emphasis will be placed on increasing the number of women in the Ethiopian film industry. “I want Ethiopia to be the next big thing in film and documentary production,” he says. “If young boys and girls can be trained in the tools of film production, the whole nine yards –writing, directing, shooting and producing – then the future of storytelling will be bright because knowledge is critical in this field and I am hoping to see these dreams come to fruition.” – Sam Charo
MOROCCO
Nabil Ayouch: ‘There is a phenomenal hypocrisy’ Much Loved is a feature about prostitutes in Marrakech. Released at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival and internationally acclaimed, the movie was banned on 25 May by the communications minister of Morocco. French-Moroccan filmmaker Nabil Ayouch took time to explain the situation to Screen Africa. From street children in Ali Zaoua (winner of the 2001 Fespaco Golden Stallion) to prostitutes in Much Loved – why do people on the fringes of society interest you? Nabil Ayouch: Perhaps because I was born in France and grew up in a Parisian suburb, I felt this notion of edge and disconnection that you can feel in Sidi-Moumen district (a district of Casablanca where his previous movie, Horses of God, was shot). At the same time, unlike Morocco, there was a social mix that rectifies this situation. When I arrived in Morocco I was stunned to realise that these ‘non-conformists’, as people say, are not in the minority if you add the street children to the prostitutes, the youth from the slums to the ones from the popular areas. But they don’t mix with the other people. There are invisible walls: it can be a car window, the belt highway or the lack of public transport. And we never hear what they have to say. We don’t see them so there is a kind of denial that takes hold in a two-tier society. Why did you choose an English title for Much Loved? NA: There is an Arabic title: Zin li fik, which means The Beauty Inside You. I love this title because it has a mirror effect. The beauty inside you and the necessity for the audience or the people who look at these women – to look at their own inside beauty – to look at them differently. Concerning Much Loved,
post-production stage. We got support from the French Aide aux Cinémas du Monde and the Ile-de-France region.
there is no translation. This is a title I really appreciate because it appeals to various ideas: too much loved, badly loved, but also the idea of wear, like when you have a teddy bear which was worn because you liked it too much. Was it a long project to write, produce and shoot? NA: It was long to build in terms of thought and research. Like Ali Zaoua and Horse of Gods, I went through an anthropological, sociological or psychoanalytical state. I listened to 200 prostitutes from every side of Morocco. It was fascinating to hear of their wounds, their journeys, how they keep afloat, their sense of humor and their solidarity. At this stage, I didn’t know if I would make a fiction or a documentary but gradually, listening to them, I realised I had developed a view on them and their lives. So I decided to write my own story based on what they reported to me. It took a year and a half. When I finally decided to make the movie, I looked for funding in Morocco but the project was twice rejected. So I had the choice: to wait two more years to get European funds or to shoot it immediately. As there was a momentum, I decided to shoot directly on my own resources. A few years ago, you said that to exist in the international circuit, an African film should be a co-production. NA: Yes but this one was a sensitive case. I had the feeling that I would lose the girls. There was also an urgency to tell this story. So we did it in the old style and then co-producers came during the
When Much Loved was released in Cannes, some extracts published on the internet created a massive buzz in Morocco. Were your actresses prepared for this negative publicity? NA: No one was prepared for so much hate and violence. No one was ready to receive so many tough words from people who did not even watch the film. However, everyone knew that the movie would provoke debates, with contradictory points of view. So yes, they were ready for that and what reassured me was their motivation to play in the movie, to make the movie and the ideas they wanted to defend. This helped us stay strong until the French release in September 2015. When FrenchMoroccans or Moroccans based in France saw the movie they realised people were talking nonsense. They told us: “We were part of the ones who condemn you without having seen the movie. And now that we have seen it, this is absolutely not what we thought. This is an important movie.” Then two of the actresses got recognition from the audience, including an award for Loubna Abidar at the Festival du Film Francophone d’Angoulême in France. As you received French funding and had your premiere in Cannes, do you see a critique of western influence behind the bashing you received? NA: Perhaps. But it is mostly about self-hate that turns into the hate of the other. This incapacity to look into the mirror and the really strong desire not to look into it is really tough. Then, there is a phenomenal hypocrisy. “We can talk about it between us but we must not show it.” So the good point of this ban and these violent reactions is that it gave a voice to another part of Moroccan society, a more progressive part, which wanted the film to be unbanned and have the choice to watch it or not. They defended the film. This ‘war’ opened
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debate, not only on prostitution, but also on women’s place in the Arab world. Did people ask for your point of view or did they talk among themselves? NA: It was variable. People talked among themselves in lot of articles, I did some interviews but I didn’t want to be too present. I defended the film, my point of view. What about the actresses? NA: It was really hard just after Cannes. I had to put them in a private apartment to protect them because we were really afraid. Fortunately, nothing happened. They stayed one month then went back to their districts, in their families. No one was assaulted. When did the debate move from the cinema sphere to the political one? NA: Immediately. Just after the Cannes Film Festival, the communication minister banned the movie without having watching it. I didn’t even ask for a certificate for the film. The normal process to request a certificate is to send the movie to a committee, which watches it and gives its opinion. But this is the duty of the Moroccan Cinema Centre, not the Communication Ministry. The Communication Ministry cannot give its opinion – this is illegal and this has never happened in Morocco before. Did you get support from the Moroccan film industry? NA: The professionals supported it, not the Moroccan Cinema Centre. What was the hardest part for you? NA: To be separated from my natural audience, which are the Moroccans. This movie was shot in Morocco even if the purpose is universal. And the fact that people completely distort the movie’s sense: outrageous, polemical… which is absolutely not the case. Much Loved talks about essential and profound things, about the conditions of women, invisibles in the society. There is only one love scene – and it has a purpose. I defend each word, each image, each shot of this movie. It is not about free provocation. If it provokes, it is to wake people up. The fact that many people did not understand that, because they did not have the opportunity to see the movie, made me really sad. When it was released in France, nothing made me happier than those young Moroccans who told me – sometimes publicly, in a microphone: “We made a mistake. Sorry...” – Compiled and translated from French by Claire Diao November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 23
PRODUCTION FACILITIES
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ADVERTORIAL
Building a formidable legacy
Endemol Shine Africa recently relocated from its Johannesburg centre of operations and long-term home in Lonehill to the expanding industry hub in the suburb of Ferndale. On the occasion of the move, CEO Sivan Pillay reflects on the primary objectives of the African arm of the global multiplatform content producer.
T
he Endemol Shine Group is quite possibly the largest independent content producer in the world and its Africa branch is certainly the largest on the continent. It has operations in three countries: South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya, from which it is able to service the whole of sub-Saharan Africa. The group is a network of over 120 companies in 33 countries. Each company and each country has its own particular market focus and specialisations, bound together by the group’s overarching brand and business development objectives. Endemol Shine Africa, says CEO Sivan Pillay, is currently placing its focus in five separate but related areas: creative solutions and format production, postproduction, animation, script development and content repurposing, and a cutting edge online strategy – Endemol Beyond.
Creative solutions and format production “In South Africa,” says Pillay, “our speciality is local creativity in the generating of both scripted and non-scripted content, for broadcasting and advertising clients.” Endemol creates original of Endemol content in various genres CEO Shine Africa – for television. Among its Sivan Pillay award-winning drama shows are Tempy Pushas, Isidingo and Snitch. On the non-scripted side, Endemol Shine is behind such shows as Katch It With Khanyi. In addition to original local content, the production house also adapts various formats for the African market, including Big Brother. “Our solutions are not limited to television,” Pillay continues. “We also create original digital productions (ODPs), which we produce, at this stage, mainly for the advertising world. With social media and various analytical tools available now on online platforms, it’s become so much easier to measure investment on published content. This is a facility that television doesn’t offer. We find that using a combined strategy that includes both television and digital engagement, we are able to offer advertisers the best possible solutions.”
Post-production Endemol has had its own post-production facilities for several years now, able to edit and finish its various productions in house. With the move to its new premises, the company will have an expanded postproduction service, which it will be able to offer to third-party producers as well. “In South Africa – and in Africa in general – advertiser and broadcaster budgets are severely challenged,” says Pillay. “The continent has not got to the point where it is able to pay the kinds of costs per minute that producers expect in most of the developed world. In order for Endemol Shine to maintain its high quality standards on limited budgets, we invested in our own 24 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
high-end post-production facilities. With these we are able to create extraordinary pictures from relatively low-budget source material at a highly competitive and manageable cost. Every show we make now runs through our post-production set-up. As a result, the product we deliver to broadcasters and advertisers appears of far greater value than one would expect from the budget. This has been a substantial point of difference for us. So with these facilities we are able to operate in post-production at a far more competitive rate than clients are used to. What we are doing now is not only using our post-production facilities for our own TV productions but also opening them up to advertising clients because we can offer them such a competitive service. “At our new premises at 272 Kent, we have 12 edit suites, two final mix suites and a master edit suite. This is quite substantial. We have sufficient capacity to keep on turning out our own shows and also take on third party work. Aside from our equipment, we have a really skilled and experienced post-production team who are highly capable both creatively and technically.”
conceptualised, scripted and voiced in their particular markets but we could do the animation work here.”
our partners within the Endemol Shine group to co-develop shows for various markets.”
Endemol beyond
Clash of the Choirs logo – Mzansi Magic’s hit talent reality show Mamello – SABC 2’s top Drama series for 2015
Endemol Beyond’s star Michelle Phan’s has over 8 million subscribers, 1.1 billion lifetime views
Mamello logo – SABC 2’s top drama for 2015
Script development and content repurposing Endemol Beyond launches its hit YouTube gaming event
Animation Winner announcement of Big Brother Mzansi Double Trouble – Season 2 Endemol Beyond’s ICON celebrates lifestyle content
Animated Project – 13 Part series produced in-house
Katch It With Khanyi – a home-grown hit talk show on etv
Big Brother logo – On Mzansi Magic
Animation has been an area that Pillay has wanted to explore for several years. “Whenever I made enquiries,” he says. “I always found that it was so expensive. Whether we do the work locally or outsource it internationally, it still requires a sizeable sum of money to get the job done. We decided that the best way to tackle this was to follow a similar approach to the one we took with post-production: we invested in our own animation facilities and brought it in house. So now – in addition to creating our television show CIs and branding – we can also do full animation production. We are currently working to generate original animated content for both local and international broadcasters and other platforms. “Our initial work has shown us that we can do it at a cost that is substantially lower than most producers are doing both locally and around the world. Our objective in the long term is to secure some major international animation projects. In the most case, these would be shows that are
Tempy Pushas – SABC 1’s scripted drama success aired its second season in 2015
“The interesting thing about drama shows in Nigeria and Kenya is that they are produced English,” Pillay says. “That makes it highly exportable both across the continent and outside of it. A lot of South African drama shows are produced in local languages, which are not spoken anywhere else on the continent. So Nollywood content is able to travel much further than South African content. I am of the opinion that South African scripted content has enormous potential to travel. With this in mind, we have begun to focus on translating, dubbing, subtitling and repurposing our local work for international use. “We could approach this in a number of ways: we could produce in local languages and dub into English and then export, or produce in English for export and dub for local consumption. On the other hand, we can also acquire foreign content and dub or subtitle it here. We are also working with
Globally, the Endemol Shine group operates an online multichannel content network called Endemol Beyond. Endemol Shine Africa is devoting considerable resources to exploiting this network to access new markets. There are two areas, Pillay explains: “Talent or channel acquisition – where we acquire existing talent or channels – and owned and operated (O&O) channels. The two biggest O&Os in the group are Icon and Legends of Gaming. Those are quite well established on a global scale and we will be launching local versions in the next few months. For us the focus is to build the platform locally and then plug that into the existing global network so there is cross promotion. “The group has recognised the importance of online and mobile platforms. If you look at the stats, it’s very easy to see that online and mobile platforms are on the rise. We understand that the viewing habits of these platforms are very different from that of traditional TV viewers. These are consumers who have not experienced television to any appreciable extent – they haven’t even experienced a PC. This is a mobile world and things like gaming and app development play a vital role. “What’s important for us is to leave a formidable legacy in these areas as the ways in which media is consumed rapidly evolves. We want to be able to say that we were an important part of driving that evolution.”
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FILM
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SOUTH AFRICA
Director Speak She’s directed documentaries, short films and TV dramas… eventually creating, writing and directing on major shows like Isibaya and The Road. But now that Catherine Stewart has her first feature film under her belt, the sky is the limit... What has your experience been in the film industry? I was lucky enough to go to film school in New York. I got a Master of Fine Art in directing and screenwriting from Columbia University, and then I worked on some big budget films directed by Milos Forman before returning to South Africa to make my own projects.
What is it like transitioning from TV to film directing? Bliss. Creating worlds and characters for a single, once-off story, you only get one chance to tell, is heaven. Each scene in a film is completely unique, never to be revisited. I love that. Like life, you have to plan like mad and then throw it all out when you find perfection in the moment. And you only get one chance. I’m completely addicted.
Describe yourself in three words Visualising, collaborating, perfectionist.
What songs make up your most recent music playlist? • ‘Living Dangerously’ by Umlilo • ‘Crazy Love’ by Van Morrison • ‘Forbidden Fruit’ by Toya Delazy
What was your most memorable moment on the set of While You Weren’t Looking? I remember standing on top of the grip truck with Amelia (my DOP) shooting a frame with the rooftops of Khayelitsha in foreground and the sun setting behind Table Mountain in the distance – an unplanned, stolen shot, that we had no time for, but got anyway, on the spur of the moment, with everyone pulling together to make it happen.
Which international actor would you love to direct in a film? Michael K Williams and Cate Blanchett in a scene together.
Who would you like to work with in the local industry? I’ve worked with great crew, cast and production talent in the past. It’s tempting to keep working with the people one knows well and has a relationship with already, as there is shorthand and comfort and trust, but South Africa is so deep with talented craftspeople on every level, and it is very exciting to work with new people who push you to see and do things differently, to keep learning and stretching yourself.
What are your top three favourite films and why? Ingmar Bergman’s Persona, for his extraordinary visualisation of the struggle for a unified identity; Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Conformist, for the lush internal and external expression of the conflict between fascism and freedom; and As Good As It Gets, for its profoundly moving, humorous script and performance of deeply flawed characters managing, yet, to love each other.
Do you think it’s important that filmmakers share more LGBT stories? Why? I love getting scripts to direct that contain voices and stories I’ve never heard before. That’s what attracted me to the script of While You Weren’t Looking. It contained fresh subjectivities I’d never seen before on screen. The freshness of a story is part of the excitement I feel as a director bringing a film to life. I also believe the purpose of film is to reach across the gulfs in society that separate us. In the darkness of a cinema one can identify with a character far removed from one’s own experience. It’s a transgressive experience, and it is constructive. It breaks down barriers between people, allowing us to identify and understand each other. The more diverse perspectives we have on screen, the wiser we all are as a society, the more human, the more humane.
Are there any filmmakers who have inspired you or influenced your work? Emir Kosturika, a lecturer of mine at film school in New York. Emir taught me things I still think of today while directing: to always have more than one thing happening in a scene, to invent new frames you’ve never seen before, and to layer frames to express the drama in complex visual ways. And Philip Seymour Hoffman – a great actor who was my mentor in directing actors at the Sundance Director’s Lab. He helped me see how the most interesting performance moments are before a character acts or speaks; when neither the character, nor the actor, yet knows what they are about to do. The process of finding out what one will do or feel or be capable of, is the most interesting moment of performance. It’s the moment that the audience identifies with most. The struggle to find what to do or say or be.
What is the hardest lesson you have had to learn in your profession? That magic arises from the most surprising sources and one must always stay open and look for it, no matter the time pressures and logistical juggles. Always keep looking for the sacred, the moving and the beautiful in the middle of all the mayhem.
What would surprise Screen Africa readers most about you? I spent my teenage years in Argentina, speak fluent Spanish, and dance a mean Flamenco. – Compiled by Carly Barnes
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Al Jazeera focuses on women
| Documentary
empowerment
Hosted by Nigerian media personality Femi Oke, Women Make Change is a new documentary series from the Al Jazeera Network highlighting women who have started life-changing, impactful local projects in their countries. The six-part series chronicles the efforts by these phenomenal women from Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Brazil, Nicaragua, and Papua New Guinea, with each film shot in one of the six countries. Sustainable Development The series centres around the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 5, “To achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls,” and explores the impact that investing in women can have on a community. Steven Markovitz of South African based production company Big World Cinema, who produced three of the six films – The Water Women, directed by Karin Slater; Going Places directed by Brian Tilly; and One in Three, directed by Karin Slater – says that the series was conceptualised by Ingrid Falck, head of documentaries at Al Jazeera English. “Ingrid Falck presented the series concept to us earlier this year, with a view for the films to broadcast in time for the announcement of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals,” says Markovitz. Big World Cinema was eager to get involved in such a commendable project, Markovitz explains: “If a woman earns an income, she invests 90% of it into the home, as opposed to the 40% that men re-invest. Women will prioritise the nutrition, health and education of their children, thus helping to break poverty cycles and have a positive ripple effect on their community. We were keen to identify women who were running projects that made this happen.” Markovitz and his team at Big World Cinema carried out research into key development areas spanning access to clean water, education, skills training and domestic violence; found women-led projects that worked in these areas with measurable impact, and presented their findings to Falck who gave them the green light to begin production. Lambent Productions in the UK produced the remaining three films in the
series: A Family Matter, directed by Alex Finn; Gaining Ground, directed by Lucy Kennedy; and Scorecard Rwanda, directed by Alistair Waterson. The completed series showcases women working and excelling in industries as diverse as agriculture, family planning and sport, and focuses on showing how investing in women has a verifiable, measurable impact on the individual, the family and the wider community. Falck comments, “At a time when the world is debating gender equality and sustainable development goals, we wanted to hear first-hand from women who are already making significant changes in their communities. “We interrogated the latest research findings to see how the ripple of impact can work. The combination of impressive, authoritative women who live with these issues in the real world, together with integrated graphics, paints a thoughtprovoking picture,” she says.
Going Places Brian Tilly directed Going Places, which was shot in the city of Tamale in northern Ghana. The film follows Zeinab Andan and Dolores Dickson, two women who are working hard in order to ensure that girls, in particular, are given the opportunity to get an education. Zeinab received a bursary awarded by an international charity, Camfed, and is now part of an alumni group that works in communities to help girls in her former school. Additionally, her community work takes her to neighbouring villages, where she shares her skills by holding financial literacy workshops. Dolores Dickson, director of the charity, oversees training workshops for local projects. One of which began as a small
TO ACHIEVE GENDER EQUALITY: The Tamale market in Ghana. Still from the documentary Going Places Shea butter processing project and is now a supplier to a range of reputable outlets, including The Body Shop. Tilly explains that the treatment for Going Places was largely open-ended: “The film’s narrative needed to be supported by several ripple-effect statistics about the impact of secondary education on young women. We spent time researching the impact of education and found Camfed, whose programmes had seen these results. We were able to weave a treatment together based on some characters we knew we’d meet, and others we hoped we’d meet. We knew we needed to capture certain scenes in order to reflect the statistics we’d found, but other than that we did have freedom to see where the story would go.” DOP Tim Wege made use of a Sony PMW 200, Hoya 52mm filters and 100mm prime Nikon lenses when shooting the documentary on location in Ghana over ten days. Going Places explores the measurable impact that completing secondary education has on young women, their
families, and the wider community. “The change that it has on their lives is truly remarkable,” says Tilly, “The fact that an extra year of secondary school can increase a girl’s potential income by up to 25% is just one example.”
Making a Change Markovitz says that he hopes that the women featured in the Women Make Change series will use the films to garner support and show the world the great work they are doing. “These are real issues that affect every developing country. What’s really inspiring is to see women leading these projects and changing the way people live their lives. The impact may start small – with individuals – but the impact ripples out across families, villages and eventually can make a national impact. I think it’s heartening to see everyday people doing whatever they can to improve the lives of those around them; it reinforces the idea that we can all make change.” – Chanelle Ellaya November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 27
Television
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SOUTH AFRICA
SA history as you’ve never kykNet’s new Afrikaans drama series Bloedbroers (‘Blood Brothers’) explores a period of South African history that the show’s creators feel is severely neglected in the country’s public discourse. In terms of the medium, the show stands as an impressive example of a unified creative vision and the application of cinematic principles to the television drama format. HISTORY REPEATING ITSELF: Neels van Jaarsveld and Gérard Rudolf in a scene from Bloedbroers
“T
he old adage, ‘history repeats itself’ was very relevant for this narrative,” says the show’s director Jozua Malherbe. Set over a 34-year period (1914-1948), spanning the Maritz Rebellion, both world wars, the Great Depression and the rise to power of DF Malan’s National Party, Bloedbroers tells the story of four close friends dealing, in their different ways, with their place in the scheme of the troubled new nation that was the Union of South Africa. The story comes from the pen of writer-producer Deon Opperman, the mind behind kykNet’s previous hit historical drama Donkerland. Opperman felt that the period in question, which marked the development – both for better and for worse – of a new country in the wake of the devastating impact of the Anglo-Boer War, seems to be all but forgotten in modern South Africa. This despite the fact that the seeds planted then are still bearing fruit today. “The story deals with mining and its impact on South Africa, politics –
28 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
Afrikaner politics but also the role of communism and the rise of the ANC – gender issues and relations between the races,” Malherbe explains. “The series is often a mirror showing a past that is incredibly similar to present day South Africa. I feel that the history of this country has never truly been given a chance to just be itself and is often marred by political agendas (there is surely a conversation around history always being political). As far as Bloedbroers is concerned we tried to tell a story of people born into a particular context with no idea of the future. Through our research and now our ability to look back, we have woven a narrative that ties many ideas and varied histories into one. Bloedbroers will give any audience member a chance to see a bit of history unfold like it has never been told before.” Malherbe immersed himself the world of the story, researching diverse but related elements such as the history of Johannesburg, of the Dutch Reformed (NG) Church, the fashion and interior
design trends of the time, and the blend of religious and political ideology that drove DF Malan – South Africa’s first apartheid prime minister. As he worked through the story, its themes and historical background, he developed a very clear picture of how the narrative world would look. “I wanted the world to look cohesive and to feel lived in. That sounds obvious but a heightened world, which this is, can very quickly make you feel disassociated as an audience member and make the watching experience an intellectual one, rather than an emotional one. Once the cast and crew understood that we were making a lived-in, dirty, ‘real’ world, we could all steam ahead and create. I devised a colour palette for each character, which was augmented by our lighting palette of blue and yellow.” Production designer Bathoni Robinson and costume designer Sulet Meintjes were given the task of shaping the world that Malherbe envisioned. “They have an incredible talent for detail and making bold choices that translate cinematically,”
says Malherbe. “Our central theme when it came to the production design was a quote by William Morris: ‘Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful’.” Malherbe’s vision is a distinctly cinematic one. Bloedbroers could not look like just any television drama. As colourist Warwick Allan of Mushroom Media, who graded the series, says: “Cinema is in the shadows. For some reason, many filmmakers in this country are afraid of the dark.” Malherbe and cinematographer Adam Bentel certainly weren’t scared of the dark. Working with relatively slow (f2.2) Arri Zeiss Variable Prime lenses, Bentel wasn’t afraid to keep the aperture closed beyond what some directors of photography might consider to be safe for exposure. Making minimal use of artificial light – tungsten only and always motivated by practical lighting in the given scene – and exploiting available, natural light, he created a noir-esque, high contrast look with plenty of mood and texture.
SOUTH AFRICA
| Television
seen it
Bloedbroers was the third project on which Malherbe and Bentel had collaborated and it prompted an interesting evolution of their established working methods. “We threw all our rules out of the window on this one,” Malherbe says. Bentel agrees: “On Donkerland we locked ourselves into these very specific rules like ‘we’re only going to use a certain lens for this character’ or ‘handheld is banned’. This time we decided to put some general guidelines in place and then allow ourselves a lot of freedom within those limits.” Budget constraints ruled out the use of high-end cinematic cameras like the Arri Alexa and Bentel opted for a Sony F3, the HD workhorse that has now, to a large extent, been eclipsed by its younger sibling the FS7 and other 4K cameras in cinematographers’ preferences. Having considerable experience with the camera, Bentel was able to push it to the limits of its capabilities. Using a PIX 240 portable video recorder, he recorded the S-Log images off the camera in ProRes 4444, preserving the exposure in all its glory
and providing an eminently gradable image for the colourist. With such a strong idea of what they wanted to achieve visually, Malherbe and Bentel shot the series with the grade in mind, adjusting lighting and exposure to ensure that the basic elements were already present well before the footage went into the online suite. This made Allan’s job that much easier. Although he came onto the project late, after the original colourist became unavailable, Allan found it easy to pick up the baton. “It required a quick turnaround but it was very rewarding to work on something that had been shot with such intent. The colours were all there and it was just about augmenting it and taking it that one step further. It’s not like what happens so often, where you get a flat base and then you have to try and make the mood and atmosphere from nothing.” Malherbe adds: “Although we shot for the grade, Warwick was able to add a level of saturation and colour detail, especially into our highlights, that just
wasn’t feasible to shoot on set with the gear and time we had. I knew I wanted the colours full and bold, much like the story. Colour separation was important to us, as well as a high level of contrast even in our daytime scenes. Warwick took this idea and massaged a level of finish into it that blew me and Adam away.” Allan says: “TV isn’t TV anymore. It’s all very cinematic. If you look at shows like Downton Abbey, House of Cards, Game of Thrones, True Detective. That’s cinema. South African shows have to be created to those same standards because the audience is watching the local and international shows on the same platform. Why do we think that local content should look any different?” Of the project’s main challenges, Malherbe says: “The most prevalent obstacle was creating a period show with very little in the way of resources. My hat off to the art, wardrobe and make-up teams who had to source all the props, sets and clothing to make the world of Bloedbroers a reality. Secondly, locations were a major challenge. This is where I
was surprised again. Through our research we found some incredible spaces in Johannesburg. The most visually interesting for me was the Markhams clocktower in the CBD, built in the early 1900s, as well as a Herbert Baker house in Auckland Park, which is a living museum where you can still go and have proper tea. “What I learnt from these challenges is the power of true collaboration and what that can bring to a project if you have a great team of people around you,” adds Malherbe. Starring Zetske van Pletzen, Altus Theart, Hykie Berg, Rolanda Marais, Neels van Jaarsveld, Marlee van der Merwe, Jenna Dunster and Gustav Gerdener, Bloedbroers is currently broadcast every Tuesday at 20h30 on kykNet (DStv Channel 144). – Warren Holden November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 29
INDUSTRY REPORT
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The complex African diaspora
success of the
On the international scene, many filmmakers from the African diaspora win awards. Sometimes as Africans, sometimes with their other country nationality, they face a complicated dual situation. Screen Africa reports.
Maïmouna Doucouré’s award-winning short film Mother(s)
PROUDLY AFRICAN: Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah’s Black
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t the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), three directors from the African diaspora won important awards: Maïmouna Doucouré, a French-born filmmaker with Senegalese background, got the Best Short Film Award for Mother(s), a movie depicting the complex situation of a child growing up in France in a polygamous family. “I am really proud to be African, and my double culture inspires me,” says Doucouré. “I’m really happy to be selected in African film festivals but certain festivals say that I should apply as an African because they refuse to see that France is also multicultural and diverse. The specificity of my film is to show that this African culture also exists in France and is part of France.” Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, Belgianborn directors with Moroccan backgrounds, received the Discovery Award for Black, a stunning thriller involving Congolese and Moroccan
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gangs in Brussels. Even though they were born in Europe, and present their movie as European, they still defend their African roots. “In our Belgian cinema school, we were the only Moroccans,” says Adil El Arbi. “Our parents came from Morocco. We have the nationality, we go there regularly and our families still live there. So we consider ourselves as Moroccans.”
To be African or international Regularly, filmmakers from the African diaspora have to deal with the choice of whether to be in the African section of an international festival (or an African film festival) or in the international one. Sometimes they do not even have the choice. Rachid Djaïdani, a French filmmaker born in France to an Algerian father and a Sudanese mother, made a film called Hold Back, about a love relationship between a French Muslim and a French Catholic, which won the
2012 Cannes Film Festival’s International Film Critic Award. Celebrated by French critics, the film reached almost 140 000 viewers throughout the country. But when it went to DVD release, it was classified in the ‘North Africa’ section of la FNAC, one of the main DVD retailers in France. Askia Traoré is a Lebanese-born French filmmaker with a Chadian background. Although his two short films (Nola, Nowhere) feature black actors, he is essentially dealing with European characters, living in France. He sends his movies to film festivals as French entrants but they regularly appear as Chadian. “Festival programmers must change their approach,” says Traoré. “They are reproducing a paternalistic and colonialist look on things.” Other filmmakers are successful in the African circuit, like French-Senegalese Alain Gomis, winner of the 2013 FESPACO Golden Stallion for Tey, a feature shot in Dakar with an international cast (from American singer Saul Williams to French actress Aïssa Maïga). Or French-Moroccan Hicham Ayouch, winner of the 2015 Golden Stallion with Fevers, a feature shot in France with a French cast of African background (Slimane Dazi, Tony Harrisson, Farida Amrouche). When Tey won its Golden Stallion, some African viewers were disappointed: “This is not a movie we like to watch, said one audience member. It’s too complicated.” “It is not depicting how children are raised in Africa but I enjoyed the movie,” admitted a Burkinabe spectator after the Fevers screening.
A lack of opportunity The situation is complicated for filmmakers from the African diaspora in
various ways. First of all, because African filmmakers do not have as much access to funding as they need, filmmakers from the diaspora are considered as having an unfair advantage, submitting projects for both African and European funds. “The more it is difficult, the more we want to fight. I think creativity also requires this,” affirms French and Burkinabe filmmaker Cedric Ido, winner of the 2015 African Movie Academy Award for his short Twaaga, shot in Burkina Faso. Secondly, filmmakers from the diaspora with an African background are still considered non-European by most of the film market professionals. They do not have the same opportunities as white filmmakers from the same countries and are regularly pushed to apply as Africans to gain access to funds. Thirdly and sadly, there is limited space for those filmmakers (from Africa or from the diaspora) in the cinema industry, which has forced them to fight each other instead of working together.
Legacy of colonialism Competition and jealousy are among the worst legacy African filmmakers get from colonialism. The belief that it is possible for only one to succeed instead of many is also a self-imposed limitation among these filmmakers. As a reminder, the last Golden Palm won by an African filmmaker at the Cannes Film Festival was in 1975 (Algerian director Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina’s Chronicles of the Year of Fire). The first and, so far only, one won by a filmmaker from the African diaspora was in 2013 (French-Tunisian Abdellatif Kechiche’s Blue is The Warmest Color). Two in 68 years? – Claire Diao
ANIMATION
| INDUSTRY REPORT
‘Afrimation’ and the Pan-African Pantheon Triggerfish’s Story Lab initiative (in association with Disney and supported by the Department of Trade and Industry) is currently underway to find fresh African tales and tellers to foster and fund. 1 378 African stories from across 30 countries flooded the Cape Town-based studio; now those shortlisted have the opportunity to develop their ideas with the support and guidance of established studios and industry experts. We know how, but we can only imagine what stories will emerge.
THINKING BIG: Adventures in Zambezia (Triggerfish, South Africa)
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nimation is on the rise in Africa. But what makes animation special to Africa, today? Think big. Joseph Izang Azi of Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria, uses the term ‘Afrimation’ to describe the continent’s “contemporary digital content development industry,” and makes the case that Afrimation begets transformation. Published in 2012 in the International Journal of Computer Graphics & Animation, Izang Azi’s research paper – ‘Appraising the Role of Afrimation (African-Animation) in Promoting Africa’s Rich Cultural Heritage in a Digital Age’ – analysed six projects from South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Senegal as examples of how Afrimation can leverage its digital content towards, ultimately, “enhancing the quality of its people’s life and turning the region into a dynamic and successful economy and hub for foreign investors.” “Africa’s digital revolution,” Izang Azi notes, referring to the successful projects that supported industry growth and transformation, “was triggered by the series of internationally funded training workshops, made possible through partnership, collaborative and mentorship opportunities availed to local animation artists, designers and scriptwriters.” Triggerfish’s first film, Zambezia (2012), was among those studied; see the ubuntu spirit at work and play. African studios are also, notes
Zimbabwean writer and illustrator Eugene Ramirez, promisingly similar to how early Japanese studios were set up for their anime industry that phenomenally emerged: “small but greatly talented studios were scattered across the island learning from inspiration from the west.” Like Izang Azi, Ramirez recognises the timeliness of Afrimation, why it’s a special and powerful space to develop in (our) time: “With today’s technological advancements and the use of digital tools it will not be surprising that African animation will begin to spread across the world in shorter time despite the continents shortcomings.” The conditions for Afrimation appear just right, right now. Investing in digital creative industries such as animation will no doubt positively impact South Africa’s industry and our flickering national cinema (South African commercial features claimed just 6.3% of the box office pie in 2014, 66% of which were Afrikaans), but is there something specific to animation that makes it a particularly potent player in developing African cinema? I believe there is – particularly in South Africa where our rays are ragged, our own national cinema nigh nonexistent – and it does matter how and where we direct our energies. Naturally, countries would do well to support and develop all aspects of the motion picture industry towards representing and promoting African identity and culture through the most
powerful medium of our time. But that doesn’t make animation itself special. If we have the funds and industry, why not simply welcome animation and its steady evolution into our national cinematic portfolio without trying to over mine it for miracles? (Like the astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson argues, if we have the technology to terraform Mars, we have the energy to save the Earth we have!) But first, to find out if there is much ado about animation, we have to look closely while continuing to think big. To frame this another way, we can ask an ‘easy’ and a ‘hard’ question about Afrimation Now. The ‘easy’ problem can be reckoned when we combined our awareness of Africa’s current identity-driven zeitgeist with the rapid evolution of digital content on the continent; it addresses the very important developmental question of ‘How can Afrimation affect African cinema and identity?’ (Any answers we find, however and unfortunately, are not easily sowed into action.) It is the ‘easy’ problem in our current context because Africa’s digital revolution is happening now; the African Renaissance has already provided the socio-political coordinates of identity and representation – Africans telling (animating) their own dreams – and the technology and skills required to take advantage are emerging. The question then (re)turns to the medium itself, while keeping in mind the future of the national
cinema is at stake. The ‘hard’ problem is asking whether or not there is something specific to animation and its appearance in Africa today that indicates it would add significant value towards developing African cinema: ‘What is there to know about Animation itself that could possibly inform Afrimation?’ Izang Azi’s answer to the ‘easy’ problem was shown by analysing various successful Afrimation projects. The ‘hard’ problem was addressed by considering their effect in promoting the continent’s rich cultural heritage in our digital age. Ramirez, in a similar vein, compares today’s Afrimation with the origins of anime studios in Japan, and believes Africa’s socio-technological position in spacetime means Africa’s animation industry is ready to surprise us. This is all positive promotion and validation for Afrimation, but we can go further, harder. Pushing the boundaries of how and what we think about motion pictures is another emerging contemporary consideration, Filmosophy: a radical new way of understanding film in light of philosophy. Film’s think, Daniel Frampton, author of Filmosophy, argues, and with advances in digital technologies (and philosophy, believe it or not) they can ‘think’ whatever they want – films create new worlds, filmmaking is the art of world-creation, and animation is the quintessential dreamworks and story sandbox. As Frampton writes, “Contemporary technology has given us animatable film-worlds,” and it’s in that digital space that animation (Afrimation?) is destined to dominate: “In the invention of computergenerated images man created a whole new reality”; a new reality that is now being forged under African skies by a timely creative industry that’s just warming up; indeed, as Frampton predicts, animators could well be the new gods of this world. Animation is on the rise in Africa, and at the top, a possible pan-African pantheon of new gods with stories on their minds and new worlds to wonder about. We can, perhaps, if we persist with this vision, wake up and start dreaming together in this new space through troubled tribal times. We know how, but also what could Africa think next? – Christopher J. Wheeler November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 31
INDUSTRY REPORT
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OPINION
Afrocalypse Now Kenyan filmmaker and commentator Sam Charo expresses his frustrations on the state of most films coming out of Africa’s film and television industries.
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frica’s rise in film as an art is commendable. Years ago our screens were speckled with Hollywood glitz that programmed us to view film and television with a particular outlook. We were made to think life in the West was the ideal standard of style, morality and just about everything else. After watching these films, most of us wanted to dress, talk, act and be like the characters we saw on our screens. We lived Hollywood vicariously in our living rooms. Then Nollywood came with a bang and since then African cinema has shifted, changed and grown day by day – but what kind of growth is this? Now, in 60 or so minutes, we can learn from Nollywood’s dramatic antics about life in the West African region. We have become so absorbed in stories and characters from that side of the continent – the way they dress, the big mansions they dwell in. We have come to learn the Naija accents and one way or the other some of us have been influenced by the theatrics of these films. The cultural influence of Hollywood and Bollywood are superseded by that of the Nigerian film industry. But this does not represent the sum total of what African filmmaking has to offer. Isn’t there something more that we can learn from Afrocinema in this digital age? Syd Field says that every great film leaves its mark on the viewer in the form of at least one memorable scene, line or character. If I were to ask somebody what character, line or scene they remember from the last Afrocinema film they watched, would that individual be able to name anything memorable? Would he or she be able to mention the name of the film? What is it about Afrocinema that just doesn’t quite come across as ‘serious film’? Is it because we are more interested in making a name for ourselves, or a quick buck, than in creating a good, enduring film that tells a great story with great
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characters – and will make our names for us anyway, making up for the effort? Are we so caught up in moving towards the endgame that we don’t enjoy and appreciate the game as a whole? Could any of us name five classic African films? We have had movies for decades in Africa but it’s rarely possible for one to mention an African film director. Why? Simple, we are not serious. I remember reading a line years ago (don’t ask me where) that said: “Abraham Lincoln is not great because he lived in a shack, he is great because he got out of it.’ In my opinion, to be considered seriously on the global platform, Afrocinema as an entertainment brand has to leap beyond average storytelling. We need to tackle our stories in a way that’s unmatched and not repetitively ploughing the same ground. Let’s look at the historical African figures we have in my country: first president Kenyatta, Wangari Maathai and Mohamed Amin, among others. Further afield we have Kwame Nkrumah, John Garang, Wole Soyinka, Julius Nyerere, et al. Are these not characters enough for an Afrocinema screenplay? Our cities and villages are filled with raw material for wonderful stories and for great, relatable, well developed and memorable characters. Where are our iconic action heroes, our unforgettable leading men and women? What are we waiting for? Who is going to document these marvelous stories through the lens and leave them as masterful testaments for generations to come?
Is it the money? Is it the production value that just seems so outside of our means? Jack Nicholson walks assertively in the opening sequence of The Departed and declares: “I don’t want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me.” Something has to give; we have to become established master storytellers who work for the love of our craft, not for the money and the fame, the glitz and the glamour. There shouldn’t be room for excuses. For what it’s worth we have to jealously guard and honour the ancient African bards who have traditionally been a prodigious part of shaping our cultures. We can do justice to them by creating
films that are worth 90 minutes of sitting still on our hindquarters and that we walk away from with scenes, lines and moments still playing in our heads. I truly believe the time is now for us as Africans to make films that matter and share with the world the amazing stories that lie in the social confines of our culture. When Hollywood producers come along and get their hands on our stories and then do a shoddy job, we really should not complain, because we have the ability to tell these stories ourselves right now. And when the rest of the world grabs them from under our noses, we have nobody but ourselves to blame. – Sam Charo
Creating solutions for the post production industry
Reinvention is the name of the game
Whilst the concept of shared storage is universally accepted, issues around security and ease of access remain key consideration factors when investing in systems for both businesses and individuals. “As the global demand for visual and digital content increases, the greater the demand for secure, easy-to-access and cost effective storage solutions,” says Shaun De Ponte, director at Digilogic, a workflow solutions company providing shared storage solutions for the post-production industry.
Businesses have to continually reinvent themselves in order to stay relevant.
Businesses are essentially created to provide solutions and those that excel are the ones that are able to deliver the best value to clients. “Digilogic builds technical production and post-production workflow solutions, from a simple one person ed edit workstation to high-end broadcast post production and workflows for television, commercials, features, online and so on”, continues De Ponte. “Our knowledge base in reality television, digital imaging, feature films and on-set colour grading is what keeps us relevant in an ever-changing industry”. Digilogic is the first South African company to be Certified Technical Partners for Tiger Technology shared storage. “H “Having worked with several storage systems over the years, we were initially drawn to the technology by its highly competitive pricing level,” says Arno Durandt, director at Digilogic. “But it soon became clear that this was not just a cost effective option, it has innovative capability as well. “The Tiger Technology series offers a true Avid file system emulation that provides true native Avid workflows”. It is cert also certified to host Adobe Anywhere on their appliances, providing complete and simple multi-user shared storage workflow solutions, including storage workflow solutions, media management tools for digital media and content centric production. “The system provides high speed scalable solutions that are easy to manage without the requirement for permanent IT staff to administer”, continues Durandt.
“The film and video production industry is in the midst of the digital “space war” as we see g the growth of file size and capture space required for 4k footage and the likes,” says Ryan Downing, director at Orange Orbit Productions, a specialist film and video production company based in Johannesbu Johannesburg.
Ryan Downing
“With 4k footage and the talk of the industry probably skipping 6K and jumping to 8K for the 2020 Olympic Games, seamless workflow process is imperative for video production companies”. One of the major factors influencing film and video production is editing time, storage space and ease of access to stored footage. “As our business grew, we found increasingly that we were running out of storage space and this slowed down the editing process,” says Downing. “We had to find a solution that would not only be cost effective, but would maximise output as well”. DigiLogic together with Tiger Technology provided a Tiger Series Solution that offers a complete storage workflow sha solution that complements a shared storage workflow platform. This software solution is compatible with most NLE systems and supports PC and Mac across Premier Pro, Avid and FCP with options of 10GB Ethernet and Fibre Channel, as well iSCSI protocols so one can integrate ones network of choice. “This simply means that with the increased storage capacity and project management capability, we can access files quicker simu and simultaneously which substantially reduces our editing time. This was something previously unheard of for smaller businesses, largely due to the prohibitive cost of available offerings. The impact on production quality and business efficiency is massive as this puts us on a level playing field with the larger production houses,” continues Downing. “It’s also imperative and goes without say that clients data and captu captured footage needs to be safe and secure, gone are the days when editors pass external hardrives around the studio, which is risky, time consuming and doesn’t allow for seamless workflow process.
Arno Durandt
Shaun De Ponte
w an established international player such as “Our association with Tiger Technology has created a platform, not just to extend our business offering and client base, but also enables us to be at the forefront of technical advancements in the software and shared storage arena,”concludes De Ponte. With over 30 years’ combined experience in workflows, from acquisition through to final delivery, and a presence in Johannesbu Johannesburg, South Africa and Bucharest, Romania, Digilogic is your partner of choice for comprehensive workflow solutions. Visit www.digilogic.co.za to continue the conversation with Shaun De Ponte and Arno Durandt.
“Orange Orbit Productions offers an array of digital media services and clients have become accustomed to quick turnarounds. Having a shared workflow process with bin locking p in the same project with multiple editors was key to our decision to move into this direction. Although most of our projects are done in HD with clients requesting compression for social media and online clips, I think its imperative to align the workflow process to a system that can accommodate fibre and have the capacity to deal with 4k and the growth opportunities we have to ensure that our service offering can compete and stand out amongst the clutter, o but most importantly be able to offer our client base ease of mind and quality of work,” concludes Downing.
TELEVISION
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TITLE SEQUENCE
Lasting impressions
The war was lost. The treaty signed. I was not caught. I crossed the line. Leonard Cohen’s poetry pounds at my solar plexus as I search through cryptic and chilling imagery for clues. The True Detective title sequence has me mesmerised – it’s the perfect amuse-bouche to Season 2’s next piece of plot, which will undoubtedly leave me exhilarated, perplexed and addicted all at the same time. No one dare fast forward through this bit.
A
s television shows take on more cinematic qualities – not only in their increasingly high production quality or A-list cast, but also in their stretched out narrative structures and suspense filled plots, so title sequences are undergoing their own evolution. If we look at the Emmy-award winners for Outstanding Main Title Design over the past few decades, there’s a clear progression. In 1995 medical drama series E.R. took the award for its 48 second opening sequence featuring titles integrated over a blue washed montage of live-action footage. In 2005 the winning drama comedy series Huff enticed audiences with close-ups set in animated frames which reflected the show’s themes in a minute and 25 seconds. This year the 30-second diagrammatic titles for Manhattan, which symbolically play on the idea of a ‘nuclear family’ in the Atomic Age, won the award.
Must be the money According to Tim Horwood, channel director at MTV Base, this evolution is paradoxical. “Certain sectors of the TV 34 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
TITLES FOR EXPOSURE: Still from True Detective title sequence
industry have seen a massive increase in budgets and resulting high-end output rivalling even feature films. Conversely, in other areas, budgets have decreased considerably and yet some of these less expensive productions are commanding the lion’s share of viewership. No matter what budget you are working with, the effectiveness of a production – be it a TV show or a title sequence – remains in its relevance to the audience and its ability to tell a story.” Grant Lau, who created the Emmynominated title sequence for Bosch, says budgets and turnaround times have always varied and largely depend on who is working on a particular show. “I think more people and directors are educated about the main titles now and how a good main title can give the show a little bit more exposure. But nothing beats a good show by itself. A great main title is never gonna save a show.”
Beyond the buck It’s widely acknowledged that a title sequence is often the last element to be considered by show producers, from a creative and financial point of view. But often it is these very limitations which force creatives to come up with innovative and resourceful solutions that result in cool and totally out of the box final products. Executive creative director Nicci Hattingh of Monarchy, a Johannesburg based creative agency which produces local and international titles, says her team tackles budget constraints with their imagination… and a
hammer if necessary. When one project required lights hanging from a wooden structure and costing came in at R60 000, the team knuckled down and constructed the set themselves for a fraction of the cost. Lau says this is always part of the process but that he enjoys creative collaboration. “Sometimes all they can afford is me and we have to make due,” he comments. “Some directors are specific and some have no idea which is why they come to us to help them figure it out. Sometimes they have a little idea and we work to develop.”
A running start If you want to talk evolution, you can’t not mention the fast pace at which audience behaviour has changed. There are second screens, and a bunch of new places to get content from. Now. We are choice-spoilt brats, able for the most part to get what we want, when we want it. Which is why some titles have been sliced down to just a few seconds. Instead of singing along to the old New Girl intro, viewers are now left with an abrupt cast photo collage and… Who’s that girl? It’s Jess! According to Twitter, fans do not love the new five-second intro. “I think partly because people don’t want to sit through a title sequence anymore, the budgets have gotten less and less, and if you have very little money you can only do a few seconds. You can’t do elaborate shoots and CG and all these amazing effects that you want to do. But then a new wave of
titles has started with Netflix and a series like Bosch and Manhattan. So it is making a comeback but in a very niche way,” says Hattingh. Horwood comments, “There has been a movement in some sectors to shorten the title sequence and to get right to the point. With the introduction of digital media, and the resulting fight to hold the audiences’ attention from the so-called ‘second screen’ there is a much shorter attention span particularly within the younger demographic; brands like MTV have consequently evolved content like promos and title sequences to match the shorter, bite-sized content that our audiences are consuming on an hourly basis.” If a title sequence is the introduction to a show, a story and characters that you may be inviting into your living room for an hour or eight at a time, first impressions are still lasting. When long-running popular South African soapie 7de Laan introduced a new opening credits and theme song, the show received a negative knee-jerk reaction from viewers who had grown accustomed to the instrumental intro which signalled it was time to kick back and watch their favourite characters on screen. This suggests that the real development in this sphere has nothing to do with technique, time or a tidy sum but rather a deep understanding of what the world out there wants to see or not see. If a title is the leg peering out of a show’s petticoat, then intimately knowing its caller is paramount to seduction. – Carly Barnes
FESTIVALS & MARKETS
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MIPCOM REPORT
MIPCOM 2015:
TV is coming to the digital party
CONTENT IS KING: Sophie Turner Laing giving her Media Mastermind keynote address
In this industry, the saying ’content is king‘ is something you hear often, and it is this sentiment that leads producers, distributors and buyers from across the globe to flock to the MIPCOM industry conference every year, on the hunt for what the they hope will be ’the next big thing‘ in the golden age of television.
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he 31st edition of MIPCOM took place from 5 to 8 October 2015 in Cannes, France, and saw a record number of over 13 700 delegates in attendance from 108 countries, including more than 4 800 acquisition executives – of which 1 600 were acquiring for digital platforms – come together to network, witness an abundance of premieres, form key alliances, participate in a multitude of content negotiations and attend the invaluable MIPCOM conference programme.
Conference programme With the current boom in over-the-top (OTT), video-on-demand (VOD) and subscription-video-on-demand (SVOD) services, the television paradigm is currently in a state of flux, with viewers consuming television shows less and less on linear television and more and more on connected devices. With this in mind, the MIPCOM conference programme this year focused on two main themes – Reshaping the Content Game and Into the Stream – dealing with how OTT, SVOD and streaming services are transforming business models. The 2015 conference speakers 36 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
included: Adam Crozier, chief executive, ITV; Mike Hopkins, CEO, Hulu; Nicola Mendelsohn, vice president, Facebook EMEA; Jimmy Maymann, president, AOL Content and Consumer Brands; Sophie Turner Laing, CEO, Endemol Shine group; Dan Biddle, director of Global Media Partnerships, Twitter; and Mo Abudu, CEO, Ebonylife TV, to name a few. Mayenzeke Baza, director of International Relations at the ATFT, who was in attendance at MIPCOM 2015 comments: “MIPCOM is always an interesting space, there were countless new shows premiered this year, and from what I witnessed, the trends in the industry are changing dramatically… The VOD space is growing, content platforms are growing significantly, the power of platforms like Netflix and YouTube is really becoming more aggressive.” Sophie Turner Laing, CEO Endemol Shine Group, told her listeners at MIPCOM that in one of the most exciting times for the business, forming partnerships with different media creators would be the path forward in the multiplatform world: “For us as an industry, and particularly as content creators, we have never had it so good,” said Laing. “Maybe TV was a little late in coming to the digital party, but let’s
face it; it wouldn’t be a good party without us.” Twitter executive Dan Biddle told his audience: “TV is facing some of its greatest challenges… How the industry reacts to those challenges in the next few years will affect how the audience experiences TV for many, many years to come.”
Popular content It seems television viewers’ appetite for drama has increased within the past year, as high-end dramas were the most popular genre at MIPCOM 2015, with the strong demand from international broadcasters and new platforms for cutting edge scripted content fuelling this trend. Before MIPCOM commenced, Armando Nunez, president and CEO CBS Global Distribution Group commented: “We have never seen as healthy and robust a demand for premium content as we are currently seeing. I don’t expect that view is going to change at any point in the near future.” Isaac Mogajane, producer, Diprente Films said that from what he witnessed at MIPCOM this year, it is no secret that scripted television content is continuing to grow at a healthy rate. “High-end drama series that can be sold or remade in multiple territories represents a bigger opportunity than ever before. Due to the long lead time and high expense of this content category, there is definitely an undersupply of it in the market.”
Local content In terms of African and South African (in particular) content, local representatives and content creators at the market say that there is a large amount of unscripted, lifestyle and factual content coming out
of South Africa and it is a winning formula. Irfaan Fredericks, producer at Kalahari Pictures in Cape Town, comments: “What I’ve seen coming out of South Africa that was doing well at the market were cooking shows, wildlife shows and documentaries dealing with social as well as economic issues.” Louise McCelland, chief creative officer at Okuhle media echoed Fredericks’ sentiments with the news that Okuhle Media launched three lifestyle shows at MIPCOM 2015, two with UK-based independent television distribution company DCD Rights and one with Zodiak: “DCD have Sarah Graham’s Food Safari where there is a confirmed premier sale to the Food Network USA and we are in discussions with the 40 odd territories that bought her first series. Ocean Adventurer was launched with a lot of interest and now we await feedback. Zodiak is representing Neill Anthony: Private Chef.” Producer Mogajane says that there is definitely an interest in content coming out of South Africa at the moment, but the challenge lies in developing locally produced content that has enough of a global reach to make it internationally viable. Mogajane says that his advice to South African content creators, drawing on what he learnt at MIPCOM this year, is to study the trends in content coming out of these markets and understand what type of content can work on a global scale. “I would recommend developing concepts specifically with the global market in mind. It is difficult to sell most shows that work locally because they are too region specific, so don’t be afraid to develop completely new concepts and shows that are more geared towards international sales,” he adds. – Chanelle Ellaya
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SOUTH AFRICA
TV CONNECT
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Connecting the continent From 17 to 19 November the TV Connect Africa conference, which runs alongside AfricaCom at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, will engage African broadcasters, pay TV operators, telecommunication solutions providers, mobile network operators, internet service providers, OTT TV players and content providers in a range of discussions around the evolution of broadcasting in a new digital and pay-TV age.
T
he TV Connect Africa conference will focus on three key areas which are pertinent to the monetisation of African video content, namely: multiscreen and OTT TV strategies; challenges and opportunities of the digital transition; and African content partnerships. A number of senior level debates and round table discussions led by African digital TV experts will take place as well as VIP industry events and networking sessions. Thomas Noszczak, commercial manager of Telecoms & Media for TV Connect Global comments: “All of these features are designed for the main African industry players as well as broadcasting outfits, which are making in-roads into Africa, to meet and discuss business opportunities in this vibrant region.”
Multi-screen and OTT Although the continent has faced a number of delays in digital migration, there are a number of new opportunities emerging within the world of connected entertainment. Some of the conference sessions which touch on these include: an interview with BBC Worldwide, which will
38 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
explore overcoming bandwidth challenges for streaming services and VOD; and a keynote on the future of OTT TV services in Africa and what it means for business operators. “Although many challenges and limitations (high mobile-data charges, patchy mobile-app ecosystems and problems with obtaining – and defending – content rights) are slowing down digitisation efforts, a number of OTT TV, IP and TV related opportunities will emerge over the next few years regardless of the progress of the various digital switchovers,” says Noszczak. Simbarashe Mabasha, director at the Afrikan Dust Media Group and a TV Connect Africa keynote speaker, outlines some of the major problems in Africa’s OTT market: “The first being the fact that there is a platform bubble. The second problem is the continued lack of African content. Southern Africa lags behind West and East Africa in original African content production even with the major efforts being made by MultiChoice. The third is that of payments. To grow and sustain African OTT services there has to be a focus on how content creators and other stakeholders get paid.”
DTT – Challenges and opportunities A number of industry leaders from various African countries, such as Namibia and the Ivory Coast, will share with attendees some of the lessons learnt in the transition to digitisation, which has already been completed successfully in their respective countries. “I think a big issue is government priorities,” says TV Connect Africa keynote Aldred Dreyer, who is CTO at the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation. “I think another problem concerns the strategy of a public broadcaster; how do I operate in a multichannel, multiplatform environment? The digital multichannel/ multiplatform environment is very different to a single channel analogue environment. It requires different approaches to its management and organisation. The other big concern currently is content availability to fill these DTT multiplexes.” A dialogue around digital transitioning will also be opened at a number of country focussed round table discussions. The countries in focus are Uganda, with director of broadcasting for the UCC Fred Otunnu; Nigeria, with NBC founder George Twumasi; Ivory Coast, with RTI director general Ahmadou Bakayoko; Kenya, with KBC president Edward Musebe; Senegal, with CNRA president Babacar Toure; Angola, with Movicel COO Arlindo Alves; and South Africa, with Morobadi Philly Moilwa, general manager of Policy & Regulatory Affairs at the SABC. “Digital terrestrial television (DTT) is revolutionising the African media, entertainment and telecoms ecosystem. A number of major investments as well as infrastructural commitments are required to get wide adoption of DTT, with a view to enabling the delivery of quality content, affordable equipment and
reliable signal access,” explains Noszczak. Taking a more long term approach is a session titled ‘Looking beyond digitalisation’ presented by Tom Jahr, EVP of Products & Marketing at Conax. The session will look at planning for a multi-DRM security platform, multiscreen and hybrid solutions, as well as OTT solutions.
Pay-TV boom The pay-TV industry in Africa is experiencing positive growth as well as a number of new entrants and Direct to Home (DTH) platforms which are challenging main market players such as South Africa’s MultiChoice and its DStv platform. According to a report by dataxis, in the five countries of the East African Community (EAC) pay-TV services accounted for approximately 1.61 million households at the end of 2014. Tanzania had the largest pay-TV base in the region with 592 700 users, accounting for 36% of the EAC total. Kenya was second with 561 000 users, followed by Uganda with 359 000. Burundi has 62 500 and Rwanda 38 000. The conference aims to present ways of strengthening the African pay TV proposition through a number of sessions including: understanding the importance of back-end ‘features and functions’ to differentiate services from others on the market, which will feature Marcel Groos, CMO at Alpha Networks; Reuven Elmalem, director IPTV & OTT TV Solutions at ZTE Corp and a senior representative at Ipidi TV on the panel. Other issues tackled at the conference also include improving content quality, success case studies, understanding the digital African consumer and challenges around producing local content. – Carly Barnes
| Broadcast TECHNOLOGY
What the Recently, an entirely new buzzword has entered the broadcast and cinema industries’ vocabulary: High Dynamic Range (HDR). Suddenly the discussion isn’t just about more pixels, but better pixels and there’s no question that High Dynamic Range (HDR) is a very hot topic. A technology that was previously confined to still images on your smartphone or DSLR is now coming to your TV and your cinema screen.
T
here is no doubt that TV manufacturers have found that one of the most reliable ways to get consumers to buy a new TV is to push more pixels. The big jump from Standard Definition to High Definition was followed by must-have 3D. Today, we’re being pushed to buy 4K TVs but that definition switches the emphasis from horizontal pixels (there are 2 160 of those) to the spec’s vertical pixels (3 840) because it’s so much bigger than 1080. HDR isn’t about increasing the number of pixels, but making every pixel that’s already there better. And this means that while 4K generally requires a large screen size to prove most effective, HDR’s advantages are plainly visible on any size of screen. If you’re familiar with High Dynamic Range at all, it’s probably via a setting on your DSLR camera or smartphone. As its name implies, the feature increases the dynamic range – the ratio of light to dark – in your photographs. It accomplishes this by photographing the subject three times at different exposures, doubling the
4K is HDR?
light in each picture. The three images are then blended into one that retains the darkest and brightest parts from the first and third exposure, respectively. Dynamic range, measured in EV (exposure value), is the ratio of brightest bright to darkest dark in an image. Having more dynamic range allows for a better representation of what the image’s subject would look like to the human eye, and minimises clipping of highlights and shadows. The idea behind HDR video is similar: it increases the range of brightness in an image to boost the contrast between the lightest lights and the darkest darks. HDR doesn’t just improve grayscale; its greater luminance range opens up a video’s colour palette as well. The result is richer, more lifelike video images. It’s worth noting, of course, that while 4K and HDR are different concepts, there’s no reason why they can’t work together. In fact, all of the early HDR-compatible TVs will also be 4K TVs, able to combine both new technologies to deliver stunning all-round image quality. Within Hollywood, some TV and filmmakers believe that HDR could be a bigger deal than 4K. Netflix and Amazon Instant Video have both pledged to make HDR streams available, with the former making most of its new original series – shows like Marco Polo – in such a way as
to be both 4K and HDR ready. Dolby has been working on their HDR system for quite a while now and their Dolby Vision technology, which uses either a single or a dual layer approach, is already in use in cinema trials. The difficulty with HDR, if it is not an HDR production to begin with, is that you will not have the HDR source to encode from. It can be done but it will require some advanced mastering of non-HDR assets and colour grading the content specifically for HDR. This is a manual artistic process that takes time and from a production point of view, the costs could be very high. But cameras like Arri’s Amira and Panasonic’s VariCam 35 already have the logarithm options for HDR acquisition, making ‘shot for HDR content’ costs in post-production more viable. Sony, LG, Samsung, Phillips and Panasonic have all promised to bring HDR capable televisions to the market by the end of this year, an upgrade that is necessary to view HDR images as the increased luminance is too much for the brightness limitations of current TVs. Fortunately, the recently formed UHD Alliance is hard at work on developing a stronger definition of what qualifies as Ultra HD, including HDR requirements, so with a little luck we may have a full standard before the end of the year.
Buying into a new technology is always dicey, and HDR will be no exception. Replacing your TV when HDR models hit the shelves won’t be cheap – for example, Sony’s 65-inch X930C, which seems to be the first out of the gate, retails for US$4 500! As with 4K before it, the decision on when to upgrade comes down to content. Sure, there looks to be enough coming down the pipe to make it enticing, but until a major studio either starts producing multiple HDR titles a year or offers a decent portion of its library to be re-mastered in HDR; it will be tough to justify the expense. I think that overall everyone agrees there is an enormous amount of potential for HDR. It can create a more vibrant image than ever before, and allow filmmakers to present a clearer representation of their ideas. Still, it seems there is a lot of work that needs to be done before the industry rolls out widespread use of the technology. There are exciting things on the horizon, including the complete integration of HDR in Avid Media Composer and I’m excited to see where this new technology leads and how it affects the industry. Never a dull moment in our television industry is there? – Ian Dormer November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 39
New Media
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OTT
Live Streaming out of this world
As 4K production becomes more of a reality, and the public demand for content grows, broadcasters are scrambling to look at viable ways to save their businesses. Traditional television viewing is continuously challenged by on-demand services via Content Delivery Networks (CDN) that, in the background, are having to develop new technology that is literally ‘out of this world’ to cope with the sheer numbers of simultaneous users.
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ot only are they at the forefront of space technology and discoveries but the US agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), are leaders in the ‘art’ of streaming content to millions of viewers around the planet. Video has been a part of NASA’s DNA since the agency was founded. Ever since the first ‘small step’ on the moon, NASA has produced content that has enlightened and thrilled the public. When NASA initially developed their in-house television network around the start of the space shuttle era, the system that was paid for by the NASA space flight division, was intended for engineering purposes only. Much of the time the system wasn’t in use until the Office of Communications stepped in and used it to produce programming. This was before mass adoption of the internet when viewing options were sparse and only a few cable networks picked up NASA TV’s broadcasts and viewership was low. It was only in 2004 when NASA finally got the infrastructure in place to start streaming online, and NASA-TV took off like a rocket. Today, thanks to NASA’s internet
40 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
offerings, anyone can call up its amazing videos whenever they want and watch live events as they unfold. The agency has been streaming video online for years on its own site, YouTube, and other platforms. They now live stream three channels: their public channel, an education channel, and a media channel through CDN Akamai. Akamai’s beginnings are fascinating: it all started with a challenge posed by World Wide Web inventor Tim BernersLee at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in early 1995. BernersLee foresaw the congestion that was soon to become very familiar to internet users, and he challenged colleagues at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to invent a fundamentally new and better way to deliver internet content. What he may not have foreseen was that posing this problem in an academic setting would ultimately result in a commercial service that has revolutionised the internet. MIT Professor of Applied Mathematics Tom Leighton, who had an office down the hall from Dr Berners-Lee, was intrigued by the challenge. He recognised that a solution to web congestion could be found in
applied mathematics and algorithms and he assembled a team of researchers to tackle the problem. From his research Akamai was born and delivered its first live traffic in February 1999. NASA’s ventures into live streaming have had their highs and lows. The first significant event it carried was the landing of the Mars Exploration Rovers in January 2004. They had no idea what the audience would or could be and although streaming was by now fairly common, it was problematic and their live coverage only peaked at about 50 000 webcast streams. By the time Curiosity landed on Mars in 2012, not only had NASA’s online community grown but technology had improved and NASA served 1.2 million simultaneous video streams. Towards the end of 2013 as part of a cost-saving measure, NASA moved to another CDN, but things did not go well. Poor performance issues cropped up, disrupted TV signals, delays and frozen screens interrupted their services. Their problems peaked during the test launch for Orion, the spacecraft that is replacing the Space Shuttle. Interest in the December 2014 launch was massive, NASA got major traffic on its site but the CDN servers crashed at around 35 000 streams, images would buffer and freeze and audio cut out leaving millions disappointed. Realising that launches and events like this were their ‘bread and butter’ NASA TV reverted back to their original CDN and haven’t looked back since. More recently NASA has co-partnered on a separate project with CDN Ustream to provide a live view of Earth and space from four HD cameras on the International Space Station (ISS). To stream from the ISS, NASA downlinks video via satellite, sending it through the tracking and data relay satellite (TDRS) system. The video reaches ground and travels to a NASA centre for encoding. The whole workflow is similar to that for any broadcast, with the difference that the stream originates in space. Streamed
video can have a 20- to 30-second lag time behind broadcast feeds. The live HD stream from the International Space Station has drawn over 56 million viewers into the frame, from which a new generation of space watchers has formed a large online community. In what could be considered a bold step for mankind, NASA has announced a new 4K television channel dedicated to Ultra High Definition (UHD) footage from 1 November 2015. The space agency is working with a company called Harmonic, a video delivery infrastructure company, to launch the channel. NASA calls it “the first ever noncommercial consumer ultra-high definition channel in North America”. Using an end-to-end UHD video delivery system, NASA Television will have the capability to deliver linear 2160p60 video content, allowing viewers to enjoy footage on a wide range of television and internetconnected devices. Leveraging the 8-megapixel resolution of UHD, the channel will showcase the breathtaking beauty and grandeur of space. NASA TV UHD video will be sourced from highresolution images and video generated on the International Space Station and other current NASA missions, as well as re-mastered footage from historical missions. The channel will stream on the internet, which will require at least 13 MBps access connectivity to receive the signal and enjoy the UHD experience. It is befitting that an organisation that is at the forefront of discovery and innovation, is also leading in the adoption of this new and exciting technology. The possibilities are endless: from eating chocolate cookies aboard the ISS, to multi-camera, slow motion footage of shuttle launches, to Neil Armstrong’s first steps on the Moon – space exploration is about to look even cooler. – Ian Dormer
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NEW MEDIA
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APP-titude
We take a look at the apps which are simplifying workflows in pre-, post- and production.
Magic Hour Publisher: elfinda apps Compatible devices: iOS Price: Free
How it works: Magic hour, also known as golden hour, is a window of time just after sunrise and just before sunset where lighting conditions are ideal for capturing beautiful shots. This is because the light is diffused through the earth’s atmosphere, allowing more of the sun’s golden shades to shine through. The Magic Hour app works out when the next magic hour will occur, as this depends on where you are located in the world. It also gives you a count-down to when magic hour begins, and an indication as to how much shooting time you have left in this short period. Why this is awesome: The soft, warm light generated during this time is the most desirable and flattering for any film subject. It eliminates harsh shadows while any long shadows created can make for more textured, interesting and dynamic shots. But golden hour does not have a set time and varies according to season and your distance from the equator, so having an app that can calculate when it will take place and for how long makes maximising its potential a lot easier.
Cinema Forms Publisher: ikan International Corp. Compatible devices: iOS Price: $9.99
How it works: The Cinema Forms app allows users to generate, oversee and share production worksheets and releases directly from an iPad. The app provides filmmakers with the following free electronic templates: call sheet, breakdown sheet, smart invoice, shot log, talent release form, generic talent release form, location release form, location scout worksheet, asset inventory log, cast contact list, crew contact list, AV Script and preproduction checklist. Another 90 templates are available through the in-app Form Shop. Why this is awesome: Cinema Forms simplifies the use of paperwork on set by making forms electronic and easily searchable. When shooting on location, handling professional and organised call sheets as well as contact and release forms can be really helpful. Working with loads of paper is not ideal for any producer or production manager. The app is also able to sync with iCloud and Dropbox or distribute documents and forms via email, which can then be printed out if necessary.
Using a filmmaking app you think we should know about? Tell us why you think it’s awesome by emailing: carly@screenafrica.com. 42 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
ADVERTORIAL
| POST-PRODUCTION
Stylus Post and Lucan Visuals
PROFESSIONAL SYNERGY: An image from Stylus Post and Lucan Visuals’ work on a recent Hyundai campaign Stylus Post and Lucan Visuals are aligned as a high end production and post-production facility offering clients the finest in animation, visual effects and content creation for the feature film and commercials market. A synergy of professional individuals, we have fully equipped edit suites for offline, colour grading, and online in Autodesk Smoke 2016. A scalable business model allows us to source only the finest in creative talent worldwide. Together with Lucan Visuals, a separate creative and talented animation and production house, Stylus Post is able to offer CG, 3D, VFX, digital activations, virtual reality, events projection, matte paintings,
experimental media and interactive video content which is fast becoming the future for video and film. We service both the local and growing international market; and we are based in the heart of Cape Town above an internationally acclaimed coffee house and fully licensed bar, Truth Coffee Roasting. We are always happy to answer questions, provide insights or to just have a chat about your ideas and concepts. Get in touch via email – www.lucan.tv www.styluspost.tv contact@lucan.tv / + 27 21 200 5868 contact@styluspost.tv / + 27 21 823 8841
November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 43
Box Office
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Figures supplied by SAFACT
3D movies dominate at the South African box office this October Hotel Transylvania 2
The Walk
Sony Pictures Entertainments’ slightly freakish and frivolous animation Hotel Transylvania 2 clinched the top spot at the South African box office this October garnering R1 333 198 in its third weekend running, bringing its total gross national income to R13 772 674. Directed by Genndy Tartakovsky, the film boasts voices by Adam Sandler, Selena Gomez and Andy Samberg to name a few.
In 1974, Philippe Petit, a high-wire artist, recruits a team of individuals to help him achieve his dream – to walk the void between the north and south towers of the World Trade Center using a tightrope. This inspiring true-story starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Ben Kingsley, earned R751 562 in its opening weekend at South African theatres.
Pan
The Martian
The prequel to Scottish author J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan stars Hugh Jackman, Garrett Hedlund, Rooney Mara and Levi Miller. Directed by Joe Wright, the Warner Bros fantasy/adventure flick earned R979 290 in its second week running at local theatres, a 52% drop on the previous week’s takings, bringing its cumulative SA box office income to R3 388 197.
Directed by Ridley Scott and starring Matt Damon, The Martian has won critical acclaim both locally and internationally as a thrilling and surprisingly funny adaptation of Andy Weir’s best-selling novel. The film chronicles Mark Watney’s (Damon) efforts to survive on Mars after he is accidently left behind on the red planet. The sci-fi flick garnered R5 179 134 in the three weeks it has been running at local cinemas.
Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials Director Wes Ball gives audiences an action-packed second installment in the Maze Runner saga. The 20th Century Fox sci-fi/action film earned R12 807 725 in the four weeks that it has been running on silver screens countrywide. Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials has received predominantly negative reviews from local and international critics alike, with Variety dubbing it “unsatisfying and confusing”.
Black Mass Black Mass is the true story of Whitey Bulger, one of the most dangerous criminals in the history of South Boston and the brother of a state senator. With an all-star cast that includes Johnny Depp, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jesse Plemons and Dakota Johnson, the crime-drama, directed by Scott Cooper, earned R560 245 in its opening weekend at the South African box office.
– Compiled by Chanelle Ellaya
44 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
PROD U CTION
UPDATES
FOR FURTHER DETAILS VISIT www.screenafrica.com
Those productions in red are newly listed this month Production Updates Order of Information 1. Title 2. Production Company 3. Director 4. Genre
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 A BROTHER’S LOVE 1300 Pictures (Pty) Ltd Dir: Elvis Nkosi Feature A CALENDAR OF EVENTS – MEDUPI & KUSILE Betta Beta Communications Prod: Tommy Doig Documentary A MAN OF HIS OWN PRINCIPALS Sekgopha Productions Prod: Buhle Mofulatsi / Thapelo Hlagala TV movie AQUELLE’ MIDMAR MILE 2015 Media Ventures Prod/Dir: Chris Moolman Documentary AFRICA 360 eNews News Head: Patrick Conroy Current affairs AFRO CAFÉ SEASON 7 Bonngoe Productions Prod: Pepsi Pokane Music ArtsCulturex Talent 1000 Championships Michics Global Communications Exec Prod: Mishack Motshweni Series Auditor General Global Access Creative Agency Dir: Brad Montgomery/Natalie Varoy Corporate BACKBONE PROJECT Global Access Creative Agency Prod: GA Creative Agency Documentary BIG BROTHER MZANSI Endemol South Africa Prod: Terja Beney, Liza Kleitman Reality BINNELAND Stark Films Prod/Dir: Friedrich / Elsje Stark Series BRAVO! Homebrew Films Prod: Jaco Loubser Magazine BONISANANI Grounded Media Talk Show Bugatti Together Lucky Fish Productions Dir: Raphaël Crombez Commercial CAINE’S LEGACY Media Navigation Prod/Dir: Dan Akinlolu Short Film CARTE BLANCHE (INSERTS) Modern Times Prod: Sophia Phirippides News Carte Blanche shorts TIA productions Prod / Dir: Tarryn Lee Crossman News CLAASENS DESIGNS MARKETING VIDEOS Panache Video Productions Prod/Dir: Liesel Eiselen Marketing videos CLASH OF THE CHOIRS Endemol South Africa Prod: Josh Feldman Talent / Reality COOL CATS Red Pepper Pictures Prod: Cecil Berry Children’s Show
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 Debra Deel Khaki Productions Prod/Dir: Christelle Parrott, Wynand Dreyer Series DIAMOND BROKER OF CONGO Bendimir Productions PTY LTD Prod: Dede Tshibangu Documentary DIMENSION DATA Global Access Creative Agency Dir: Natalie Varoy Corporate DINNER DIVAS 2 Blonds and a Redhead Filming Prod: Anne Myers Series DISHONEST Inhlakanipho Films Dir: Vusi Nhlapo Feature Film Ditokelo tsa Medupi LMOL Production Dir: Lizzy Moloto Feature DIY MET RIAAN Prod: Riaan Venter-Garforth Magazine EARTH BEAT Tekweni TV Productions Prod: Sandra Herrington Series 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 FACE OF GEMINI Footprint Media TV Prod: Cheryl Delport Series Facility Management Lectures (A4FM) Panache Video Productions Dir/ Prod: Liesel Eiselen Educational Faith Today Impact Christian Media Prod: Carl Schultz TV Series FOX NEWS CHANNEL Betta Beta Communications Prod/Dir: Tommy Doig News
Free State Toursim Indaba Our Time Productions Dir: Jaun de Meillon Corporate FRENZY Red Pepper Pictures Prod: Morena Sefatsa Variety GENERATIONS Morula Pictures Prod: Mfundi Vundla Series GOOD MORNING AFRICA Planet Image Productions SA Prod/Dir: Wale Akinlabi Magazine GOSPEL GOLD Engage Entertainment Prod: Sthembile Mhlongu Music Got It Global Access Creative Agency Dir: Guy Sclanders Corporate GROEN Homebrew Films Prod: Jaco Loubser Wildlife HEAT WAVE Ruby Rocket Media Dir: Eddie Edwards TV Series HECTIC 99 Okuhle Media Prod: Wilna van Schalkwyk Magazine HITACHI POWER AFRICA MEDUPI AND KUSILE Betta Beta Communications Prod/Dir: Tommy Doig Documentary HOUSE CALL Izwe Multimedia / Urban Brew Prod: Annalie Potgieter Talk Show IGNITE Footprint Media TV Prod: Cheryl Delport Reality IHAWU LE SISWE Provoke Entertainment Dir: Sechaba Morojele TV Series iParent training clips Global Access Creative Agency Dir: Guy Sclanders Corporate IMIZWILILI Ukhamba Productions Prod: Alfred Mpofu Music INKABA Urban Brew Studios Prod: John Kani Telenovela In search of our own Open Window school of film arts Prod: Adriaan De la Rey Documentary ISIDINGO Endemol South Africa Prod: Pumla Hoppa, Leo Phiri Soap JOBURG TAXI Xcut Studios Prod: Dave Kaminer Documentary
general post editors, animators compositors, digitisers researchers, storyboard supplying the finest artists & illustrators freelance post-production writers, directors & creative crew to the post production film and television industry supervisors, workflow consultants, broadcast designers’ producers location producers cameramen office: 0860 111 553 technical directors after hrs: 076 225 9173 content directors & bookings@generalpost.co.za production managers
www.generalpost.co.za
1464 Vragboot Steet Cnr Vooraadskip Streets Laserpark, Honeydew
PRO DU C T I O N
SUPPLIED
Unit C5 RobeRtville Mini FaCtoRies 255 nadine stReet RobeRtville RoodepooRt 1709
U PD ATES JOU SHOW Homebrew Films Prod: Jaco Loubser Talkshow comedy KOKKEDOOR 2 Homebrew films Prod: Jaco Loubser and Paul Venter Cooking reality series 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 LATE NITE NEWS ON E.TV Diprente Productions Prod: Tamsin Andersson Series Light Girls South African Unit White Heron Pictures Prod: Themba Sibeko Documentary LIVE Urban Brew Music LIVE LOTTO SHOW Urban Brew Game Show Mandela’s Gun DV8 films Dir: John Irvin Feature Marang Estate: Mixed Used Development Nov/ Dec Our Time Productions Dir: Jaun de Meillon Documentary MASHELENG1 LMOL Production Dir: Lizzy Moloto Feature MASHELENG 2 LMOL Production Dir: Jonny Muteba Feature MassTalk Global Access Creative Agency Prod: Brad Montgomery Corporate MATRICS UPLOADED Educational Improvement and Study Help (EISH) Prod: Lisa Blakeway Educational MOTSWAKO Carol Bouwer Productions Prod: Grant Paul Roy Talk Show MCA Training Global Access Creative Agency Dir: Guy Sclanders Corporate M-NET SHORT FILMS Current Affairs Films Prod/ Dir: Jane Thandi Lipman Film MURDER OF A FORMER FIRST LADY Sabido Productions Dir/Prod: Catherine Rice Documentary MUVHANGO Word of Mouth Prod: Pieter Grobbelaar Feature MY GENERATION Current Affairs Films Dir: Jane Lipman TV Series My name is Funeka Sabido Productions Dir/Prod: Catherine Rice Documentary MZANSI INSIDER Bonngoe Productions Prod: Pepsi Pokane Magazine NEILL ANTHONY – THE PRIVATE CHEF Okuhle Media Prod: Grant Flynn Cooking Show NET1 – SASSA Betta Beta Communications Prod: Tommy Doig Corporate NEWS NIGHT eNews Prod: Nikiwe Bikitsha Current Affairs in Oscar Pistorius Documentary Inserts TIA Productions Dir/ Prod: Tarryn Crossman Documentary PASELLA Tswelopele Productions Dir: Liani Maasdorp / Werner Hefer Magazine PAWN STARS SOUTH AFRICA Rapid Blue Prod: Kee-Leen Irvine, Ed Worster, Johan Naude and Kat Weatherall Reality
PHUNDEKA READING PROGRAMME SummerTime Productions Exec Prod: Phundeka (NGO) Documentary POWER COMBAT ZONE Mixed Motion Entertainment Dir: Dieter Gottert Sport PROJECT MV Zen Crew Prod: Laura Tarling Music Rands with Sense 2 Blonds and a Redhead Filming Prod: Anne Myersin Education RHYTHM CITY Quizzical Pictures Prod: Yula Quinn Soapie 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 ROLLING WITH KELLY KHUMALO Red Pepper Prod: Cecil Barry Reality ROOTS Ukhamba Communications Prod: Alfred Mpofu Music SAINT AND FREEDOM FIGHTER Blue Marble Entertainment Dir: Eugene Botha Documentary SA Top Model for a Day Michics Global Communications Exec Prod: Mishack Motshweni TV Series SAKEGESPREK MET THEO VORSTER SEASON 5 Dirk Mostert Camera Production Prod/ Dir: Dirk Mostert Series SAUBA IMAGOFILM Prod: Tam de Vries Reality TV Series Shreds and Dreams Penguin Films Prod: Roberta Durrant TV Series SOUTH AFRICAN TOURISM Rapid Blue Prod: Kee-Leen Irvine Global TV Commercial SA’S GOT TALENT Rapid Blue Prod/Dir: Kee-Leen Irvine Talent show 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 SODA AND Mayoral Awards Global Access Creative Agency Guy Sclanders Corporate SPRINGBOK STORIES Angel Music Studio Productions Dir: Chrissie Rossouw TV Series STUDY MATE Educational Improvement and Study Help (EISH) Exec Prod: Lisa Blakeway Educational
SUPERSWIMMER Media Ventures Prod/Dir: Chris Moolman TV Series THE CHAT ROOM Eclipse Prod: Thokozani Nkosi Talk Show 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 REAL GOBOZA 7 Urban Brew Entertainment The Revolution Betrayed Shadow Films Prod/Dir: David Forbes Documentary THE RUDIMENTALS Periphery Films Prod: Simon Taylor Feature THE TECH REPORT Homebrew Films Prod: Jaco Loubser Technology Magazine TOP BILLING Tswelopele Productions Prod: Patience Stevens Magazine TOP TRAVEL (Season 3) Cardova Prod: Bradley van den Berg Series Transnet Financial Results Global Access Creative Agency Dir: Brad Montgomery Corporate Troopship Tragedy (Working Title) Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Marion Edmunds Documentary TSHIPE BORWA MANGANESE MINE Betta Beta Communications Prod / Dir: Tommy Doig Documentary Vaseline Experience Xcut Studios Dir: Lee Anne Theron 4D AV production VELDKINDERS Kilroy Was Here! Productions Prod: Gideon Breytenbach Documentary Series 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 WEEKEND AM LIVE SABC News Current Affairs WIZARD OF ZIM Away From Keyboard Dir: Samora Sekhukhune Documentary YILENGELO LAKHO Prod: Nndanganeni Mudau Current Affairs 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 FATAL ENCOUNTER – THE MARLEEN KONINGS STORY Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Johann Abrahams Documentary A Love Letter to Luxor Shadow Films Prod/Dir: David Forbes Short Film A MOTHER’S MADNESS Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Ayesha Ismail Documentary A STOLEN LIFE – THE SASHA LEIGH CROOK STORY Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Catherine Rice Documentary AFROX CO2 PLANT FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video
PROD U CTION AFROX FINANCIAL RESULTS FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video AFROX RAU INSIGHT FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video ALL FOR NOTHING – THE LIFE AND DEATH OF BRUNO BRONN Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Barbara Friedman Documentary BEAUTY CONTEST Phoenix TV Productions Prod/Dir: Koketso Sefanyetso Short Film CAESAREAN COMPLICATIONS SummerTime Productions Exec Prod: Professor Eckhart Buchmann Documentary Challenge SOS 2 Blonds and a Redhead Filming Prod: Anne Myers Reality Collide Media Village Productions Prod: Ardeen Munnik TV Series CROSSBOW KILLER Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Barbara Friedman Documentary DEBRA DEEL Khaki Productions Prod: Christelle Parrott TV Series DIE WASGOEDLYN Kilroy Was Here! Productions Prod: Gideon Breytenbach TV Series FASHION GURU SA Pro Media & Spider – Co Productions Prod/Dir: Dee Vanzyl Reality FORMIDABELE VROUE: CISSY GOOL Khaki Productions Prod/Dir: Christelle Parrott/ Wynand Dreyer Documentary HAD BETTER DAYS Uniquely Novel Productions Prod/Dir: Deon VD Merwe Feature Film HISTORICAL DOCUMENTARIES: KIMBERLEY: SOUTH AFRICA Spike Productions Prod/Dir: Steve Muller Documentary THE HOCKEY STICK KILLER Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Melanie Rice Documentary HOPE NHU Africa Prod: Vyv Simson / Donfrey Meyer Documentary HOUSE OF ENCOURAGEMENT Panache Video Productions Dir/Prod: Liesel Eiselen Corporate I AM…CRAIG Away From Keyboard Dir: Samora Sekhukhune Documentary IQILI Impucuzeko Prod: Sharon Kakora Feature Joyous 18 RM Recording Prod: Lindelani Mkhize Other JULIUS HAS A DREAM Creative South Africa, Nkanyethi Productions,Jam TV Prod: Bathelemy Ngwessam Documentary
KADARA Media Navigation Prod: Dan Akinlolu/ Biola Karonwi TV Drama Kerels wat Kook Penguin Films Prod: Roberta Durrant Reality TV Series KNYSNA West Five Films Prod/ Dir: Maynard Kraak; Andre Velts Feature Film LINCOLN CLAN Total Recall Media Ltd Dir: Adebanjo Oluseyi TV Series THE MIME ARTIST Phoenix TV Productions Prod: Koketso Sefanyetso Short Film MURDER ON MILLIONAIRE’S MILE Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Barbara Friedman Documentary MY SIGHT FOR SORE EYES Enigma Ace Films Prod/Dir: Ryan Kruger Feature Film NIGHT OF THE MASSACRE Tshepo Lesedi Projects, Mathope & Izibuko Films Dir: Charles Khuele Documentary NEW LAND Plexus Films/ Four Corners Media Dir: Kyle O’ Donoghue TV Series NIGHTCLUB KILLER Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Nobathembu Stefane Documentary 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 THE QUIET BOY Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Charlene Stanley Corporate ROSA 3 Two Oceans Productions Prod: Giselher Venzke & Bertha Spieker TV Feature SAFE BET Sukuma Media Producer: Nokuthula Sakhile Mguni / Bonginhlanhla Ncube Feature Film SAMURAI KILLER Sabido Productions Dir: Catherine Rice Corporate SECRET PAIN #1 Makoya Entertainment Prod/Dir: Prayer Ndlovu TV Drama SHALLOW GRAVE Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Meggan Raubenheimer Documentary SLENDER WONDER FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video SLENDER WONDER MJ LABS FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video
SWARTWATER Quizzical Pictures Prod: Bianca Isaac Dir: John Trengove/ Jozua Malherbe/ Denny Y Miller Series SUPERDAD Two Oceans Productions Prod: Giselher Venzke & Bertha Spieker TV Feature SURVIVOR Endemol South Africa Prod: Anton Burggraaf, Josh Feldman Reality TELKOM: BUSINESS INSIGHTS WEBSERIES UZI Films Prod/Dir: Steven Hall Corporate The calling LMOL Production Dir: Lizzy Moloto Feature THE CODE BREAKER NHU Africa Prod: Vyv Simson / Donfrey Meyer Documentary THE FAMILY PUZZLE Site et Sons media productions Prod/Dir : Zamo Missie Feature THE LAST GREAT TUSKERS NHU Africa Prod: Vyv Simson / Donfrey Meyer Documentary The Message Reel Edge Studios Dir: David Golden TV Drama Series THE STORY OF LITTLE FOOT Paul Myburgh Film Prod: Paul Myburgh Documentary THE TRANSPORTERS Sukuma Media/ Reality Motion Pictures Dir: Bonginhlanhla Ncube Documentary TROOPSHIP TRAGEDY Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Marion Edmunds Documentary Traffic Penguin Films Prod: Roberta Durrant TV Series UNDER THE MOUNTAIN Plexus Films Prod: Miki Redelinghuys,/ Lauren Groenewald Short film UNSOLVED – THE STORY OF THE CAPE RIPPER Sabido Productions Prod/Dir: Johann Abrahams Documentary VKB LANDBOU BEPERK FC Hamman Films Prod: Odette van Jaarsveld Corporate Video When I Was Water Shadow Films Dir: David Forbes Documentary XJ-1 Eternal Film Productions Prod: Marius Swanepoel/ Dana Pretorius Feature You Deserve It Penguin Films Prod: Roberta Durrant TV Game Show
UPDATES
UPCOMING EVENTS
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NOVEMBER 11 – 20
Cairo International Film Festival
Egypt www.ciff.org.eg
Cape Town africa.comworldseries.com
Cape Town africa.tvconnectevent.com/
Johannesburg www.photofilmexpo.com
Johannesburg www.promaxafrica.tv
Tunisia www.jcctunisie.org
17 – 19 AfricaCom 17 – 19
TV Connect Africa
19 – 22
Photo and Film Expo
20
PromaxBDA South Africa
21 – 28
Carthage Film Festival
DECEMBER 9 – 16 Dubai International Film Festival
Dubai www.dubaifilmfest.com
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
Custom Music, Licensing & Sound Design for Film • TV • Documentary • Online • Gaming
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CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF AWARD WINNING MUSIC & SOUND DESIGN
SOUTH AFRICA’S PREMIER DOLBY DIGITAL CERTIFIED AUDIO POST PRODUCTION & SOUND DESIGN STUDIO
www.cutandpastemusic.com
www.kwazimojo.com
+27 (0) 11 361 3020
November – December 2015 | SCREENAFRICA | 47
Social and Behind the Scenes
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Banff Film Festival Johannesburg media launch at The Bioscope Independent Cinema
Lisa de Speville (FEAT), Anthony Churchyard (Do It Now Magazine), Lucky Miya (K-Way Athlete)
Kayrton Coetzer (Wintec Solutions), Louallen Charles (Cape Union Mart), Pierre Pienaar (Cape Union Mart)
Dylan Lloyd (The Bomb Shelter), Romz Deluxe (Music Atlast), Nerina du Plessis (The Bomb Shelter)
Justice Mukheli (I See a Different You), Pieter du Plessis (The Bomb Shelter), Danine Naidoo (Olympic International)
Ralph Meyer, Lea Döss (Karine: A Trailrunner Portrait crew)
Kamil Slesinski, Erwin Güther, Wolfgang Meyer (Karine: A Trailrunner Portrait crew)
Photo credit: Heartlines
Behind the scenes of Beyond the River
Focus puller Macaire Cox
On the set of Beyond the River
48 | SCREENAFRICA | November – December 2015
Actors Lemogang Tsipa (Duma) and Grant Swanby (Steve)
DOP Trevor Calverly
Writer/director Craig Freimond
AK-UC3000 4K Studio Handy Camera
AK-HC5000 HD Studio Handy Camera
Studio Handy Camera lineup featuring B4 mount 4K model and 1080p high-speed model
www.pansolutions.co.za Contact: Sean Loeve Cell: 083 677 4917 Tel: 011 313 1622