The Callsheet Issue 4 by Film & Event Media

ISSUE 04 | 2015

+ TRENDS IN AFRICAN DOCUMENTARIES + SPOTLIGHT ON BROADCASTING IN SA + SA BOX OFFICE REPORT

Congratulates on 15 Years of Success!

CONTENTS | 01

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02. Media Film Service: 15 Years of Success

04. SA Shines with First Ever Judge on Creative Effectiveness Panel

05. A Great Moment in Cinema Advertising as ‘Guaranteed Audience’ is Launched

06. South African Box Office Report 08. F.I.L.M.: Bridging the Gap between Education and Employment

10. Movers and Shakers 12. Broadcasting in SA: Straddled between Digital and Analogue

16. The Rise of the African Documentary

22. The Winners of the 2015 SAFTAS 24. In Production 26. Luxor African Film Festival

MOVERS AND SHAKERS

BROADCASTING IN SA

Turn to page 10 to see who’s on the move in the SA film, TV and commercial industries.

How are we bridging the gap between analogue and digital? Turn to page 12 to find out.

2015 Winners

27. Inhouse Drama Rocks the NFVF 28. A Chat with Wayne de Lange 30. Ender’s Game: Packing Some Serious Intergalactic Punch

31. Indies and Shorts: De(con)struction of Love

32. 14th Tribeca Film Festival Preview

DOCUMENTARIES IN AFRICA

IN PRODUCTION: APRIL

Kim Muller unpacks the current trends in African documentary filmmaking on page 16.

These films are planning, shooting or wrapping up production in SA. See page 24.

33. Review of the Sony FS7 34. Nigeria: Africa’s Film Powerhouse 36. Events 38. Associations 40. Directory

02 | NEWS

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Media Film Service: 15 Years of Success!

Media Film Service: The vision when MFS was began in 2000, was to be a rental facility supplying the best camera, lighting and grips equipment used for film making and production of commercials. Although the gear has changed, especially in recent years, the vision has not. We remain dedicated to supplying the industry with an unrivalled standard of equipment and has broadened into further sectors within the industry. Quality in all that we do; be it the best equipment, service, or value adding to a production; has and remains our driving force and commitment. The Callsheet: What’s new in your product offering, and how does this tie in to the trends in the equipment rental industry? Media Film Service: Media offers a range of equipment to the industry which includes camera, lights, grips, consumables and studio space. We now also offer, through Media Digital Service, a range of equipment aimed at the entry-level market and the television industry. The trend in the industry has seen

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The Callsheet: What was your original vision for Media Film Service, and has the industry evolved to a point where the vision has changed?

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We have many loyal clients who have grown with us in the last 15 years and it is thanks to them that we are still going strong and growing the South African industry.

a cross-pollination of the gear between the traditionally different sectors, such as film and broadcast. With the growth now seen in series television and reality, Media is well positioned to offer these sectors the highest standard of service and equipment. The opportunity for growth within these entities is huge not only for MFS, but for the South African industry as a whole. The Callsheet: What is your plan for 2015 and beyond? Media Film Service: Besides maintaining the standard of equipment delivery, advice and support, the plan going forward is to package the offerings with the different entities within the Silverline 360 group. Being part of the Silverline 360 group of companies, the offering includes state of-the-art studios, post production and equipment. We can offer a turnkey and viable solution to the industry regardless of the sector. In offering such solutions we can provide greater value and ensure further work coming into the country.

The Callsheet: Congratulations on 15 amazing years! To what do you attribute your success? Media Film Service: The success of MFS is largely attributed to the staff who have worked here throughout the years. The company was started by a very dedicated and passionate group of people that introduced a philosophy and ethic that has stood the test of time. Even though some staff, including key members, have come and gone through the years, the ethos within the company with regards to service and delivery remains the same. It started as a small energetic media family and has grown greatly but has managed to remain a close-knit family. A further element that has contributed to our success is staying current with the ever changing technology and being able to offer the necessary skills and knowledge from internationally well trained technicians. A key to our past and future success is the continuous support and valuable relationships with our clients. We have many loyal clients who have grown with us in the last 15 years and it is thanks to them that we are still going strong and growing the South African industry. Our Johannesburg branch too has grown from strength to strength. With the support between the Cape Town and Joburg offices, especially during the peak of the Cape Town busy season, we are able to maintain our level of service and support to our clients. Over the years we have built and nurtured relationships with some of the industry’s key international suppliers. Without these relationships we wouldn’t be able to supply the latest and best equipment and offer the high level of service and expertise that we do. Maintaining strong international supplier relationships has come to hugely benefit the South African industry. This allows us in this country to offer the best of the best in the world.

NAMIB FILM | 03

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Namib Film Celebrates 15 Years

arch 2015 celebrated 15 years of business for Namib Film - Namibia’s longest running and most established film production company. Namib Film was created in 2000 by Guy Nockels, who was a South African filmmaker at that time and moved to Namibia. Guy decided to create Namib Film out of pure necessity, as there were no service production companies to facilitate international productions that wanted to film in Namibia, not even a film commission. Namib Film started from humble beginnings by scouting locations for visiting producers, and providing location logistics for various productions. From there onwards Namib Film has built itself from strength to strength, with a vast array of productions through their door. Namib Film is the only Namibian based company that has facilitated Hollywood studio films, and also proved to be the facilitator of choice for major Bollywood productions that arrive in Namibia.

In 2014 Namib Film joined the media group, Imwe Namibia Holdings, as its flagship company. Namib Film has now been developed to solely focus on the facilitation and production of commercial projects which include feature films, commercials, music videos and stills shoots. Their sister-company Magic Touch Films is dedicated towards the facilitation of documentaries and reality television programs. Since Namib Film’s inception, the company has been a major contributor towards the development of the Namibian film industry. Through Namib Film’s extensive industry knowledge, the company has been a pillar of support towards the formulation and launch of the Namibia Film Commission. Even today, Namib Film acts as an adviser, when required to the NFC on issues pertaining to service facilitation. Namib Film has also been a major contributor towards the development of film crews in Namibia, and has employed a core pool of 120 existing freelance crew members.

Factors that make Namib Film stand out from its competitors, is that the company is operated by full-time dedicated industry professionals 24/7, from their permanent offices in Swakopmund. Namib Film also enjoys the backing and support of the group’s strong managerial team who are always available for consultation and assistance. Another differential factor which makes the company stands out above the rest is that they include a US$ 1 million public liability insurance cover on all their productions. Namib Film is dedicated to bridging the gap between Namibia and the international filmmaker by providing exceptional experience and infrastructure, and to offer a quality service to productions of any size and magnitude. They will offer you a team that will be dedicated to your production, according to your needs and the scale of the production. As their company slogan states: “Never underestimate the advantage of local knowledge”.

04 | NEWS

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SA Shines

with First Ever Judge on Creative Effectiveness Panel ©Jeremy Glyn Photography

randing and advertising expert, Andy Rice, will be the first South African on the Creative Effectiveness judging panel in the history of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. “Although the category is fairly new to the 62 year festival, it is a huge honour that one of our own will be on this esteemed panel for the very first time and we couldn’t think of anyone better than Andy Rice. He brings an impressive history of talent and experience to the table,” says Cinemark’s Yvonne Diogo. Cinemark is the local representative for the Cannes Lions and its affiliates. Rice founded Yellowwood Brand Architects in 1997 and remains involved as a Board Director and Chairman. Yellowwood was the first dedicated strategy consultancy in South Africa and became part of the TBWA Group in 2009. It is now recognised as the leader in its field in the Southern African region. Passionate about the linkage between creativity and commercial effectiveness, Rice says that South Africa has seen a vast improvement in creative effectiveness in recent years. “The topic is on most marketing agendas today and its importance is reflected in our awards landscape.” He explains that the strength of the Apex awards in South Africa, for example, is an indicator that we take creative effectiveness very seriously. “Whenever I tackle the topic in conferences and seminars it always generates a lot of interest. After all, marketing is meant to be an investment not just a cost. So I think there is growing acceptance among the more progressive marketers in this country that creativity and effectiveness are symbiotic partners, not mutually exclusive combatants.” There is, however, an old-fashioned view that you can have creativity or you can have effectiveness but you can’t have both, says Rice. “There is a mountain of evidence to prove that this is not true, but unfortunately being creative or approving creative work is more difficult than the lazy alternative of commissioning safe and uncreative campaigns.” To address this issue, Rice recommends that we keep banging the drum to show the link between creativity and effectiveness. He

Branding and advertising expert, Andy Rice.

says that the debate should be taken to the boardroom so that CEOs and FDs can get the message too and that they should be convinced that the greatest risk of all is to take no risks. “Publicise the great case studies. Fire the risk averse marketing directors.” Rice is incredibly excited to be judging the Creative Effectiveness campaign at this year’s Cannes Lions and says that he is hoping for a

two-way flow of experiences. “I hope to bring back some fabulous case studies and insights to share with South African marketers, but I also hope that my Apex experiences will add to the calibre of the debate with my fellow jurors in Cannes.” The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2015 takes place from 21st to 27th June.

NEWS | 05

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A Great Moment

s measurability becomes increasingly more crucial for clients and media buyers, Cinemark is spearheading a first in cinema buying in this country. The launch of Cinemark’s Guaranteed Audience Package now offers an auditable audience to advertisers as guaranteed audience numbers - regardless of attendance figures and content – will be delivered. “It is worth noting that cinema and digital channels are now the only media types that provide an empirically audited audience. We are not relying on surveys and sample panels to establish the scale of our viewership” says Ryan Williams, Group Sales Strategy and Marketing Executive at Primedia. In the global market, the advent of guaranteed audience delivery in cinema has seen the medium become the fastest growing media type after digital investments. Not surprising, then, that Cinemark is embarking on what is seen internationally as best practice in cinema advertising. Cinema as a medium now offers advertisers the very best of both worlds. It continues to offer a unique environment where the audience is there because they love the movie experience and are completely immersed in the content – both adverts and the movie* itself. “It now also offers advertisers the opportunity to pick the exact size of the target market they’d like to reach, with a proven ROI on cost per 1000,”

adds Williams. Added to this, 2015 is looking set to be the biggest year in cinema history. Fifty Shades of Grey recently broke box office records in SA, and with titles such as Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens, Fast & Furious 7, Spectre, the Minions movie and The Avengers: Age of Ultron coming soon, both audiences and advertisers will not be disappointed. “The spectacular content, combined with Guaranteed Audience, offers advertisers an exceptional opportunity to reach the right target audience engrossed in the medium itself. We will be flighting the best possible line-up in a no-clutter, high-noting environment to be consumed by a captive, opt-in audience who want nothing more than to be entertained. The current content slate allows us to do this with a level of confidence we haven’t seen for some time and 2015 looks set to deliver guaranteed entertainment with guaranteed impact for advertisers,” comments Scott Lawrence, National Sales Manager, Cinemark. The opinion that, not only will 2015 be a great year for cinema, but that cinema will continue to deliver a great experience for audiences and advertisers alike, is backed by reports such as the PWC Entertainment and Media Outlook 2014-2018, South Africa. Box office resilience underscores the continuing popularity of the cinema experience and the fact that the entire viewing experience

in Cinema Advertising as ‘Guaranteed Audience’ is Launched

Minions

has undergone a profound change with the introduction of digital screens, IMAX and Cine Prestige will ensure that cinema offers advertisers the opportunity to deliver a truly immersive experience.** To find out more about Guaranteed Audience visit www.cinemark.co.za *Millward Brown research - The latest research from Millward Brown shows that ad noting increases by an average of 38% when using cinema in combination with television, making cinema an increasingly important vehicle to improve advertising ROI. The take-out of cinema advertising is stronger probably due to the big screen impact, fewer interruptions and distractions, as well as a more engaged target audience in an attentive frame of mind. The study also shows that cinema is particularly effective to reach male and youth audiences, so cinema presents value to the advertiser both from a commercial impact of cinema as well as the visual impact.

06 | SPOTLIGHT

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Leading Lady

Hard to Get

SOUTH AFRICAN BOX OFFICE REPORT January to December 2014

he National Film and Video Foundation, (NFVF) an agency of the Department of Arts and Culture, continually conducts research into varying aspects of the film industry. The research is conducted in order to develop a better understanding of the industry. The foundation has therefore released the Box Office report for the January – December 2014 period. Year 2014 marked a period where South African’s experienced challenges with electricity supply constraints, repeated strikes and a weak recovery of the rand. Most recently economic indicators suggested a passive economic environment which contributed relatively to a slow growth.

The industry experienced a slow recovery in terms of growth in box office revenues generated. A total of 228 films were released at the box office during the period under review, 23 of those being SA films. The report indicates that South Africans continue to show keen interest for the imported titles, with local films only claiming 6% market share at the box office. Theatrical revenues for all films released in South Africa totaled to R880.3-million in 2014, an increase of 0.13% compared to 2013. Foreign films experienced growth by 6%, while South African films declined by 44% in 2014. Commenting on the box office decline, which also has an impact on audience development, Zama Mkosi, NFVF CEO, indicated that the foundation is working

on strategies to ensure that South Africans appreciate local films. Mkosi mentions that the NFVF conducted Audience Research earlier in the year, which its preliminary report indicated that “amongst others; access to cinemas, cinema experience and the content we provide to consumers play a key role in cinema attendance. To remedy this we will be developing an Audience Development strategy to ensure South Africa’s appreciation of local films.” The most popular films with the highest gross in 2014 were Transformers: Age of Extinction, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, and How to Train your Dragon 2. The highest performing local film was Pad na Jou Hart which earned R11.6-million, the second highest grossing film was Leading

SPOTLIGHT | 07

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Leading Lady

Pad na Jou Hart

Cold Harbour

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Hear me Move

It is evident that eﬀorts to develop a strong cinema-going culture and to get more audiences to choose South African ﬁlms at the cinema needs to be further exploited.

Lady taking only R7.6-million while Faan se Trein earned R7.2-million at third place. It was noted with interest that six of the films in the top 10 of local films were Afrikaans language films which is an indication of the growing audience for Afrikaans movies. All is not lost for black films’ performance, as the NFVF has designed projects that would ensure that the local audiences support their films. “We have launched Youth Filmmaker and Women Projects to ensure that emerging filmmakers’ skills are honed, says Mkosi. Together with the Industrial Development Corporation and the Department of Trade and Industry, the NFVF now offers black emerging filmmakers an opportunity to access funds from the Emerging Black Filmmakers Transformation Fund launched in July 2014. The fund was designed to address the scarcity of the release of films produced by black filmmakers. Once again Animation was the highest grossing genre, with some of the biggest films of the year coming out on top:

How to Train Your Dragon 2 and Rio 2. A combined gross for animation summed to R140.2-million. Action/Adventure was the second-highest earning genre of the year with a combined gross of R139.9-million. Drama was the third with combined gross of R120.2-million. In terms of distribution, the biggest portion of market share was generated by Times Media Distribution (TM) claiming 49% of the total box office gross, a huge improvement from 36% claimed in 2013. Ster Kinekor (SK) was the secondhighest distributor claiming 31% market share, a decrease from 39% in 2013. The third biggest share was taken by United International Pictures (UIP) claiming 14% of the total gross, a drop from 22% claimed in 2013. Regardless of the report, local films continue to be appreciated internationally. Local films comprising current releases; Four Corners, Hear me Move, Hard to Get and Cold Harbour continue to raise the South African flag. At the recently held 2015

Pan African Film Festival, Four Corners was nominated for Best Narrative Feature while Cold Harbour was selected for Best First Feature Narrative. Another local film that screened at the festival, Thina so Babili won an Audience Award. “These achievements, together with others the country continues to receive are testament that our industry has Come of Age, and that our stories are appreciated by the rest of the world. It is now up to us South Africans to support the local releases, to further ensure that our films continue to contribute to the national economy as indicated in the 2012 Economic Baseline Study Report,” states Mkosi. From the report, it is evident that efforts to develop a strong cinema-going culture and to get more audiences to choose South African films at the cinema needs to be further exploited. The NFVF looks forward to interesting titles being released including Mooirivier an Afrikaans language romantic comedy, and South Africa’s first dance film Hear me Move.

08 | SPOTLIGHT

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THE F.I.L.M. PROGRAMME Bridging the Gap between Education and Employment

hen it comes to service delivery on local and international film sets, the South African film industry is indisputably a breed apart, boasting some of the best crews and heads of departments in the world. But how do we sustain this? How do we bridge the yawning gap between Education and Employment - harnessing the rich resource of emerging, raw talent – and building a healthy, transformed, globally competitive film and TV industry? What does it take to crack it in this notoriously unforgiving arena? Regardless of entrants’ academic qualifications, you

need to familiarize and equip yourself fully in the environment you are striving to access and excel in. It might seem strange, but the academic entry level of South Africa’s crews is historically quite low – mostly doctorates from the University of Hard Knocks. And you definitely don’t need a doctorate to make a movie, so much as good deal of broad, hardwon, hands-on experience. Moreover, if we used tertiary education as an entry level to the industry, we’d be wilfully excluding a vast reservoir of raw, South African genius and talent. Occupational skills are vital for sure - but life skills are at least as, if not more important

by Seton Bailey - in the cut-and-thrust of an extremely tough industry. Discipline, determination, focus, honesty, trust, loyalty, tenacity, passion and respect are just some of the key ingredients that bind the industry. Not everyone is blessed at the outset with the innate ability to negotiate the very stressful creative industry. Very often, your background determines how you successfully navigate your chosen career path in an industry where attitude largely determines altitude. With the Government’s primary objectives of transformation and bridging the gap between education and employment in mind, the Film Industry Learner Mentorship

SPOTLIGHT | 09

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(F.I.L.M.) programme, a non-profit section 18 (a) PBO and a Seta-accredited, unit-standard aligned, skills development facilitator and training provider, was established almost a decade ago by the leading, long-form film production and servicing companies. As a coordinated, industry platform, F.I.L.M.’s aim is to make transformation a reality - and to help ensure a diverse, representative, globally competitive, local and international film and electronic media industry crew-and-head-of-department resource pool and to aid emerging, independent film-makers, or `filmpreneurs’ as we call them - from disadvantaged communities - to realize their creative ambitions and to go out there and tell South Africa’s stories by making movies. F.I.L.M. has literally provided hundreds of entrants with a vital bridge or window of opportunity into an industry that often appears all but inaccessible. Working in close partnership with leading, long-form production companies, commercials companies, the dti, the MictSeta and top tertiary education institutions, the F.I.L.M. programme places trainees and interns on productions on an in-service training programme - focusing on handson experiential learning under mentorship - on local and international productions or

in production companies. This provides new-comers with a vital breathing space and buffer - optimising their efforts - and gaining that crucial employment or career foothold; essential to move onward-and-upward in the industry. While we are privileged to have many of the top creative industry tertiary education graduates excelling in the industry on the annual F.I.L.M. internship programmes, often people who join the programme with relatively little formal education and training - but with real passion, discipline, focus, commitment, positive attitude and a voracious desire to learn and grow - really excel. F.I.L.M. relies primarily on word-of-mouth when recruiting F.I.L.M. trainees and interns and F.I.L.M. partner companies, on whose productions - and in whose production companies - our trainees and interns engage in mentored training and skills development. On long-form film productions or series, it’s vital that entrants understand the fairly rigid, on-set hierarchies. Basic Set Etiquette is a vital part of the Survivor’s Manual. Then, once you have observed protocols and grasped the rudimentary or complex requirements of your chosen occupational skill set and designated department, then going forward, as we endlessly repeat, is all about how you

apply yourself by constantly adding value; your attitude and actions ultimately determine your industry altitude. From there on, your future is entirely in your own hands. F.I.L.M. also actively promotes entrepreneurial and enterprise development, via its own dedicated online content generation platform, Kwaai City, where trainees and interns have the opportunity to engage in turnkey production from conception to creation to distribution, producing and airing content on the World Wide Web as well as for corporate clients, including pharmaceutical companies such as PharmaDynamics, broadcasters such as M-Net and dynamic, community events like the Cape Town Carnival. We are privileged to be able to provide a vital window of opportunity – and a bridge - across the yawning chasm between education and employment looming large in many peoples’ lives, particularly those from disadvantaged communities. Internships for 2015 have just been launched, affording 24 newcomers from disadvantaged communities the opportunity to carve out their careers. To apply for the 2015 MictSeta Internship, send your CV and certified copy of your ID to edmunica@filmsa.co.za. For more information call F.I.L.M. on 021 461 7950 or visit www.filmsa.co.za.

10 | MOVERS AND SHAKERS

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MOVERS AND SHAKERS B

Director Dule Anicic joins Bomb Commercials.

zi Kumalo Joins bouffant

bouﬀant is pleased to announce the signing of 2015 SAMA-nominated director, Mzi Kumalo. Mzi joins the company with his producer Leanne Kumalo, bringing with him a broad body of work. Executive Producer Peter Carr says, “We are excited to welcome Mzi to the team; his creative input and familiarity with working amongst top end agencies contributes towards the dynamism he now brings to the bouﬀant brand.” With a passion for storytelling, Mzi has spent the last few years working extensively throughout Africa with brands such as DSTV, Samsung, Eskom and Bayport. His music video for Mi Casa’s ‘Turn You On’ has been nominated for the 2015 SAMA Music Video of the Year; the award winners will be revealed on 19 April.

omb Commercials Signs New Director

Bomb Commercial s is known for its creative and contemporary take on stories that are uniquely and authentically South African. It is with great excitement that Bomb Commercials announces the signing of established director Dule Anicic. Dule joins the highly rated directorial team of Teboho Mahlatsi and Tebogo Malope with Gavin Joubert and Marc Harrison at the helm. Gavin Joubert, Executive Producer of Bomb Commercials shares some insight into the signing “We have been looking for a person that fits in with our close knit Bomb family for quite some time now and we felt that we needed a director whose talent brought a diverse approach to what we already have. Gavin goes on to say “Dule brings a dynamic style that is a result of his unique take on humour and visual performances that often offer a sexy twist. We are so happy to welcome Dule to our small and personal team. “ Dule’s sequence of commercial credits include campaigns for Volkswagen, Nike, Nedbank, Barclay’s as well as Nando’s, KFC and Sprite. Before Dule directed his first commercial in 2001, he studied and learnt every aspect of filmmaking whilst working as a sound designer, editor and DOP. He then continued to hone his craft as a film director. Dule is recognised for his collaborative working relationship with advertising agency creatives, his thorough understanding and handling of his clients’ needs and his ability to tell a complete, visually interesting and compelling story all in 30 seconds. Dule relocated to Europe some four years ago due to his client base rapidly growing in those markets and has successfully completed campaigns for Carlsberg, T-mobile, Pepsi-Lay’s, Raiffeisen Bank to name the few but is very happy to be back on South African soil, which he considers home. According to Dule, “Bomb Commercials are focused on making quality, conceptual and creative work with an accent on uncompromising delivery, and I am excited to be a part of that.”

Debby Brady

iscovery Networks Appoints Commercial Director For Africa

Discovery Networks Central & Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEEMEA), a division of Discovery Communications, the world’s number one Pay-TV programmer, announced the appointment of Debbie Brady as Commercial Director for Africa, based in Johannesburg. The appointment follows a period of sustained growth for Discovery’s business in the region and marks its continued expansion into South Africa and beyond. Reporting into James Gibbons, SVP & Country Manager, Emerging Business, Discovery Networks CEEMEA, Brady will be responsible for the coordination of Discovery’s operations in Africa, acting as the primary point of contact for day to day operations and business development for the

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FVF Appoints New Executive Management

In its mission of ensuring the growth and promotion of the local film industry the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Arts and Culture is proud to announce the appointment of new executive management. The NFVF welcomes Mr. Peter Kwele who has been entrusted with the responsibility of heading the Marketing and Communication Department of the Foundation, as well as Ms. Vuyo Sokupa who will be heading the Production and Development department. Both individuals bring a wealth of knowledge and experience within the industry. Mr. Kwele brings with him experience from both the broadcast and retail sectors. Welcoming him the NFVF CEO Ms Zama Mkosi was elated, “We are confident that

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market, as well as strengthening relationships with existing partners including DStv. “South Africa in particular and Sub Saharan Africa in general are key growth markets for Discovery and we are very excited to have an expert on the ground” said Gibbons. “We believe that making the most of opportunities in Africa requires local expertise and a tailored approach. With Debbie on board as our newly appointed Commercial Director, with her wealth of experience and knowledge of the market, we will be best placed to take our African business to the next level. Brady will be partnering with the functional heads in Discovery’s offices in London and Warsaw, facilitating growth in the South African market and overseeing the smooth operations of Discovery’s business in the wider region. Brady joins Discovery with over 22 years’ experience in TV advertising sales, most recently holding the post of Commercial Director at Rapid Blue. Having held a variety of leadership roles for public, free-to-air, as well as Pay-TV broadcasters, Brady is perfectly positioned to enable Discovery’s further expansion in the market.

We are confident that Mr. Kwele will champion our cause and help fulfil our mandate of growing the industry.

Mr. Kwele will champion our cause and help fulfil our mandate of growing the industry. The industry is already experiencing growth and we believe his marketing and communications experience and expertise will help accelerate growth and reach out to the masses.” Armed with B.A. Honors Degree from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA Mr. Kwele’s experience has made him an expert in broadcasting and production management of large scale sporting events, with a diverse background in finance and social development. Mr. Kwele is not new to the content industries, he has served as the General Manager: 2010 Project at the South African Broadcast Corporation (SABC) and therefore his experience will be valuable for both the NFVF and the industry at large. During his stay at the SABC he was responsible for developing and facilitating the implementation of 2010 Project Office strategies, with regards to the following Project Areas; Technical and Technological, Sports, Marketing and Communications and Stakeholder Management amongst others.

Ms. Vuyo Sokupa previously held the position of Head of Programming at Mzansi Magic channels for M-Net. She obtained her BA Journalism degree and a Post-graduate Diploma in International Studies and African Diplomacy from Rhodes University. Her career began at Mail & Guardian where she worked as a trainee journalist. She then moved to African Leadership Academy and Red Pepper Pictures before joining M-Net in 2012. She manages the creative commissioning output for the Mzansi Magic channels; providing strategic insight and encouraging increased market share for the company’s channels. She has managed a team of Commissioning Editors that co-create television shows that have high resonance with audiences. Ms. Zama Mkosi said that “Ms. Sokupa is extremely passion about developing the South African film and television landscape. She has a post graduate diploma in international relations and African studies, which we will definitely utilise in assisting the NFVF expand further into Africa to ensure that the partnerships we continue to form with African counterparts bear fruits. Both Peter and Vuyo will play instrumental roles as the NFVF continues to aid in the growth of the film industry which is currently doing very well locally and internationally.

12 | FEATURE

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Filming taking place for the Smithsonian Channel.

BROADCASTING IN SOUTH AFRICA: Straddled between Digital and Analogue

hen it comes to the nitty gritty of how a broadcast system works, most people would probably shrug their shoulders and say, “Ah, technology.” In actual fact, it covers a wide spectrum of technologies, from telecommunication infrastructure and chargecoupled devices within a camera, to video and audio signal, encoding and transmitting, and finally to television signal through specific frequencies of electromagnetic waves – better known as TV channels. Satellite broadcast works in a similar way to antenna signal, while fibre-optic cables offer alternative terrestrial broadcast, especially for online streaming. This year, the entire continent has been lending its ear

to news on the imminent switchover from analogue television signal to digital terrestrial television (DTT), and in South Africa, the debate on various aspects of DTT and how it could affect the broadcasting environment continues with fervour. One of the main issues that viewers will face if the country does not make the switchover before the International Telecommunications Union deadline in June is signal interference such as ghosting and snow, depending on the distance and geographical location of the TV receiving the signal. Digital TV on the other hand, which is transmitted as data similar to the way in which computer data is written, ensures that there is greater integrity and flexibility of signal content, as well as higher quality

images. And because digital TV takes up the same bandwidth size that current analogue signal uses, the extra space in transmission can be sued for additional video, audio and text signals – essentially supplying viewers with features like surround sound, multiple-language audio and of course, High Definition TV. Sasani Studios is a television broadcast facilities company whose experience in local broadcasting goes as far back as the 80’s. They filmed South Africa’s longest-running soap opera Egoli for over 14 years and are currently technical partners to Scandal, Rhythm City and 7de Laan. According to Baxter De Jager, Sasani’s Managing Director, although the South African Broadcasting

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Corporation (SABC) has been facing some challenges under the current economic climate, the demand for content is growing steadily. “We are confident that our industry will continue to expand over the next decade to become a strong international competitor,” Baxter says. “South Africa has started in a major shift towards content creation and delivery. Not just DTT, but mobile and online delivery of content – when and where people want to consume it. This, in turn, drives the need for home-grown formats like reality shows, game shows, etc.; good local stories and general entertainment.”

He says that because of the digital switchover, there’s been a distinct increase in demand for studio space. “Our primary focus is the construction of new high-end studio facilities, as there is an increasing demand for studio space throughout South Africa, but in particular in Gauteng. With DTT, we expect more channels being made available. Locally generated channels will need more local content and that is where we come in with our existing facilities and new studios under construction.” Peter Jaquire is Marketing Manager for the Radio Broadcast Facilities, a division of SABC Technology.

RBF provides and maintain all the studios at the 19 SABC radio stations that are on air twenty-four seven, including live-on-air studios and those used for news and current affairs, drama and music. The organisation also deals with outside broadcasts by providing vehicles and broadcast equipment at external venues. Although radio frequencies will not be affected by digital signal, the switchover, Jaquire says, will still impact the sector. “The benefit for all 19 radio stations of the SABC is that they will now be available as part of the DTT Audio Bouquet. This means that anyone with a set-top box will be able to listen to any

Courtesy of Refinery © Smithsonian Channel, Terra Mater Factual Studios & Discovery Channel (Animal Planet)

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Radio Broadcast Facilities (RBF)

of the 19 radio stations wherever they are.” Jaquire goes on to explain that the SABC’s audio broadcasting is doing very well, with most studios already digitised, ensuring that they have the infrastructure in place for when digital radio becomes a reality. “I personally think that because the DTT switchover has taken place in most African countries, the emphasis will be on growing those markets,” Jaquire says. “For radio, the vision is to introduce digital radio. South Africa is already doing digital radio test broadcasts in conjunction with the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and we might be able to see digital radio implemented in Africa in the next five to 10 years.” All those with set-top boxes will be able to tune into digital television and radio, but whether these set-top boxes will be ready in time for the switchover, and how they will be distributed is an issue the government has been grappling with for years. Minister of Communications, Faith Muthambi, recently announced that the Cabinet had decided to include a control system as an “integral feature of the boxes”, according to BD Live. Shaun Hendricks, Managing Executive of electronics manufacturer Tellumat, criticised

this decision in an article on Independent Online. “This is the third iteration that has been put on the table and all that investment gets scrapped every time the goalposts get moved,” Hendricks said of the government’s digital migration policy, which has been through three changes already in the specifications for the design of the boxes. Experts say that these changes have “drastically weakened the security features of the set-top boxes”. Having said that, it is a relief that the government will be buying roughly five million boxes for qualifying poor households. Unfortunately, this still leaves about four million poor households who will have to get their own set-top boxes. Despite these issues, however, the industry continues to take steps forward, slowly but surely. The rise in television shows shot or produced in South Africa has grown immensely in recent years. Refinery, a comprehensive post-production facility in Joburg, has been involved with a number of these shows, from dailies management, editorial, on-line grading and design to VFX, motion graphics, colour grading, sound post-production and deliveries. The company worked on US TV series SAF3, which

was delivered to 23 countries worldwide, MasterChef and Celebrity MasterChef promos which went on to win a Promax Award, and many other post projects. Tracey Williams, Refinery’s Managing Director, says that although there is growth, budgets have shrunk for broadcasting and sound quality is still a problem. “Some attention needs to be paid to sound postproduction. More time and correct track-lay disciplines are required in sound.” She goes on to say that there are still many other opportunities in the country. “Most foreign shows mainly have dailies management processes happening in SA. More and more are having editorial based here as well. We now need to secure more on-line post,” she says. “There is considerable interest in foreign high-end TV series coming to SA. We will need to set up facilities where it’s convenient to the production to ensure more post happens in SA. For SAF3 we set-up a satellite facility at the Cotton Mill [Cape Town] which employed 14 people from dailies, editorial, VFX, on-line and sound track-lay. There are opportunities in VFX, with a number of facilities finishing shots for shows.” When it comes to innovations and finding

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Courtesy of Refinery © Smithsonian Channel, Terra Mater Factual Studios & Discovery Channel (Animal Planet) © Refinery © Sasani Studios © Refinery

creative solutions, South Africa is known for its ingenuity. At the forefront of this is Workonline Communications, a pan-African service provider of fibre-based connectivity services. The company introduced the Africa Media Exchange (AMX) on 17 March – the continent’s first media exchange platform, which is set to “revolutionise” the African media industry. AMX allows broadcasters, content distribution networks (CDNs), and content producers to plug in and exchange information and content, as well as transforming content into the format of their choice in the process. The exchange was launched from within Teraco Data Environment’s neutral colocation data centre, where AMX will be housed, with Workonline providing the necessary network technology innovation, expertise and, of course, connectivity between content providers and distributors. Edward Lawrence, Workonline Communications Business Development Director, explains why it will change the industry: “There are a lot of applications. The first, and most important point, is that it allows media companies, either contributor or distributors, to be able to exchange information with one another in a central location. The world’s biggest CDNs, the biggest content distribution networks in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific, will connect and what that allows for is local companies distributing their content over this platform to all the CDNs and vice versa. The exchange can decode, encode, transcode, changing the formats of contents as it goes through it,” he says. Users can book format changes with Workonline, who send a native stream into the exchange that transcodes to various formats, which is then sent to a number of distributors in their desired format in real time. “So one feed of content, one stream, distributed to many locations, in many different formats for that specific use,” he sums up. When it comes to reaching the world – and having it at our fingertips, for that matter – AMX seems to have part of the solution. But South African broadcasting still has some difficult issues to iron out in order to truly create a thriving industry. As Tracey Williams says, “We are at a bit of a crossroads. There are some good stories happening, the question of how we broaden their appeal to a more global audience and quality has to be our next step.”

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Gulabi Gang, one of the films screened by STEPS.

Wanlov of Ghana’s FOKN Bois duo. © StocktownFilms / Courtesy of STEPS

THE RISE OF THE AFRICAN DOCUMENTARY \

by Kim Muller

“P

owerful visuals evoke emotions, driving a deeper engagement and more profound change in behaviour,” Sarah Lawrence wrote recently in a piece entitled The Power of Visual Storytelling. For documentary makers, there is nothing more real, more visceral, and more spellbinding than telling a true story – one that lives and breathes before the camera rolls and,

sometimes, continues to do so afterwards. The African continent has a wealth of storytelling potential. It is steeped in sociopolitical history, immense economic growth and an undying hope for a better future. But this is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg, and as Encounters’ 2015 Festival Programmer Jenna Bass says so eloquently, “filmmaking is bound to the environment in which it is created.”

Funding, Funding, Funding! Documentaries coming from Africa in the last few years have vastly improved in quality and in content and are now beginning to make an impact at film festivals across the world. Some of these include the Tri-Continental Film Festival, Sundance, Berlinale, Rotterdam, IDFA, Sheffield Documentary Festival and initiatives like

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the South Africa at 20: The Freedom Tour, which has, since October 2014, held around 150 screenings across the UK. Having said that, doccie makers still face huge funding issues, a problem most filmmakers on the continent have cited. Rehad Desai, Director of the award-winning Miners Shot Down,

“

For documentary makers, there is nothing more real, more visceral, and more spellbinding than telling a true story – one that lives and breathes before the camera rolls and, sometimes, continues to do so afterwards.

says that bringing real-life stories to the big screen and international audiences is a “massive challenge”. “99% of the time, your revenue streams are primarily up front, before the film is finished, so getting private investment is near on impossible,” he explains. “Our belief is that such stories can take many months and sometimes years to develop. You have to have a very strong nose for a story, in particular dramatic potential, determination and the willingness to invest your own money and resources. Equally, you need to know when to give up, unless you are the recipient of a trust fund.” After speaking to film festival organisers, curators, filmmakers themselves and even governmental organisations, it’s clear that finance is the biggest thing hampering the continent’s documentary industry. Lizelle Bisschoff, Founder and Curator at Africa in Motion Film Festival in Edinburgh, initially started AiM in 2006 when she realised how difficult it was to access African cinema in the UK. Ten years later, things have changed drastically, with five African film festivals taking place in Britain, most of which have

strong documentary selections. “When a filmmaker believes in a story and wants to bring it to screen, it could often involved a very long and challenging process of raising funding from private and public resources,” she says. “Many African countries do not have sufficient government support, film regulations and dedicated film funding to support documentary and fiction filmmakers.” Jenna Bass agrees with her, saying that resources are the obvious thing to point at. “I would imagine this particularly applies in the stage of post-production and delivery, which is often a huge, non-negotiable, resource-heavy expense,” she says, “Of course, getting films to the screen is a major problem in narrative and documentary filmmaking – the cost of marketing, festival submissions, screening copies,etc., is difficult to come by when all your resources are poured into production. Then there’s the distribution channels themselves, which are sorely lacking. It’s essential that African documentaries can be viewed in Africa, and this is frequently challenging.”

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Filming documentaries in the Namib Desert.

But Who Will Watch My Film? Although funding is a major problem for filmmakers trying to get their work to the public, another issue is the lack of support from broadcasts, according to Joy Sapieka and Kevin Kriedemann, publicists working in the local and international film industry. “At this stage, it’s only really AfriDocs on DStv, and they have a small audience,” Kriedemann explains. “We’d love to see SABC and eTV in particular supporting documentaries more meaningfully than they have so far. That said, this has been a great opportunity for Al Jazeera, who have been screening some incredible South African documentaries like Miners Shot Down and Ndiyindoda.” Denis Lillie, CEO of the Cape Film Commission, believes that distribution is another challenge the industry faces, something it helps doccie makers with. “We have assisted in these areas by introducing distributors, buyers and investors to filmmakers,” Lillie says, “Most recently we have secured acquisition opportunities for some of our local doccie producers. In 2012 and 2015 we have engaged with documentary film producers to be semi-final judges for the International Emmys. This has led to them joining us at the International Emmys and World TV Festival in New York, where they networked with some of the world’s largest TV content buyers.” Al Jazeera has also been helping in their own way by setting up pitching sessions at Encounters for the last three years, where commissioning editors have visited to scout and give local filmmakers feedback. Another film festival that’s made a conscious effort to include more African documentaries in its programme is the Zanzibar International Film Festival. Dr Martin Mhando, ZIFF Festival Director, says that selections are based on creativity first, then content, followed by international

Monkeying around with filming equipment.

audience potential. “We give preference to documentaries with African subjects as well as those by filmmakers from Africa and from Dhow countries,” he says, “We believe in the creative and innovative strength of documentaries and eschew stereotypical documentaries.” Creating what Dr Mhando calls “stereotypical documentaries” is not difficult for African filmmakers at the moment, especially since funding usually comes in these types of packages. “I think the documentary film industry in Africa is still weak,” he goes on to say. “It begins from the distribution side where there is not much space on television for documentaries beyond the newsy stories and government or NGO stories. NGOs have been a useful tool to filmmakers as they gave the filmmakers opportunities to be paid, but they also held them back…TV stations have to also play a greater role in creating platforms and funding for documentary production and screening,” he concludes. Bisschoff agrees, saying that documentary filmmakers are hampered by a ‘development agenda’. “Many NGOs, charities and international donors fund the production of documentaries, but these films have to carry specific awareness-raising messages, such as information about HIV/AIDS, malaria, female genital mutilation, etc. It means that if local filmmakers are involved in these projects, they do not have a lot of creative freedom as they have to adhere to the brief and demands of the funder,” she says.

Doccie Trends Making Waves There are certain regions whose documentary industry thrives on the ‘regular’ styles Bisschoff speaks of. Magic Touch Films, a Namibianbased business, has been developed as the country’s first production company that specialises in the service facilitation of documentaries and reality television

programmes only. Elnette Pearson, Chief Operating Officer at Magic Touch Films, says that “because of Namibia’s rich history, culture and abundant wildlife, as well as exemplary wildlife conservation efforts, it presents itself as an ideal location for a large variety of documentary topics.” Pearson goes on to say that although international doccies and reality formats make up the most of their film industry, the company has begun producing their own documentaries rather than simply facilitating others. In Namibia, as with many other Sub-Saharan countries, topics and trends in doccies tend to be mainly political, historical and wildlife or human-wildlife conflict behaviour and resolution. “These types of documentaries have become a staple of the industry, as humans love telling stories and listening to good stories,” Pearson reasons. The Namibian Film Commission currently supports local doccie makers and sponsors an average of two documentaries per year to be produced by Namibian authors. Another interesting trend in Southern Africa is the rise of the brand communication documentary. “One Rand Man was a landmark last year,” says Joy Sapieka, “short documentaries for Sanlam about a guy who gets his salary paid out in R1 coins. It’s won numerous advertising awards already and is the best example of the way brand films are starting to really take off in South Africa. Because of the budgets available, most of these brand films have been documentaries so far, so I think this is an interesing new trend in the genre.” Both Sapieka and Kriedemann agree that South Africa generally tends to do much better with doccies than with fictional productions. “Partly this is because of the historical context, where we have a strong journalism tradition that feeds naturally into documentaries,” Kriedemann explains, “Partly this is financial – the gap between the budget on a South African documentary compared to an international documentary is

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All images © Magic Touch Films

Namibia oﬀers a wealth of subject matter for documentaries.

probably less than compared to the average South African film to the average Marvel blockbuster. And partly, this is because we have a handful of truly exceptional documentary directors and producers.” STEPS, a non-profit organisation that’s helping to move the local documentary industry forward, has a number of projects that deal with pertinent issues and create dialogue around societal problems. “STEPS came about as a response to a need for films about HIV and AIDS that reflected people’s stories rather than the doom and gloom films that were available

The People of the South crew on set in Namibia.

in the late 90s,” says Theresa Hill. Projects like the Why Poverty series has had unprecedented global reach, having been broadcast by over 70 organisations in 2012. They currently run the AfriDocs initiative and are embarking on new productions. “We’ve screened over 100 documentaries, covering a range of topics,” Hill says of AfriDocs.

Digital Technology as a Disseminator Digital broadcasting dominated the conversation at the i-Represent International

Documentary Festival which took place in Lagos recently. The festival’s Executive Director told The Guardian Nigeria that “there is a need to reinvent the art of documentary filmmaking within the space of the new elements that are dictating the trend of media consumption and experience globally.” It is true that digital photograhy and a dip in tech prices have helped filmmakers create works of art with minimal equipment, but the trend and the wider subject around it – online distribution, to be exact – will no doubt continue to change the industry in coming years.

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• • • •

• Africa in Motion Film Festival

Dean Leslie, Founder of The African Attachment, has built his business around technology advances, allowing him to produce branded doccies for clients with extreme sport themes and compact, two-man production teams. “We’ve kind of fallen into adventure documentary where it’s a good niche, and has kind of a different funding model to it,” he says, “Most of our content is following mountain running, so it’s expedition-based. We did a shoot with Redbull Media last year where we were in the Drakensberg and we tracked an attempt of the Drakensberg Grand Traverse, which is a crossing from North to South of the escarpment and the range, which is about 220km.” He goes on to say that most of their work is launched online. “It’s quite an exciting time to be a young filmmaker, or just a filmmaker, because you have a lot more ownership of your work. If you can get the business end sorted in terms of approaching it like a commercial commodity, which is essentially what a film is and is how you get them made, it allows a lot more freedom with the creative.” Denis Lillie says that the online content market is fast-becoming an accepted place to release new works. “The demand for content is about to increase with Netflix and their digital launch in SA,” he says, “It is interesting that Apple have joined forces with HBO outside of a terrestrial or cable broadcaster. This means that the platforms are changing, as are the routes for broadcast.” “The continued improvements in technology will keep lowering the barriers to entry and shrinking the budget gap between African and international projects,” Kevin Kriedemann says, “This should be Africa’s decade economically, so the increased focus on Africa should translate into an increased demand for its stories.” Dr Mhando of ZIFF believes that the growth of digital television this year holds some anticipated prospects for filmmakers. “We should see more and more documentary distribution points, thus inviting more and more

• documentary productions,” he says tentatively, mentioning that the growing demand for Nollywood films may force doccies to take a backseat. “We’ve definitely seen a lot of interest in African stories, rather than South African stories,” Sapieka says of the industry, “There’s a perception that South Africa has been overtraded and the rest of Africa has been undertraded. South African filmmakers are perfectly positioned to exploit these stories – Cliff Bestall’s Lifeline series on Al Jazeera is a great example.” Bisschoff, however, sums up the future of African doccies perfectly: “In any case, African filmmakers will continue telling their stories and will continue to overcome the immense barriers they face to do this. With cheaper and more accessible digital technology, it becomes easier for filmmakers to tell their stories, and the digital revolution will certainly continue to benefit the African documentary industries in the future.”

Recommended by the Experts Africa’s doccie industry has, in recent years, produced some fantastic work – both from African documentary makers and internationals turning their eye to the continent. Here’s a roundup of some of the most recommended watches. • 100 Years of Etosha (Namibia, Tim Huebschle) • Amandla!: A Revolution in Four Part Harmony (South Africa, USA, Lee Hirsch) • Awaiting for Men (Senegal, Lena Ndiaye) • Behind the Rainbow (South Africa, Jihan El-Tahri) • Between Joyce and Remembrance (South Africa, Mark J. Kaplan) • Beyond the Pains (Cameroon, Osvalde Lewat-Hallade) • Call Me Kuchu (Malika Zouhali-Worrall, Katherine Fairfax Wright) • Dreams of Scheherazade (South Africa, Francois Verster)

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

En Attendant les Hommes (Senegal, Katy Léna N’Diaye) Femmes aux Yeux Ouverts (Togo, AnneLaure Folly) Flight to Heaven (Namibia, Virginia Witts) Fokofpolisiekar: Forgive Them, They Know Not What They Do (South Africa, Bryan Little) From Namibia with Love (Namibia, Laura Meriläinen-Amaumo) Future Sounds of Mzansi (South Africa, Spoek Mathambo & Lebogang Rasethaba) Ikhaya. Malawi. (South Africa, Omelga Mthiyane) Iron Ladies of Liberia (Daniel Junge) Mama Africa (South Africa, Don Edkins, STEPS) Mama Goema (South Africa, Calum MacNaughton) Mandela: The Myth and Me (South Africa, Khalo Matabane) Mbwa Mwitu (Tanzania, Kajala Masanja) Miners Shot Down (South Africa, Rehad Desai) Mkwawa (Tanzania, Seko Tingitana) Nda Mona (Namibia, Richard Padkleppa) One Day After Peace (Erez Laufer) Our Forbidden Places (Morocco, Leïla Kilani) Path to Freedom (Namibia, Richard Pakleppa) Reconciliation – Mandela’s Miracle (South Africa) Sacred Places (Cameroon, Jean-Marie Téno) Sea Point Days (South Africa, Francois Verster) Searching for Sugarman (South Africa, Malik Bendjelloul) Sénégalaises et Islam (Senegal, Angèle Diabang) Sidadi Part 1 & 2 (Namibia, Alexander Honsich) Skymasters (Namibia, Hidipo Nangolo) Something Necessary (Kenya, Judy Kibinge) The African Cypher (South Africa, Bryan Little) The Price of Aid (Egypt, Jihan El-Tahri) The Square (Egypt, Jehane Noujaim) The Sunny Side of Sex (Sunny Bergman) The Swenkas (South Africa, Jeppe Ronde) Under African Skies (Joe Berlinger) Virunga (Orlando von Einsiedel) Waterberg to Waterberg (Namibia, Andrew Botelle) Weisse Geister (Namibia, Martin Bear) What Democracy and Why Poverty series (South Africa, STEPS, Don Edkins)

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FOLIO TRANSLATION CONSULTANTS CC | 21

FOLIO: 27 YEARS of Professional, Punctilious Translations

ne of South Africa’s oldest, most versatile and professional language service providers, Folio has – since its inception in 1988 – grown its business to an astounding level. The company, founded by Philip Zietsman, now translates 54 African languages, 32 European languages and 23 Asian languages. Although their strong suit is translation – from medical and legal documents to advertising copy – this is one of many product offerings. Folio’s voiceover department offers a comprehensive service to clients who need voice-over artists for promotional or educational material. They do voice supervision, to ensure words are pronounced properly in adverts, for instance, and script translations and supervision on set to ensure authenticity in actors’ speech. They also offer interpreting and transcription services for conferences and events. Folio has hundreds of freelance translators and interpreters on their books from across the world, says Zietsman, the Folio Group’s Managing Director. “I realised that Africa was a huge untapped commercial market where manufacturers could sell their products in large emerging economies like Mozambique, Tanzania or the DRC, but not necessarily in English,” he says of Folio’s expansion into Africa over the last decade. “People have this misconception that everyone in the world speaks English.

Even when they do, like in South Africa, it’s been proven over and over that a Zulu or an Angolan, for instance, would prefer to buy products in Zulu or Portuguese. The emotional element as far as languages are concerned is not to be underestimated.” In 1999, Folio Online was founded to work exclusively with foreign clients and included in their portfolio are the three largest technology companies in the world. “We work with Microsoft, Garmin, YouTube, Google, and other major companies in African languages,” Zietsman explains. Johan Botha, Director of International Clients at Folio Online, says that they have worked on a number of IT and telecom translations for multi-national corporations. “We do a lot of medical translations, chemical trials from all over the world and medical devices,” he adds, “For example, if you have diabetes, you might get an injection pen. Some of these injection pens now come with a little computer screen on the pen, and we translate the UI – the user interface – on that pen into Swahili, Lingala, or any other required language.” Folio only hires interpreters and translators who are mother-tongue speakers of the desired language, while tertiary qualifications in the target languages are expected. “We are professionally trained, just like a doctor is professionally trained, to be a translator,” says Botha. “People study for years to become a translator.

When someone comes into your office and says ‘I speak ten languages fluently,’ you run away because you know that person is not a translator.” Zietsman agrees, saying, “We will not use that person – maybe as a voice, but certainly not as a translator. The moment the skill is scattered over so many languages, it gets diminished. It impresses people to say I speak ten languages. It doesn’t impress us.” For translations, Folio often uses Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) tools, which is where a human translator is assisted by a computer program that memorises translated sentences and words so that the translator can use it as a reference when similar words or sentences come along. An impressive bit of technology used in some South African hospitals is Folio InterTel, a telephonic interpretation service that can be used in a medical emergency to interpret a doctor’s words to the patient in his/her mother-tongue. With this level of innovation, it’s not hard to see Folio forging ahead into the future with ease.

Did You Know? Folio supervises radio and TV scripts for various institutions and brands such as the Western Cape Government, Santam, Old Mutual and Engen. Frequently requested languages for voice-overs and supervision are Afrikaans, French, Portuguese, Xhosa and Zulu.

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The Winners of the

2015 SAFTAS ARE … © Refinery

Best Achievement in Cinematography - TV Comedy: Lastborn Does The Loeries, Moabi Maseko Best Achievement in Scriptwriting -TV Comedy: Check Coast, Meren Reddy, Rethabile Ramaphakela, Katleho Ramaphakela, Salah Sabiti, Tumi Osei-Tutu, Mpho Osei- Tutu Best Children programme: Challenge SOS, 2 Blonds And A Redhead Filming Best Youth programme: Ispani, Blue Wizard Productions

Die Windpomp

Best Supporting Actor - Feature Film: Brendon Daniels as “Farakhan” in Four Corners Best Supporting Actress - Feature Film: Marga Van Rooy as ”Tannie Marietjie” in Die Windpomp Best Actress in a Lead Role - Feature Film: Thishiwe Ziqubu as “Skiets” in Hard to Get Best Actor in a Lead Role – Feature Film: Jezriel Skei as “Ricardo” in Four Corners Best Achievement in Directing - Feature Film: iNumber Number, Donovan Marsh Best Feature Film: Four Corners, Giant Films & Moonlighting Films Best Student Film: Ana, Patrick & Nicholas, AFDA Best Supporting Actor - TV drama: Fezile Mpela as “Zwide” in Donkerland

Best Actress in a Lead Role -TV drama: Nthati Moshesh as “Dibuseng Makwarela” in Thola Best Achievement in Directing - TV drama: Swartwater, John Trengove, Jozua Malherbe, Denny Miller Best TV Drama: Swartwater, Quizzical Pictures Best Achievement in Make-Up and Hair Styling - TV Comedy: ZANews: Puppet Nation, Franci Van Den Heever Best Achievement in Art/Design - TV Comedy: ZANews: Puppet Nation, Franci Van Den Heever, Matthew Sanna Best Achievement in Costume Design - TV Comedy: ZANews: Puppet Nation, San-Mari Calaca Best Achievement in Sound - TV Comedy: ZANews: Puppet Nation, Lyle Bennett

Best Achievement in Make-Up and Hairstyling - TV Drama: Donkerland, Nicola Roodt Best Achievement in Costume Design - TV Drama: Donkerland, Sune Jansen Best Achievement in Art / Design Production - TV Drama: Swartwater, Marna Heunis Best Achievement in Sound - TV Drama: 90 Plein Street, Guy Steer Best Achievement in Original Score - TV Drama: 90 Plein Street, Jorge Arrigone Best Achievement in Editing - TV Drama: End Game, Nicola Comminos, Jeremy Briers, Jack Esterhuizen, Karien Goosen, Gugulethu Sibandze Best Achievement in Cinematography - TV Drama: Soul City, Tom Marais Best Achievement in Scriptwriting -TV Drama: Geraamtes In Die Kas, Joshua Rous, Luke Rous, Sandra Vaughn, Corine Du Toit

Best Supporting Actress - TV drama: Brenda Ngxoli as “Gladys” in Rockville

Best Achievement in Original Score -TV Comedy: ZANews: Puppet Nation, Lyle Bennett

Best Reality show: Ultimate Braai Master: The Roads Less Travelled, Cooked in Africa Films

Best Actor in a Lead Role -TV drama: Louw Venter as “Francois Le Roux” in Swartwater

Best Achievement in Editing – TV Comedy: Lastborn Does The Loeries, Kholofelo Malatshi

Best Magazine Programme: Mooiloop! Blue Marble Entertainment

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Best International Format Show: Clash of the Choirs SA, Endemol South Africa Best Achievement in Make-Up and Hair Styling - TV Soap: Binnelanders, Elzette Van der Schyff

Best Achievement in Cinematography – Wildlife: Hippo vs Croc, Boris Von Schoenebeck, Grant Brokensha, Barry Skinstad, James Boon, Dale Hencock Best Achievement in Directing – Wildlife: Mystery of the Arctic Cairn, Kyle O Donoghue

Best Achievement in Costume Design - TV Soap: Isibaya, Rochelle Selling

Best Wildlife: Hippo vs Croc, Earth Touch

Best Achievement in Art / Design Production - TV Soap: Isibaya, Dylan Lloyd

Best Short Film: Picture Perfect Heist, Benchfilms

Best Achievement in Sound - TV Soap: 7de Laan, Neil Rattray

Best Achievement in Sound - Documentary Short: Orbis, Guy Steer

Best Achievement in Original Score - TV Soap: 7de Laan, Jason Cochrane, Louis Van Rensburg

Best Achievement in Editing - Documentary Short: Port Nolloth: Between a Rock and a Hard Place, Anna Telford

Best Achievement in Editing - TV Soap: Isibaya, Sibongeleni Mabuyakhulu, Jeremy Briers

Best Achievement in Cinematography – Documentary Short: Orbis, Felix Seuffert

Best Achievement in Cinematography - TV Soap: Isibaya, Zeno Petersen

Best Achievement in Directing Documentary Short: Port Nolloth: Between a Rock and a Hard Place, Felix Seuffert

Best Achievement in Sound - Documentary Feature: Miners Shot Down, Vaughan Phillips, Mark Phillips Best Achievement in Editing - Documentary Feature: The Vula Connection, Annamarie James Best Achievement in Cinematography Documentary Feature: The Vula Connection, Peter Rudden Best Achievement in Directing Documentary Feature: I, Afrikaner, Annalet Steenkamp Best Documentary Feature: Miners Shot Down, Uhuru Productions Best Supporting Actor - TV Comedy: Warren Masemola as “Thokozani” in Ses’Top la II Best Supporting Actress- TV Comedy: Brenda Ngxoli as “Pinky” in Ses’Top la II Best Actor in a Lead Role - TV Comedy: Thomas Gumede as “Zanele” in Single Guys

Best Documentary Short: Port Nolloth: Between a Rock and a Hard Place, Butterfly Films

Best Actress in a Lead Role -TV Comedy: Mary Mhlongo as “MaKhambule” in Skwizas

Best Factual/Educational Programme: Think Big, The Bomb Shelter

Best Achievement in Make-up and Hairstyling - Feature Film: Faan se Trein, Theola Booyens

Best Achievement in Directing - TV Comedy: ZANews: Puppet Nation, Thierry Cassuto, Alex Fynn

Best Current Affairs / Actuality Programme: Safe Haven, Combined Artists

Best Achievement in Costume Design – Feature Film: Winnie Mandela, Pierre Vienings

Best TV Comedy: ZA News: Puppet Nation, Both Worlds

Best Variety Show: Charly’s Cake Angels, Cooked In Africa Films

Best Achievement in Art/Production Design – Feature Film: Faan se Trein, Waldemar Coetsee

Best Supporting Actor - TV Soap: Justin Strydom as “AK” in Isidingo

Best Achievement in Scriptwriting - TV Soap: Isibaya, Catherine Stewart, Libby Dougherty, Craig Higginson, Jacob Ntshangase, Gillian Breslin, Desiree Maarkgraaff

Best Talk Show: I am Woman - Leap of Faith, Plexus Films Best Game Show: Clover Little Big Cook Off, Quizzical Pictures Best Achievement in Sound – Wildlife: Hippo vs Croc, Dave Birch

Best Achievement in Sound - Feature Film: Four Corners, Barry Donnelly Best Achievement in Original Score - Feature Film: Four Corners, Markus Wormstorm Best Achievement in Scriptwriting - Feature Film: iNumber Number, Donovan Marsh

Best Achievement in Original Score – Wildlife: Hippo vs Croc, Dave Birch, Nux Schwartz

Best Achievement in Editing - Feature Film: iNumber Number, Donovan Marsh

Best Achievement in Editing – Wildlife: Hippo vs Croc, Ruaan Botha

Best Achievement in Cinematography Feature Film: Four Corners, Vicci Turpin

Best Supporting Actress - TV Soap: Marjorie Lange as “Gloria” in Scandal Best Actress in a Lead Role -TV Soap: Masasa Mbangeni as “Thembeka” in Scandal Best Actor in a Lead Role - TV Soap: Jamie Bartlett as “David Genaro” in Rhythm City Best Achievement in Directing - TV Soap: Isibaya, Adze Ugah, John Berker, Denny Miller, Alex Yazbek, Phiwe Mkhanzi, Tebogo Malope Best TV Soap: Isibaya, The Bomb Shelter

24 | IN PRODUCTION

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IN PRODUCTION April 2015 Thanks to ever-present conﬁdentiality clauses, no one is ever allowed to ofﬁcially talk about what’s in production in Africa, but here are some of the projects to look forward to.

Apocalypse Slough The story takes place in the last few days of mankind’s existence, as a comet makes its way towards an inevitable meeting with Earth. Rob Lowe, Jenna Fischer, Megan Mullally, Mathew Baynton and Pauline Quirke will star. Be sure to expect madcap comedy, explosions and the requisite amount of romance in this apocalyptic comedy.

Alison Towerkop Creations’ Uga Carlini is writing and directing this adaptation of the remarkable life story of Alison Botha, who survived being raped, stabbed 37 times, and disemboweled, not to mention having her throat slashed 17 times. Christia Visser (Hollywood in My Huis) stars as the young Alison, with Amy Nelson producing.

Detour Black Sails The pirates are back at Cape Town Film Studios filming season three of Black Sails, which premieres on Starz on 24 January 2015, according to Deadline. The first season of the Treasure Island prequel set a viewership record of a Starz original series and won two Emmy Awards. Film Afrika is producing.

Written and directed by Christopher Smith, indie thriller Detour will begin shooting in South Africa in the coming months. Tye Sheridan, currently the darling of the indie scene and a rising star in young Hollywood, will star as Harper, a student who plots the murder of a deceitful relative. Sheridan has previously worked alongside Matthew McConaughey and Nicholas Cage.

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Mat Joubert According to Out of Africa’s website, this adaptation of Deon Meyer’s crime novel Dead Before Dying went into production in December as a coproduction with Germany company All-In Production.

Mandela’s Gun

Mohenjo Daro

Dominion

Season one of Syfy’s Dominion had mixed reviews, with a 70% rating on IMDB, and a 47% metascore on Metacritic. So the South African industry will be relieved to know that it still screened to over two million total viewers in June, according to Deadline, and has been renewed for a 13-episode second season. Film Afrika is producing.

Last Broken Darkness Local actors Sean Cameron Michael (Black Sails) and Brandon Auret (Elysium) are attached to star in this post-apocalyptic action drama, directed by Christopher Lee Dos Santos and produced by DS Films and The Karoo Film Company. Let’s hope it’s a dramatic improvement on Christopher’s first film, vampire thriller Eternity, which Munyaradzi Vomo memorably wrote made him feel like he was “trapped in a year-long eclipse.”

Variety says Ashutosh Gowariker (the Oscar-nominated crossover hit Lagaan) is directing Mohenjo Daro, an epic period adventure and love story set during the Indus Valley Civilization. Disney Studios India is producing, while Hrithik Roshan and Miss India Universe 2010 runner-up Pooja Hegde will co-star. Digital Spy says the film will start shooting in January after a sixweek delay caused by Roshan injuring his shoulder at gym.

The Siege of Jadotville

According to Deadline, 50 Shades of Grey and The Fall star Jamie Dornan will be in South Africa in 2015 to film The Siege of Jadotville, the feature film debut of commercials and music video director Richie Smyth. Set in the Congo just after the murder of Patrice Lumumba, Dornan will play Commandant Pat Quinlan, an Irishman who led a UN battalion of 150 Irish troops that held out against a force of 3 000 local troops led by French and Belgian mercenaries working for the mining companies.

The Whale Caller

From Collective Dream Films comes ‘n Man Soos my Pa, an Afrikaans drama written and directed by Sean Else. Deon Lotz, Neels van Jaarsveld and Sandra Prinsloo star.

This hotly-anticipated adaption by Zola Maseko of the Zakes Mda classic “tells the story of a love triangle between the titular Whale Caller, his beloved whale Sharisha, and Saluni, the village drunk who teaches him to open his heart to people again”, according to the film’s Indiegogo page.

Queen of Katwe

Wallander

Shadow & Act reports that Mira Nair is lined up to direct an adaptation of Tim Crothers book, Queen of Katwe, about a Ugandan chess prodigy. Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years A Slave) is set to star, with Disney producing. It’s expected to film in Uganda, where Nair set up the Maisha Film Lab.

Sir Kenneth Branagh is shooting an episode of his hit series Wallender on our shores, with Out of Africa. A largely South African cast will appear alongside Sir Kenneth’s police inspector in the UK series. Wallender is based on Swedish novelist Henning Mankell’s Kurt Wallander novels.

‘n Man Soos my Pa

Tye Sheridan in Mud © Lionsgate / Roadside Attractions

Produced and directed by John Irvin (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) Mandela’s Gun is a biopic that will chronicle the great statesman’s time as a guerilla fighter. It stars Tumesho Masha and Nick Boraine and is currently in the post-production phase.

26 | NEWS

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Luxor African Film Festival 2015 Winners

•

Beats of Antonov (Sudan) by Hajooj Kuka

Jury’s award: • Suﬀering is a School of Wisdom (Benin) by Ariane Astrid Atodji Best artistic achievement: • Paths to Freedom (Namibia) by Richard Pakleppa

Short film competition prizes © Hasan Amin, Luxor African Film Festival

Luxor African Film Festival’s 2015 Closing Ceremony.

his year’s edition of LAFF ran from 16 to 21 March and was dedicated to the memory of late Egyptian actor Khaled Saleh. 41 countries participated in the festival’s fourth edition, including 31 African countries.

Long features competition prizes Grand Nile prize for best long narrative: • The Blue Elephant (Egypt) by Marwan Hamed Jury’s award:

•

The Sea is Behind Us (Morocco) by Hicham Lasri

Best artistic achievement: • Beti and Amare (Ethiopia) by Andy Siege Special mention: • L’oeil Du Cyclone (Burkina Faso) by Sékou Traoré • Umutoma (Rwanda) by John Kwezi

Long documentary competition prizes Grand Nile prize for best long documentary:

Grand Nile prize for best short documentary: • Warda (Tunisia) by Mahmoud Jemini Grand Nile prize for best short narrative: • Motherland (Senegal) by Aliou Sow

Special mentions • •

The short documentary Matanga (Congo) by Georges Kabongo Actor Noomen Hamda for his role in Father (Tunisia)

Freedom competition-Al-Husseiny AbouDeif prize: • The Dream of Shahrazad (South Africa) by François Verster • Waves (Egypt) by Ahmed Nour • The Supreme Price (USA) by Joanna Lipper The Independent Shabab Foundation prize: Radwan al-Kashef ’s prize for best artistic achievement: • The Past Will Return (Egypt) by Dina Hamza

STEP prizes • • •

Mercy of the Jungle (Rwanda) Puppet Master (Egypt) Disco Africa (Madagascar)

Momentum was at the centre of the funding controversy.

Inhouse Drama

ROCKS THE NFVF L

ast month, staff at the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) spoke out about a “growing crisis” resulting in a “spate of resignations”. Among these resignations is that of Clarence Hamilton, the former Head of Production and Development, who in his exit report questioned violations of corporate governance at the film-funding body. Hamilton’s resignation is one of several in recent months, including managers dealing with documentaries and fiction films, as well as a production coordinator, the head of marketing and the policy and legal officer. According to a City Press report by Charl Blignaut, seven individuals, both former and current staff that chose to remain anonymous, provided accounts that underscored the questions raised in Hamilton’s exit document. One of the issues was council interference in operational matters, and “trying to change policy without following procedure”. All funding procedures at the NFVF are made by four panels that assess criteria such as documentary and fiction proposals, training and bursaries and marketing and festivals, with about R100million allocated to the foundation each year. Sources have accused the council, chaired by Mmabatho Ramagoshi and Chief Executive

Zama Mkosi, of overturning recommendations made by the panel, ignoring assessment criteria and appointing panel members without film expertise. Hamilton says that despite the fact that the council’s role is supposed to be “oversight, policy and strategy, not operational”, he was summoned to a meeting and “advised that henceforth the decisions of the panel chairs were final”. The NFVF is also embroiled in a funding issue with a Hollywood film shot in SA called Momentum and starring Olga Kurylenko. The production was meant to kick off the SAFilmFund, created quite suddenly by the then Minister of Arts and Culture Paul Mashatile and production company Azaria Media, headed by Anton Ernst. After Hamilton asked one too many questions about the project, he was removed from its management. The film cost the Department of Arts and Culture (DAC) R32-million, with the NFVF, who paid out the money, being drawn into crew conflict over non-payment by Ernst. Ernst, in turn, blamed the NFVF for the crisis on set, an accusation Mkosi denies. “All funds paid towards the Momentum project were not part of the NFVF’s annual allocation but were made available by

“

SPOTLIGHT | 27

If the NFVF stays intact and is willing to fight for the independence of filmmakers rather than looking over its shoulder fearful of government, then I think we will see a new crop of filmmakers and the cream will rise to the top. There is no lack of commitment or great stories.

“

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the DAC, especially for this project,” she said. Added to these issues, Council Chair Ramagoshi has been criticised for abusing her role within the NFVF with “five-star trips to film festivals from Cannes and Toronto to New York and Edinburgh”. According to insiders, she is awarded around R6,500 in daily allowance abroad, while NFVF staff are expected to “chaperone” her on trips and do most of the talking in industry meetings. Mkosi denies these and other claims saying, “The reasons for all staff travelling are always clearly motivated to meet NFVF strategic objectives”. When asked about the future of South Africa’s film industry, Rehad Desai, Director and Producer of award-winning documentary Miners Shot Down, had this to say: “If the NFVF stays intact and is willing to fight for the independence of filmmakers rather than looking over its shoulder fearful of government, then I think we will see a new crop of filmmakers and the cream will rise to the top. There is no lack of commitment or great stories; we are the only country on the continent that has such a funding body, and we have to collectively ensure its does not go to rack and ruin like so many other governmentsupported institutions.”

28 | PRO-SPECTIVE

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A CHAT WITH WAYNE DE LANGE:

Cinematographer Wayne de Lange, who is also the owner of Silver Bullet Productions.

Best Cinematographer Winner for the 2014 48 Hour Film Project © Silver Bullet Productions

Gabrielle Pinto plays the daughter in Thread. © Silver Bullet Productions

Hannah Bresler plays the little girl.

man whose love for the Jeffreys Bay surf scene led him to his passion in film, Wayne de Lange began his career shooting surfers – but is best known for his work on the award-winning short Thread. The film was made as part of the annual 48 Hour Film Project, the world’s largest timed short film competition, taking place in over 130 cities each year. Thread won eleven awards in the Cape Town award ceremony including Best Film, Best Cinematography and Best Directing, and garnered its twelfth award of Best Overall Cinematographer at the international ceremony in early March. We spoke to cinematographer Wayne de Lange, who is also the owner of Silver Bullet Productions, to find out where he gets his inspiration. The Callsheet: How did the concept for Thread come into being, especially from a cinematographic point of view? Wayne de Lange: The film was produced for the 48 Hour Film Project, a timed film competition

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“

I love ﬁlming in water, the water is where I learnt my trade, and we used these underwater images in an abstract opening title sequence to set the tone of the ﬁlm.

“

where organisers allocate participating teams – a genre, a prop, a character and a line of dialogue, for use in the film. These are given out on the Friday evening, and films are required to be written, shot, edited and scored, 100% completed for hand in by the Sunday evening at the same time. The genre that our team drew was Silent Movie. It was a challenging genre and one that would rely very heavily on a strong visual storytelling style as, of course, there were no words. We had to come up with a clever way of using the compulsory line of dialogue. Both the director Diana Keam and I felt that that it was essential for the cinematography to complement and enhance the narrative, and not just simply create pretty pictures. The story that we came up with dealt with a woman who had died, but she didn’t realise that she had crossed to the other side, as it were. She and the audience came to this realisation at the same time. I decided to shoot at 33fps for scenes where the mother is no longer in physical form, so to speak, to create an ‘otherworldly’ feel. The underwater shots were shot at 50fps, as we were restricted by use of the Canon 6D. I love filming in water, the water is where I learnt my trade, and we used these underwater images in an abstract opening title sequence to set the tone of the film. We were lucky enough to have support from Media Film Service and I made the choice to go with the Alexa and high speed prime lenses. We had decided we would most probably go hand held, partly as the nature of the project meant that dollies and tracks were too expensive and required a larger crew, which takes longer to shoot. We kind of cut the cloth to suit the project but made sure we gave it the best quality we possibly could. The location was also a big contributor to the overall look of the film and was something we had in our pocket if our genre fitted it. When I recce’ed it with the director we explored the

versatility. It had a little swing and wooded area in the garden, a pool, a view of the vineyards and the stunning bathroom we could shoot in. We kept the location in mind when we created our story.

that talented, but yet so down to earth and keen to get involved no matter what is required in, essentially precious free time.

The Callsheet: How do you feel about winning this 48HFP honour, as well as the many awards the film received in the Cape Town award ceremony? De Lange: It was a pretty big surprise when we won. I remember quite clearly being asked, ‘What do you get if you win?’ by my wife, for instance, who was sick of me working every other weekend! And I didn’t even know. Sure, we wouldn’t mind winning, but we did it for the love of what we do.

The Callsheet: What are your plans for 2015? Any new projects you’re working on this year? De Lange: I am currently shooting the water cinematography on another feature film being shot in my home town, Jeffreys Bay. I’m also in pre-production on some Red Bull projects. I’m always trying to work on interesting projects where ultimately I can learn and have fun while working. A very special project I worked on last year called Stone Cold Jane Austen, directed by Jon Savage is coming out in cinemas in May. Other than that, I mostly shoot TV commercials and documentaries.

The Callsheet: What did you enjoy most about working on Thread? Any anecdotes or memories you’d like to share? Wayne de Lange: We were a small team working really well together. I wish all jobs were like that. It was, of course, pretty intense, but everyone still enjoyed every single moment. I really enjoyed working with the director, she knew what she wanted to achieve, but she also trusted me and gave me the space to do what I wanted to do from a cinematography perspective. Our talent for this film was really amazing, they are all very experienced actresses and this made my job vastly easier. It was also great to work with Grant Forbes with all his experience. It’s so humbling to work with people who are

The Callsheet: In your opinion, how healthy would you say South Africa’s film industry is, and by extension, Africa? De Lange: I know everyone is saying it, but Africa really is finding its voice. We are realising our own style and we can definitely hold our own against international talent. We are constantly exploring ways to produce great quality content for less. The reality is that budgets are shrinking. I’ve always had to apply this ethos, as I own my own small Production House, historically not much of a competition to the big boys, but crews really are needing to be smaller and we have to come up with creative solutions. This results in a great deal more collaboration, which I reckon is the best way of working.

30 | FILM REVIEW

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ENDER’S GAME:

Packing Some Serious Intergalactic Punch by Kim Muller

lthough I had heard of the sci-fi novels Orson Scott Card wrote back in the 80’s, I was less excited about the adaptation and more excited about the CGI and special effects that Ender’s Game would produce. When I finally got my hands on the film, I ended up watching it five times within a week! The post-production is incredible, the costume design slick and the overall style was clearly the work of a visionary with a strong idea of what kind of futuristic look he wanted. Award-winning South African filmmaker

Gavin Hood was at the helm. In an interview with Collider’s Scott Wampler, he expressed his passion for the story. “I felt quite a connection to it: I was drafted into the military at 17, so in many ways I felt like Ender. I was forced a long way from home into this crazy military environment. I wasn’t sent to Battle School, but I was put on a train and sent a thousand miles away, ended up having this bonding experience with total strangers…so I think [I responded to] a lot of the themes that are great in this book about friendship, identity, and dealing with the pressure of being in this © Ender’s Game © Ender’s Game

institution that encourages a more aggressive side to you and rewards that.” Starring Asa Butterfield as Ender, with Colonel Graff (Harrison Ford) playing the part of commanding officer and father figure, Ender’s Game takes place a few centuries from now after an awful alien attack that killed millions of humans. Banded together by grief and anger, the world sets off to ensure that this kind of thing never happens again, slowly and systematically fighting the ‘Formics’ – ant-like alien creatures, both beautiful and fearsome to behold – back to their home planet. The way in which they go about this distressed me a bit; training and conscripting children to do their dirty work. Of course the story is so slick you don’t notice this too often, but there are moments when the issue is addressed – notably when Viola Davis’ character – Major Gwen Anderson, the resident psychologist – questions the Colonel’s training tactics. Ender’s story begins in Battle School, where he works his way through the ranks in a flurry, eventually commanding his own group of underdogs who are trained up to ultimately defeat the Formics. As I mentioned before, I was really impressed with the CGI, the intricate detail in the Formic creatures that invade Earth, the animation that entrances and holds one captive in a sea of emotive darkness. Gavin Hood makes space look amazing, so intricate and enticing. Of course I know most of it is isn’t a true representation, but it’s pretty incredible to look at, especially on a big screen. I was also taken aback at the number of unique secondary characters – quite unlike most tween and young adult films I’ve seen of late. And this pertains to both ethnicity and actual plot lines and character development. One of my only criticisms was that the story itself moves rather slowly, making it seem much longer that it actually is, although the shock of a plot twist at the end more than makes up for its unnecessary length. In conclusion, despite the film not doing as well as its creators had hoped, it’s a definite allround winner. Here’s hoping that if a second film emerges, it at least rivals Ender’s Game in quality, a thing many sequels lack these days.

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DE(CON)STRUCTION LOVE of

by Kim Muller

Francis Chouler and Joelle Coutinho in Promise, produced by Greta Henley and directed by Craig Hunter Parker.

roducer and screenwriter Greta Henley and Director Craig Hunter Parker have outdone themselves with a two-for-one showcase called De(con)struction of Love. Although the two shorts, Promise and Recovery, are vastly different in genre and cinematic style, their unifying theme is the destruction of love, one from a physical point of view and the other from an emotional standpoint. Using the same principal actors, Francis Chouler and Joelle Coutinho, and guest starring Nolly Meje and Deon Lotz in Promise and Recovery respectively, the couple’s love stories are woven around the theme to create something beautiful out of distressing and disastrous situations. The film I watched first was Promise, a romantic drama with a story we’re all too familiar with: the breakdown of a relationship. What started off as a ‘happily ever after’ descended into despair as these starcrossed lovers realise it takes more than just caring for one another to stay together. The

cinematography was wonderful, like walking through a dream; all light and feathery as their love story unfolds, with a touch of morbidity as the warm flashbacks give way to calm and collected antagonism. Recovery, then, comes as a bit of a shock, with its zombie flavour. I liked the use of broadcast and microbiology clips at the beginning to set the scene and accustom the viewer to its vastly different love scenario. This little psychological thriller has moments of fantastic VFX and makeup artistry, but that seems a given, especially since the duology was produced by Motif Studios (Dominion, Origins, Ensnared). It’s also come at a perfectly plausible time – just as the Ebola epidemic resurfaces. Mass hysteria, it would seem, is not hard to create. I really liked the way it dealt with James’ (Chouler’s) growing emotional understanding of what he had done and how he could move past it. And the little plot twist at the very end is rather brilliant. I had expected something of this nature, but not quite as gruesome.

I cannot reach the conclusion, however, without mentioning Joseph Klink, an actual vendor of The Big Issue, who’s been selling the magazine for 17 years. His smiling face in Promise brought a wave of nostalgia and comfortable recognition as I recalled the many hawkers I’ve had a chat with while waiting for the traffic light to turn green. Overall, a very strong performance by all involved, including those behind the scenes. And if De(con)struction of Love truly is meant to be a showcase of aspiring local filmmakers just as their Indiegogo campaign says, they’ve done an excellent job of showing off their repertoire.

32 | SPOTLIGHT

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his April, the neighbourhood in Lower Manhattan, Tribeca, will host the 14th annual Tribeca Film Festival. A division of Tribeca Enterprises, the Tribeca Film Festival was founded by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff in 2002. The three established Tribeca Enterprises a year later, forming a diversified global media company based in New York City operating a network of branded entertainment businesses. Tribeca Film Festival International, Tribeca Cinemas and Tribeca Film, a distribution initiative, and the Tribeca Film Festival comprise the enterprise. Tribeca Film Festival was created to

Preview

contribute to the long-term recovery of Lower Manhattan and celebrate New York City as a filming hub. Organisers state the mission of the festival is “to enable the international film community and the general public to experience the power of film by redefining the film festival experience.” Audiences and delegates – including often-elusive celebrities from the worlds of art, film, and music – converge at this prestigious event to witness a variety of independent films including documentaries, narrative features and shorts, as well as a programme of family-friendly films. The jam-packed, entertainment-filled programme includes panel discussions with personalities in the entertainment world. In addition, the Tribeca Film Festival presents exciting features to already unconventional programme. South African film Necktie Youth, directed by Sibs Shongwe-La Mer will

screen at the fest. The story follows two twenty-something suburbanites as they drift through a day of drugs, sex and philosophising in their privileged Johannesburg neighbourhood. A closing night in honour of GoodFellas will present a conversation between the creators and cast members of the classic in a 25th Anniversary Celebration. Mid-festival, Tribeca Talks Imagination, an all-day summit, will host among the most influential, provocative, and groundbreaking creative minds. Mary J Blige will be taking to the stage following the world premiere of Mary J. Blige – The London Sessions. An exclusive behind the scenes look will showcase her work sessions with some of Britain’s hottest recording artists, including Sam Smith, Disclosure, Emeli Sandé, Naughty Boy, and Sam Romans. April 15 to 26 is guaranteed to be a time of film extravaganza, in the city where dreams come true.

Opening Night at Tribeca Film Festival

14TH TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL

SPOTLIGHT | 33

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Review of the

SONY FS7 by Stacey Keppler

kay, let’s cut to the chase. The Sony PXW-FS7 is “that” camera that you were holding out for for the last five years. I can order the last five years of my life not in nostalgic memories, but in cameras that I’ve wanted; wanted so badly that I had to open a rental company to house my obsession. And I know if you’re reading this, you can probably map the digital revolution in the same way that I do: Yes, you said you’d buy a RED One, but whilst saving your money and reading Phillip Bloom blogs, you bought a Canon 5D II because the Rand was half decent and it was cheaper than film school… *cough*… Then the Canon C300 came along and it was/ is great but too expensive for HD and we were all nervous that Canon would pull an Apple and release an upgraded version with 4K next NAB, rendering your HD investment “obsolete” (as my #bestie, Jim Jannard would say). At this point the market place was split into defined camps - DSLR, camcorder and digital cinema, which meant buying a camera to suit all your jobs, was impossible. But then Sony released the FS100 with S35mm sensor. According to our Phillip Bloom bedtime reading, it seemed like a viable option to compete with DSLRs but with, much sought after, sync sound to save time in the edit. I mention the FS100 because it’s important to understand the evolution that has brought the FS7 to be so refined and suited to our operating and editing needs. The FS700 was next in the evolution and I’m sure if you bought that camera, you’ve made your money back many times over with its impressive slow motion and 4k output. But I still found a lot of my clients requesting to shoot on the C300 to meet the broadcast criteria of 50mb/s. It felt

like camera “prices”, “portability” and “filmic quality” were in one of those silly infographic triangles where you can have two sides but not all three. And then *poof*, the FS7 arrived. So why choose the FS7 over everything else on the market? A: because it can shoot 180 fps without any buffering time and B: because it’s a C300 killer. There, I said it. It’s printed. Done. We finally have all three sides of that silly triangle infographic! The form factor is probably the most talked about “side of the triangle” of this camera. It leaves room for the consumer to adapt it with third party accessories (you know hipsters gotta have ‘em wooden handles…) but essentially it takes the portability that we love about the C300 with Zacuto rig combo and gives it to us straight out the box. The FS7’s standard remote handle is adjustable, comfortable (sorry lefties, it’s not ideal for you guys) and customisable as it has a user definable button, which I leave on focus magnification, as well as a menu toggle, record button (obviously) and zoom rocker. Pair that with Sony’s new 28-135mm F/4 SSM (Super Sonic wave Motor) lens and you can cover everything from the war in Syria to music videos. The lens unfortunately isn’t as wide as what we would want in an ideal world where unicorns dance on marshmallow clouds, but the quality surpasses the Canon lens option (24-105mm) in terms of both optical quality and focal length. As you know from the FS700, Sony’s E-mount allows for a myriad of adaptors from Canon EF mounts to PL. The versatility is priceless. But let’s get techie: the XAVC codec is remarkable. Shooting at its best to get the “filmic quality” side of the triangle (XAVC-I, Cine-EI, S-Gamut 3/ Slog3) the XAVC 64GB

card can shoot at least 30 minutes in UHD. But in just a minute I could dump 26GB via USB 3.0 on to my MacBook Pro. That is remarkably efficient. Yup, remarkably. If you change your base setting to Mpeg 422 HD, you can get over 100 minutes on the 64GB card. Never mind that there are dual card slots so if you need to keep recording, for let’s say the Olympic Games opening ceremony; you can just keep rolling without interruption. Viewing S-log3 can be off-putting to people that don’t understand the gamma curve - for example, your clients sitting at media village will no doubt complain that the image looks flat - but no stress, you can view the LUT on your monitor without affecting what you’re recording, just like RED. This allows your client to get back to the craft table, unperturbed. So all this is splendid but how the footage holds up in post is the most important element and the FS7 does not over exaggerate with its 14 stops of latitude. The shadows can still be a bit grainy in slow motion but the highlights are where I noticed the biggest improvement. I am astounded by the smooth falloff in the highlights. The S-log3 grade can be daunting, especially if you’re coming from the DSLR camp and this is the first time where there is colour space information to actually work with in the grade. If the options scare you or you’re unsure, there are various colourspace plug-ins that one can download to slap on for a quick Rec. 709 gamma curve fix - even in Final Cut X. Opa! If you’re au fait with grading in Da Vinci, this footage is like a chocolate candy box with the nutritional value of broccoli. I’d put my head on a block and say that this is the best camera body you can buy for $8000.00.

34 | COUNTRY SPOTLIGHT

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Antoine Fuqua’s Tears of the Sun, starring Bruce Willis was shot in Nigeria.

NIGERIA:

Africa's Film Powerhouse

by Carryn Gabriels

estled between Benin and Cameroon, and bordered by the Gulf of Guinea, Nigeria boasts lush grounds, exotic islands, and lively beaches. The large country, commonly known as the Giant of Africa, has a thriving Nigerian cinematic scene, Nollywood.

Nigeria’s Film industries Nollywood, as it’s called, is Africa’s largest film industry. The African film powerhouse is the second-largest producer of movies in the world, setting it above Hollywood (USA) and just below Bollywood (India) in terms of the number of annual film productions. The thriving industry produces approximately 1000 films each year and has a $590 million film industry revenue. The country is home to a number of major production companies including Golden Effects studios, the Audrey Silver Company, and Mainframe studios. These big names often shoot in studio, while straightto-video movies remain a popular trend. These are shot on location all over Nigeria with hotels, homes, and offices often rented out by their owners as sets.

On the outskirts of Nigera’s capital, Abuja.

Nigeria is the host of the African Movie Academy Awards (AMAAs). The prestigious event, that the country presents annually, serves to honour and promote excellence in the African movie industry and unite the African continent through arts and culture. The powerhouse in Africa’s film industry is also the annual host of the African International Film Festival (AFRIFF). AFRIFF aims to raise awareness in Africa about the vast potential the entertainment industry holds and the impact it can generate in the economy. The festival provides a platform to showcase the participation of local and international filmmakers into a complete immersion of the film-making world. Film professionals, celebrities, actors, directors, film critics, buyers, distributors, visual artists, film students, amateurs, equipment manufacturers, and international press alike are invited to participate in this worldclass showcase. To establish its position in the digital and technological side of film, The Giant of Africa recently launched iROKOtv. iROKOtv is the world’s largest, legal online distributor of Nollywood films. This blockbuster

service allows viewers to enjoy instant and unlimited access to the best Nigerian and Ghanaian movies and TV shows.

Filming in Nigeria Filming requires permits from the Nigerian Film Corporation and journalist accreditation from the Federal Ministry of Information. They can be obtained on the same day or within a couple of days. The climate varies from region to region, but the best time to film is generally during the dry season between December and February.

Getting to Nigeria by Air: Murtala Muhammed International Airport is Nigeria’s primary airport. The large country comprises a number of international airports in Abuja, Enugu, Kano and Port Harcourt, as well as domestic airport serving as connecting flights to within Nigeria.

Climate: Situated north of the equator and stretching further northwards, Nigeria experiences varied climates. South Nigeria is subjected

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“

The Giant of Africa, has a thriving Nigerian cinematic scene, Nollywood. The climate varies from region to region, but the best time to ﬁlm is generally during the dry season between December and February.

“

to an equatorial climate, while northern Nigeria endures an arid climate, and Central Nigeria experiences a tropical climate.

Population: 177,155,754 - (CIA World Factbook, June, 2014)

Monica Bellucci starred as Dr. Lena Fiore Kendricks in Tears of the Sun.

Did you know? Antoine Fuqua’s Tears of the Sun, starring Bruce Willis was shot in Nigeria, and produced by Willis himself.

36 | EVENTS

www.filmmakerafrica.co.za

APRIL

MAY

VANCOUVER SOUTH AFRICAN FILM FESTIVAL 10 – 12 April Vancouver , Canada

THE INTERNATIONAL SUMMIT ON DIGTITAL BROADCASTING 6 – 7 May Abuja, Nigeria

NAB SHOW 11 – 16 April Las Vegas, USA

BROADBAND & TV CONNECT ASIA 2015 12 – 13 May Suntec, Singapore

MIPTV 13 – 16 April Cannes, France

ESSENTIALS OF BROADCAST MANAGEMENT SHORT COURSE 20 – 24 April Grahamstown, South Africa HOT DOCS INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTART FILM FESTIVAL 23 April – 3 May Toronto, Canada TV CONNECT 28 – 30 April London, England

SATCOM AFRICA 26 – 27 May Johannesburg, South Africa OTT TV AND VOD SUMMIT 26 – 28 May Johannesburg, South Africa

TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL 15 – 26 April New York

CANNES INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 13 - 24 May Cannes, France

www.filmmakerafrica.co.za

EVENTS | 37

38 | ASSOCIATIONS

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SOS & MMA: Free Set-Top Boxes is Only Half the Victory As the continent waits for the everlooming digital switchover, South Africaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cabinet, following a briefing held last month, has committed to providing set-top boxes (STBs) to five million TVowning households in South Africa for free. Media Monitoring Africa (MMA) and the SOS Coalition are in support of this commitment as part of a small group encouraging take-up of the new technology. MMA and SOS, however, have noted deficiencies in the proposed subsidy scheme and require further details regarding who will be prioritised for the free STBs and what qualifying process people will undergo to gain access to them. While MMA and SOS await further information from the draft policy yet to be gazetted, there remain a number of key battles to secure meaningful access to broadcasting services in the digital age. For further information please contact Sekoetlane Phamodi, Coordinator of the SOS Coalition on 076 084 8077, or William Bird, Director at Media Monitoring Africa on 082 887 1370.

SAGE Announces 2015 Rate Card The South African Guild of Editors has published their annual rate card of recommended salaries for editors for 2015. Though the association focuses on freelance editors, the card can also be used as a starting point for full-time employment negotiations. According to SAGE, rates and conditions should be considered negotiable, and they encourage editors and producers alike to read their pre-employment check list on what to expect. The new rate card shows typical rates in South African Rand in weekly and daily increments. It also offers a guide to overtime, inflation matching and skills growth. SAGEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s policy is that postproduction rates should match those of the camera department, as both departments contribute similar technical and creative effort. The rate card can be downloaded as a PDF on www.editorsguildsa.org.

ASSOCIATIONS | 39

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The Documentary Filmmakers’ Association (DFA) announced in January that the much-anticipated Business Model Canvas (BMC) workshops will take place at the 2015 Durban FilmMart. The BMC is a tool to enhance your documentary project, for drafting a business plan for your company or for developing specific projects. The Documentary Filmmakers’ Association in collaboration with the Canadian Film Centre, the National Film and Video Foundation, and the Durban FilmMart will hold a series of workshops to transfer the skills to use the BMC to South African filmmakers. Initiated by the DFA, BMC workshops will allow filmmakers to strategise for each project they embark upon, allowing them to plan around all elements of the project, including potential partners, key resources, key activities, potential income generating activities and potential audience. Although applications for the 2015 Durban FilmMart are closed, those who wish to learn more about the BMC can contact projects@docfilmsa.com.

The South African Audience Research Foundation (SAARF) gave an update on their latest study in mid-March. The report that Johann Koster has been researching was initially commissioned to understand whether there is still a place for an industry research body like SAARF, and if there is, what its mandate should be and how it should be funded. According to Virginia Hollis, SAARF Chair, initial findings were presented to the SAARF Business Committee and Board in the week of March 19 and since then has been finalised. From here, the Board intends to take the report to its members, other stakeholders in the industry and finally, host general meetings for the industry. The foundation will then distribute it. “While the report does give some interesting perspectives and direction to the industry it certainly does not supply all the answers. It will take strong leadership to determine how the industry should progress. The SAARF Board will use the report as a base to develop recommendations which will then be discussed with its constituencies and the broader industry,” Hollis said in a recent press statement.

DFA Announces Business model Canvas 2015

SAARF Announces Upcoming Research Report

40 | DIRECTORY LISTINGS

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ADVERTISERS COMPANY

TELEPHONE

WEBSITE

Folio Translation Consultants CC

+27 21 426 2727

pziets@folio-online.co.za

www.folio-online.co.za

Aquila Private Game Reserve

+27 21 430 7260

res@aquilasafari.com

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KZN Film Commission

+27 31 325 0200

info@kwazulunatalfilm.co.za

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LemonReel Film Services

+264 81 122 7717

info@lemonreel.com

www.lemonreel.com

Pro-Sales

+27 11 462 0000

info@pro-sales.co.za

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Wizardz

+27 21 461 9334

copy@wizardz.co.za

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Namib Film

+264 64 46 3371

gwen@namibfilms.com

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Magic Touch Films

+264 64 46 3371

elle@magictouchfilms.com

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Sasani Studios

+27 11 719 4250

eileen@sasani.co.za

CONTACT US CONTACT US Cover Image: Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) in Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, which releases in South African cinemas on 24 April 2015. © Marvel 2015, Photo by Jay Maidment. Publisher: Lance Gibbons lance@filmeventmedia.co.za Executive Editor: Katie Reynolds katie@filmeventmedia.co.za Head of Design: Sheree Steenkamp sheree@filmeventmedia.co.za Writer: Kim Muller kim@filmeventmedia.co.za Assistant Designer: Lauren Smith lauren@filmeventmedia.co.za Editorial Assistant: Carryn Gabriels carryn@filmeventmedia.co.za

Production Co-ordinator: Tammi Klein tammi@filmeventmedia.co.za Account Executive: Jennifer Dianez jennifer@filmeventmedia.co.za Account Executive: Theo Jacobs theo@filmeventmedia.co.za Group Sales Manager: Lloyd Kirsten lloyd@filmeventmedia.co.za Sales Co-ordinator: Tracey-Anne Arendse tracey-anne@filmeventmedia.co.za Manager, Special Projects: Taryn Fowler taryn@filmeventmedia.co.za 57 2nd Avenue, Harfield Village, Claremont 7708, Cape Town, South Africa Tel: +27 21 674 0646

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