The Callsheet Sept 2011 by Film & Event Media

R22.80 THE LOERIES ISSUE September 2011 www.thecallsheet.co.za

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VELOCITY WINS BIG AT THE LOERIES LOERIES 2011

The team behind Emoticon Boy

VELOCITY led the way for production companies at this year’s Loerie Awards, with Keith Rose’s Emoticon Boy receiving special attention on the night.

lthough film didn’t receive a Grand Prix this year, there was a strong link for Velocity to one of the highly coveted awards. Allan Gray marketing manager Tracy Hirst won a Marketing Leadership and Innovation Award for her work with the company over the last ten years. Velocity has produced several of the most recognised Allan Gray adverts, including James Dean Legend, Beautiful and most recently, Time Flies. The rankings for directors see Keith leading the way on 377.5 points, Alan Irvine from Picture Tree was in second and Giant Films director Robin Goode makes an appearance in third place, thanks to a Gold and Campaign Silver for directing the Love to Meet You advert for Drive Dry. Emoticon Boy was recognised for the EMI Music Award, a special prize for the best use of licensed music in advertising. Keith received an award for direction on the night, winning a Craft Gold for Emoticon Boy. Greg Gray, also of Veloc-

ity, won a Silver and a Craft Certificate for Voiceover for Cadbury Lunchbar. Other adverts Velocity produced which also received recognition were Return of the Craving for Nandos by Adrian De Sa Garces, Vodacom Summer also direceted by Adrian, Neverending Story for Stimorol Infinity directed by Anton Visser, Bigger for Everlast (directed by Keith) and Ed Mas-

ters , directed by Daniel Levy, for Tuffy. Sister company Bouffant also did well gaining a Silver for Dean Blumberg’s The Real McCoy for Santam, a Bronze for Chloe Coetsee’s Jumbled for Avril Elizabeth Homes and Erik van Wyk’s Cut the Cord for the Toyota Aygo. Velocity had a total of 16 wins overall. Peter Carr, executive producer at Velocity, said: “We just

want to say a really big thank you and well done to the agencies and clients that we worked with on the winning commercials. We are most proud of the fact that most of our directors won something across the board highlighting our diversity and our dedication to the craft we like to apply to all our work.” Egg Films had a quiet year at the Loeries compared to their stellar performance in 2010.

However, on the bright side, a quiet year for Egg translates into third place in the production company rankings. This ranking included a Craft Certificate and Gold Craft for Slim’s Glory for Garmin and a Silver Loerie for Jason Fialkov’s Waking Dead advert. Egg also won a Bronze for the gorgeous Kevin Fitzgerald Memories commercial for Tracker. Humanoid, Egg’s Johannesburg-based sister company, received a Campaign Silver and a Bronze for Kagiso, the new Nando’s CEO, directed by Terence Neale. Picture Tree won a Campaign Gold for the McDonalds Regret Tests series of adverts they did with DDB South Africa. They were directed by Alan Irvine. Sunday night’s awards, hosted by Knight Rider and Baywatch star David Hasselhof at the Cape Town Convention centre (CTICC), were a festive and tightly run affair. The ceremony itself was shorter than in previous years, due to a move away from entertainment and a focus on the awards themselves. You can view the full list of winners as well as the full rankings for the directors, production companies and advertising agencies at the 2011 Loerie Awards on page six.

PAGE TWO PIN-UP: SCOTT SPARROW

ACTING (APM)

Scott Sparrow’s star is on the

rise following small roles in several big budget international features shot in South Africa and a reprisal of his role in Kidnap & Ransom this month.

cott graduated from Rhodes University with a BA Honours in directing and acting. He has starred in several local and international film and television productions. His recent film work includes small roles in Dredd, Safehouse and in the South African romantic comedy I Now Pronounce You Black and White. His television work consists of roles in BBc’s Beaver Falls, SKY tV’s The Runaway and most recently as Frank Egan in Kidnap & Ransom. Scott says: “All the theatre work I am lucky to do gives me a boost when I go into film. Although they are two very different worlds, the one informs the other.” When asked about the features he’s worked on, Scott

enthused: “Dredd was a fantastic experience. I enjoyed sitting back and watching them make this film. I am a huge fan of the cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle and felt very privileged that I got to shoot scenes with him. I felt like I had won some competition where you go and meet your hero. Sometimes on a set like this you have to make sure that you don’t get too star struck by all the people you work with and actually try and do your job right.” on the difference between local and international feature films, Scott said: “The biggest difference between local and international films, at least the ones I have been on, is simply the budget. once you have the money I should imagine

everything else falls into place including the time that the actors can prep for a shoot. the thing I enjoyed about Dredd is the rehearsals we could afford to have, so as an actor you are confident with the story and the action by the time you walk onto the set. I have only been on the low budget local films so I can’t really speak for the bigger ones. the one thing we are not missing locally, I believe, is talent; talent in writing, crew and actors. I feel very proud walking onto the international film sets and seeing the South African crew setting the pace.” Scott is currently filming Ambassador 2 and Kidnap & Ransom II, and can be seen in action with the Mechanicals. Kate Hodges

KEVIN SPACEY AND JAMESON LAUNCH FIRST SHOT

Kevin Spacey and Dana Brunetti

FILMMAKING ASPIRING screenwriters and directors from South Africa will have the chance to write a screenplay for a short film that will be produced by Trigger Street Productions and will star Kevin Spacey.

ne winner each from South Africa, Russia and the USA will have a chance to have their movie

made by Kevin Spacey’s production company Trigger Street Productions. The name “Trigger Street” is a reference to an actual street in Spacey’s boyhood home of Chatsworth, California where a friend of his lived on the ranch of infamous American cowboy actor, Roy Rogers. The multi-Academy Award winning actor, director, producer and screenwriter said: “I want to give talented people

out there a shot at reaching their goals for the first time. Jack Lemmon once said to me – ‘If you’re doing well, send the elevator back down’. I’ve done incredibly well and it’s because the material I found early in my career was from first-time writers, first-time directors, first-time playwrights. If it weren’t for that talent I wouldn’t have a career. So if one person gets a break then the competition has been successful.”

Filmmakers are invited to submit a script to the Jameson First Shot website written around the theme of a ‘legendary, humorous or very tall tale’. The shortlisted entrants will be judged by Kevin and the president of Trigger Street Productions Dana Brunetti. The nominees will then enter a second round where they will be asked to direct a scene selected by Trigger Street. The winner from each country will be flown to Los Angeles to shoot their script and direct Kevin Spacey. They will be supported in this by Trigger Street, the company that produced The Social Network and 21. The three finalists will be voted on by the public to decide on an overall winner. The actor, who is also the artistic director of the Old Vic in London, has pioneered new content and distribution models with the creation of TriggerStreet.com as an online community for unrepresented screenwriters and short film directors. The site immediately took off with thousands of online users uploading their work, reviewing work created by their peers, and participating in online competitions and short film festivals. Jameson Irish Whiskey are the headline sponsors of the competition. Howard Southern, the international marketing director for Irish Distillers Pernod Ricard,

who produce Jameson Irish Whiskey, said: “We are delighted to be working with Kevin Spacey and Trigger Street Productions on such a unique film project. Jameson First Shot perfectly embodies our attitude towards film; whereas public perception is of a closed and exclusive world, we want to open it up and give emerging talent the opportunity to be mentored by some of Hollywood’s biggest names. It’s a truly exciting proposition and we look forward to seeing three fantastic films.” Some of the helpful tips for screenwriters on the Jameson First Shot website include: “Write with good structure – try and write a script with a beginning, middle and end; Come up with a good story that you will be able to make into a short film; Make sure your short film has good shots and good sound; Enter your script by the deadline – this business is all about making deadlines; Create something that makes you stand out.” The closing date for entries is 31 December 2011. entrants must be 25 years or older and a legal resident of South Africa, Russia or the United States. For full details on how to enter plus exclusive videos and tips from Kevin Spacey and Dana Brunetti, visit www.jamesonfirstshot.com Kate Hodges

CAPE TOWN FILM STUDIOS EMERGES AS GLOBAL BRAND INDUSTRY THE Callsheet visited Cape Town Film Studios (CTFS), where our team was lucky enough to be given a tour by CEO Nico Dekker and general manager Ross Rayners.

ICO’S enthusiasm for the studio and for every aspect of its running is infectious and upon seeing the facilities – perfectly understandable. The studio is a 17,000 square metre complex of four soundstages, offices, set-production warehouses and 37-seat grading cinema that is 2D and 3D enabled. It’s hard to believe the studio has only been fully operational since October 2010, particularly given the profile of talent that’s worked there. Stars include Stephen Fry, Denzel Washington, Lena Headey, Ryan Reynolds, Karl Urban, Wood Harris, Olivia Thirlby and Michael B. Jordan. Ranked by The Hollywood Reporter as one of the top seven studios in the world in May 2011 and praised on Twitter by Stephen Fry during the filming of Working Title’s The Borrowers - the studios are starting to emerge as a global brand. When Nico took over as the CEO in 2008 his objective was to contribute to a sustainable local film industry that offered jobs for South Africans. Nico said: “The studio is changing the game, because there’s such a huge

difference between a studiobased film and a location-based film. The studio-based film is a job creator, it’s a massive job-creator because of all the construction that happens. The people that would normally work on a film, the normal crew, there’s a certain group of people that always work. But when a studio comes in it creates hundreds of jobs, for people in carpentry and woodwork and metalwork and labour that you normally would not see on a film set and that is what government wants – it’s ideal for our industry. It also of course creates longevity, the studio has been designed for one purpose; it can’t be used for other things.” This was visible on the tour of the studio, as a walk around reveals massive industry happening wherever you look, from setdesign and building inside the workshops to busy construction crews on the backlot and the general maintenance required for the smooth running of such a large complex. Nico believes that choosing to build world-class studios was the correct decision for Cape Town. He mentioned several times that during design and construction major international studios were consulted and their suggestions and recommendations were used to help build a great complex. Many of the mistakes made by international studios were taken into account

Andrew MacDonald (producer DNA Films) and Nico Dekker

during the construction of CTFS. Nico oversaw the construction of a hill on the new backlot, taking only ten days to complete the complex project in order to secure a major production. He said: “We reshaped the whole site, even the big contractors said they’ve never seen anything being built this quickly. Everyone expected it to take six weeks at least. But if we hadn’t taken just ten days to build it, they would not have been able to make the programme we have booked for the backlot”. When asked about the future of the studio, and work on the horizon Nico revealed that there are several big productions headed to the studio, although

with negotiations at a sensitive stage, he couldn’t name any names. Nico said: “This is a journey, considering the studio isn’t even a year old, we already had DNA Films’ Dredd (Kalahari Pictures) here, we had Safe House from Universal Pictures (Moonlighting) here for selected scenes with Denzel Washington. We had Chronicle (Film Afrika), for 20th Century Fox – the ﬁrst time they’ve shot at studios in Africa. We’ve had Working Title’s The Borrowers (Moonlighting) with Stephen Fry. His tweet was major for us (Stephen Fry tweeted: Must say deeply impressed with brand new Cape Town Studios. Make Pinewood etc look v shabby.)”

He concluded: “Hopefully there are still big things to come in the next ten years. The ﬁrst few studios, workshops and setup here was supposed to provide either a workable environment for the local and international producers or not. The question was whether they would accept it, and I think that question has been answered now. The next steps can be taken now. There have been many companies who’ve put their names down with us who want to move here permanently. About 140 companies have indicated they would like to come here. “ Kate Hodges

LOERIES RANKINGS

Keith Rose

LOERIES 2011 The Callsheet has used the Loeries ranking system to work out the top directors, production companies and advertising agencies following the Loerie Awards which took place from 16-18 September 2011.

he director rankings were determined using the same system applied to every award that had a production company and director credited. 110 points were awarded for a Gold, 40 points for a Silver, 5 points for a Bronze, 90 points for a Craft Gold and 30 points for a Craft Cer-

tificate. Campaign awards were given 1.5 times the points. RANKING BY FILM PRODUCTION COMPANY: 1 VeloCiTy FilmS 2 PiCTure Tree 3 eGG FilmS 4 Fundi FilmS 5 14 10Th STreeT 6 oranGe FilmS 7 hoTel de Ville 8 BouFFanT 9 humanoid@eGGFilmS 9 Plank FilmS RANKING BY DIRECTOR: 1 keiTh roSe (Velocity Films) 2 alan irVine (Picture Tree)

3 roBin Goode (Giant Films) 4 TonGai FuruSa (14 10th Street) 5 GreG Gray (Velocity Films) 6 Slim (egg Films) 7 JanneS hendrikZ (Shy The Sun) 8 TerenCe neale (humanoid@ eGG) 8 PeTe PohorSky (Plank Films) 10 adrian de Sa GarCeS (Velocity Films) 11 dean BlumBerG (Bouffant) OVERALL RANKING BY AGENCY: 1 FoxP2 2 neT#Work BBdo 3 oGilVy CaPe ToWn 4 ddB SouTh aFriCa 5 The JuPiTer draWinG room

SouTh aFriCa (CaPe ToWn) 6 TBWa\hunT\laSCariS JohanneSBurG 7 mCCann eriCkSon 8 draFTFCB JohanneSBurG 9 oGilVy JohanneSBurG 10 140 BBdo RANKING BY DIGITAL AGENCY 1 helloComPuTer 2 Gloo diGiTal deSiGn 3 naTiVe 4 Pixel ProJeCT 5 PreZenCe 6 diGiTal FaBriC 7 leFTField 8 STrike media allan Gray marketing manager Tracy hirst won a marketing leadership and innovation award for her work with the company over the last

Tracy Hirst

ten years. With no Grand Prix for film this year, it looks like the trend towards digital advertising, often by specialist digital agencies, may be gaining momentum. This raises interesting questions about what traditional production companies will do in response to the changing nature of the advertising industry. keep an eye out for next month’s Callsheet Newspaper which will feature an in-depth discussion on digital advertising. The Callsheet and all at Film and event media would like to congratulate the winners and nominees, as well as the loeries organising committee for putting on a great show. Staff Writer

LOERIES WINNERS LOERIES 2011 ALL the winners in film categories at the 2011 Loerie Awards that took place at the CTICC on 18 September 2011.

entrant: JWT Johannesburg Title: Bigger medal: Bronze entrant: JWT Johannesburg Title: Mud medal: Bronze

TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV & CINEMA COMMERCIALS - SHORT FORMAT

entrant: JWT Johannesburg Title: Jumbled medal: Bronze

entrant: FoxP2 Title: Love To Meet You medal: Gold

entrant: Saatchi & Saatchi Title: Ed Masters medal: Bronze

entrant: ddB South africa Title: McDonalds Regret Tests medal: Campaign Gold

entrant: draftfcb burg Title: Cut the cord medal: Bronze

entrant: ogilvy Johannesburg Title: Voice Over medal: Silver entrant: king James Title: The Real McCoy medal: Silver entrant: mcCann erickson Title: Emoticon Boy medal: Silver entrant: Black river FC Title: Kagiso, The New Nando’s CEO medal: Bronze entrant: FoxP2 Title: The Tshabalala Account medal: Bronze entrant: ogilvy Cape Town Title: Neverending Story medal: Bronze entrant: Joe Public Title: Memories medal: Bronze

Johannes-

medal: Craft Gold entrant: Velocity Films Title: Voice Over Medal: Craft Certificate TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS UP TO 90S – CINEMATOGRAPHY entrant: egg Films Title: Glory Medal: Craft Certificate TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS UP TO 90S - ART DIRECTION entrant: mcCann erickson Title: Emoticon Boy medal: Craft Gold

TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: INTERNET & MOBILE COMMERCIALS

entrant: ogilvy Johannesburg Title: Voice Over Medal: Craft Certificate

entrant: lowe Bull Cape Town Title: Your hair and nails can save the rhino medal: Bronze

TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS UP TO 90S – ANIMATION

TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV TRAILERS, CHANNEL & STATION PROMOS entrant: ireland/davenport Title: Loved Ones Lost medal: Campaign Silver entrant: ogilvy Johannesburg Title: Cat medal: Bronze TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS UP TO 90S – DIRECTION entrant: mcCann erickson Title: Emoticon Boy

entrant: BlackGinger Title: Believe in Magic Medal: Campaign Craft Certificate TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS UP TO 90S - SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS entrant: Black Ginger Title: Emoticon Boy medal: Craft Gold entrant: Sinister Studio Title: Glory medal: Craft Gold entrant: net#Work BBdo

Title: Return Of The Craving Medal: Craft Certificate entrant: BlackGinger Title: Vodacom Summer Medal: Craft Certificate TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS UP TO 90S – EDITING entrant: mcCann erickson Title Emoticon Boy Medal: Craft Certificate TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS UP TO 90S - ORIGINAL MUSIC & SOUND DESIGN

TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS ABOVE 90S – ANIMATION entrant: Shy the Sun Title: Alice: Madness Returns Medal: Craft Certificate INTEGRATED CAMPAIGN: INTEGRATED CAMPAIGN entrant: Black river FC Title: The New Nando’s CEO medal: Campaign Silver entrant: FoxP2 Title: Frank medal: Silver

entrant: Velocity Films Title: Voice Over Medal: Craft Certificate

entrant: FoxP2 Title: Love To Meet You medal: Campaign Silver

TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS ABOVE 90S – DIRECTION

entrant: ogilvy Cape Town Title: Heartgingers medal: Campaign Silver

entrant: orange Films Title: Control medal: Gold

entrant: TBWa\hunT\laSCariS JohanneSBurG Title: The Voiceless Campaign medal: Campaign Gold

TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS ABOVE 90S – CINEMATOGRAPHY entrant: orange Films Title: Control Medal: Craft Certificate TELEVISION, FILM AND VIDEO COMMUNICATION: TV CRAFTS ABOVE 90S - ART DIRECTION entrant: Shy the Sun Title: Alice: Madness Returns Medal: Craft Certificate

entrant: mcCann erickson Title: Heita South Africa medal: Campaign Bronze entrant: ddB South africa Title: Rather Have The Party At Our Place medal: Campaign Silver

ARRI/RED COMPETITOR COMING FROM CHINA

Gideon Furst

TECHNOLOGY A COMPANY in China is developing a competitor for the Arri Alexa and Red Epic and it’s set to sell for around $8000.

hen it comes to highend camera equipment there’s only a handful of brands modern filmmakers are willing to use. Arri, ReD, Phantom, Si2K and even Canon. each come with their own price tag, and if you want to add aesthetic value to your production then chances are you’ll be spending a pretty penny in order to do so. This is the case almost all of the time but thankfully, and I say this with bated breath, the mighty Chinese manufacturing industry has decided to come

to the aid of all those independent filmmakers who were wanting to shoot RAW footage but haven’t been able to afford it. A clone camera has been designed using ReD and Arri engineering as a base from which to work. They call it the KineRAW S35 and it looks like a ReD Mysterium X, with the user interface of an Arri Alexa. But how does it shoot? According to Gideon Furst (Media Film Services – head of Digital), “the KineRAW is still in development. The manufacturer wants us to look at the spec sheet and make assumptions based on that. In the real world we want to see what the camera can actually produce.” MFS firmly promotes the use of the Arri Alexa range, a

camera that has proven itself a handy tool for commercials and feature films alike. How do the two compare in terms of quality output? “The Arri Alexa offers hD and 2K resolution with a base ASA of 800. The KineRAW is set at 400 ASA and also offers 2K. But, we don’t know what the output really looks like on the KineRAW. It is pretty much untested. The Alexa has already proven it can get away with not offering 4K.” These are notable attributes that leave the KineRAW in uncharted territory. Would it be worth risking your entire production on an untested camera? “We know nothing about this camera company, so we don’t know how good the support would be if something had

to go wrong. Insurance companies may not support an unknown like KineRAW, not to mention all the bugs you could experience with such a new release.” In a nutshell the camera may well be an unreliable tool that could compromise a production rather than add value for money. Although, risks have been taken with the “underdog” in the past. ReD was pretty much unheard of 10 years ago, but now the company dominates the industry. So why then wouldn’t there be room for a Chinese counterpart offering 2K RAW imagery at a fraction of the price? Richard Muller (camera operator/ DIT specialist) says that, “as long as it isn’t released too soon, it will probably find a spot in the midrange market servicing independent films and documentaries. But, a slightly cheaper camera often has less of an impact on the overall cost of the production. Lenses, support gear, filters and of course digital VT all add up. In the end the camera in terms of price is of least concern.” The KineRAW S35 comes in at around $8000 making it the cheapest RAW format camera ever released. It has a robust looking chassis, and an easy to understand user interface. It may well offer filmmakers on a small budget a real solution.

But that doesn’t deter from the fact that the company producing the camera needs to be forthcoming in making the camera available to the industry for testing. “If KineRAW really wants to upstage the market leaders, they’ll do it by releasing a finished, battle-tested and hassle free camera,” says Richard, who has just recently completed work on a 3D wildlife documentary. KineRAW are also planning to challenge the Super16 and Super8 markets with the upcoming releases of their S16 and S8 models. With the release of those models the brand may become a serious competitor in the digital cinematography market, especially as budgets are cut and the world continues to ride through the recession. however, it would be a silly assumption to think that ReD and Arri will suffer much at the hands of this Chinese newcomer. Both brands have developed a strong following and where KineRAW fails is its ability to push beyond 2K, unlike the ReD epic’s 5K, and the meager offering of up to 30fps in comparison once again to the ReD epic’s 300fps. For more information visit: www.kineraw.com Jasyn Howes

P2P CONFERENCE FIGHTS FOR SUSTAINABILITY DOCUMENTARIES Organisers of a biennial conference for documentary filmmakers may rethink the format of the event after this year’s agenda proved over-ambitious.

he People to People (P2P) International Documentary Conference hosted 75 African and international film makers in September, up from just 15 in 2007 and 17 in 2009. But by the third day attendance levels had dwindled to a degree that suggests a shorter, more compact event would be more appropriate. The P2P Conference aims to bring together film industry professionals to strengthen the role and the scope of documentaries in Africa. The event featured more than 20 seminars and panel discussions, as well as workshops where emerging filmmakers could improve their skills by taking classes led by masters of the craft. Convenor Arya Lalloo said attendance on the first two days was encouraging, but whether it was sustainable for three days was a good question. The event was held in Johannesburg’s Atlas Studios, and by day three the cavernous size of the studios highlighted the small numbers in the audience.

Several things may be done differently in future years, Arya said. “We took a very big risk in expanding the event almost beyond our capacity in the number of people invited and the number of sessions being hosted. We ran a programme that tried to cover the art, technology and business of documentary fairly evenly, and as an additional part of the programme we ran some master classes. I think we were ambitious in the number of sessions and the number of people we hosted and the areas we attempted to cover,” she said. Numerous sponsors included the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), the Gauteng and Cape Film Commissions, the Ford Foundation, Ster Kinekor and the Goteborg International Film Festival Fund. The sponsors covered much of the travel costs for the invited filmmakers, but there was not enough organisational support for the logistical team to expand appropriately. “It’s been humbling,” said Arya. “It’s a risk and some things have panned out and some haven’t, but the mistakes are ones that are going to be learned from.” It was too early to say what changes were likely for the 2013 conference, as the organisers first needed to evaluate this year’s event and get

feedback from the attendees, then go back to the drawing board, Arya said. The event succeeded in uniting some leading lights and emerging filmmakers from around the world for three days, and the conversations they had were amazing and very productive, she said. Guests included Spanish scriptwriter Carlos Dominguez; local producer David Max Brown; Mahen Bonetti, founder of the African Film Festival; and Ryan harrington, directory of documentary programs at the Tribeca Film Institute. The final plenary session discussed whether there is a need for a new pan-African association of documentary filmmakers. “We asked everyone to address key questions about what networks already exist for them and what are the successes and failures of those networks,” said Arya. “We asked what are the shared threats and opportunities and can we support each other in making ourselves stronger. We are asking whether an African Documentary Network would be helpful and relevant.” Other sessions discussed the role that piracy could play in actually growing a country’s film industry, the importance of film festivals, raising funds to produce documentaries, and a talk by South Africa’s

Industrial Development Corporation about plans to increase its financial support of local documentaries. Another session covered the decline of the SABC and its inability to serve the public properly. The public broadcaster was slated for failing in its mandate to serve consumers due to greed, a lack of leadership and commitment, and because managers were appointed for political favouritism rather than for their competency. Media consultant Libby Lloyd said the UK’s BBC spent 80% of its budget on content, 10% on distribution and 10% on overheads, Although the SABC doesn’t break down its figures, she estimates that it spends no

more than a mere 30% of its budget on buying or commissioning content. “If they are not prepared to spend more on content then they don’t deserve more public funding,” she said. Libby urged the audience of film and television production professionals to become proactively involved in a review taking place to redefine the SABC’s strategies. If they didn’t, the SABC might follow through with its plans to air more shows sponsored by advertisers, where there would be no high quality drama or editorial integrity because the material would be produced by advertising companies. Lesley Stones

CREW OF THE MONTH - TOBIE DE HAAS (BEST BOY)

CREW IN a new feature that focuses on a local crew The Callsheet chatted to a talented young best boy Tobie De Haas from Silver Bullet Lighting about his work and his experience of the local film industry.

he Callsheet met with Tobie and Silver Bullet Lighting founder Clint Howes at The Post Office post-production facility to chat about Tobie and being a best boy in South Africa. How did you get into the industry? After studying visual effects at film school, I met up with Clint and did my first day of lighting and after that I never looked back. What do you enjoy most about the job? I think it’s the sense of accomplishment once you’re done with the day’s shoot. You can feel that you’ve been working hard all day, you feel it in your body – you feel like you’ve earned your day’s due. What are the biggest challenges of the job? Well apart from getting people to pay you... Working with different people all the time is sometimes quite taxing. To a certain extent you can build a relationship with people you work with on a regular ba-

sis, but most of the time if it’s people you don’t usually work with you don’t really know how they work and you’ve always got to kind of figure your way around how they want something done. Everyone has his own preference about exactly how to do a thing – there’s like a million different ways to do one thing. Clint added: Even with lighting, strangely enough, one guy will light something completely differently to how I would light it – and then the next gaffer will light it completely different. I find that is an issue – there’s never a set way of lighting. Which is actually lekker, because it makes the job interesting. What was the biggest/most chhallenging job you’ve worked on? Clint: I suppose the biggest is this little movie we’ve just finished. Tobie interjected at this point, saying: That was probably our most challenging. I suppose if you work with a very small crew, it’s all good and well but at the same time say there’s no AD, you’ve have to fill in whoever can fill in. You have to go above and beyond, like to help out the art department, or organise things or logistics, which isn’t really our responsibility but sometimes you just have to fill in. Do you work mostly in movies or commercials? We do mostly commercials.

Local or international? A lot of it international companies, but we use mostly local production companies and crew. We recently finished working on a local advert for Woolworths. But a lot of times you’ll do work for companies that you’ve never even heard of, we did a shoot for a company called Ticklewood on Camps Bay beach recently. A lot of retail outlets, and cellphone companies, we also worked on a viral campaign for Mini recently. We also try and do less high profile work for the local market, just because there’s more market and leeway to have creative breathing room. Especially with the development of smaller cameras and DSLRs and the like, there’s a much bigger demand developing for small-scale packages. There’s a demand for jobs that fall into a smaller budget category, but still deliver a quality product at the end of the day.

Do you expect season (just starting) to be a busy one? I think so, usually we get confirmed about a week or two before we shoot if we’re lucky, but as far as I can see it’s going to be a big season – based on how busy we were last year. We were shooting back to back for most of last season. So I’m looking forward to it being another busy season. Was last season affected by external factors, such as the recession or the World Cup? Yes, definitely. Not so much the rececession, but the World Cup definitely. It was extremely quiet for us and for the industry as a whole during the World Cup. People it expected it to create a lot of work, but instead it was really quiet.

ally cool bunch of guys to work with. It was a five day shoot, and I happened to bring my guitar along. I was playing it one day while we were eating pizza, and one of the Fly on the Wall guys said “Hey let me record that riff”. About two weeks later, the director Bryan Little called me, he said “We found this recording of your tune in between all the on set recordings and we actually really liked it, can we use it for the ad?”. That was a really cool opportunity for me, that my music was featured on an international National Geographic advert. The company has been operating for about seven years. You can find out more about Tobie, Clint and the Silver Bullet Lighting crew on their website.

Any war stories... We were doing a National Geographic advert (live Curious) with Fly on the Wall, a re-

the Callsheet Newspaper congratulates all the Loeries winners for 2011. So whether you bagged a Craft Certificate or a Grand Prix, we thank you for producing another year of sterling work. Keep flying the create flag and remember, don’t hate, create.

To advertise call Makkie | 021 674 0646 | Email | makkie@thecallsheet.co.za www.thecallsheet.co.za 10

Kate Hodges

TOP CREATIVE DIRECTORS ON THE LOERIES

XOLISA DYESHANA- JOE PUBLIC

VANESSA PEARSON - MCCANN ERICKSON

MIKE SCHALIT - BBDO South Africa

What was your best moment of the Loeries? Every year when Joe Public does well, lol. No, but seriously, I’d say every time we walk up onto the stage to receive acknowledgement for something we’ve sweated blood and tears to make happen. There are very few words that can truly capture that feeling. Who do you rate at the Loeries this year? Firstly, I rate everyone that wins the big ones – congratulations to you and keep doing great work that moves our industry forward. Lastly, I rate those that were nominated as I believe that too isn’t an easy feat. What are you currently working on? We just finished the launch campaign of the new Kaizer Chiefs kit for Nike. That was a great project and it’s been interesting seeing how the market is receiving it. Do you have any exciting projects in the pipeline? Oh we have a few, but unfortunately if I told you, I’d have to kill you. What is your background (art direction/copywriting)? Copywriting. Who was your most memorable client? Are clients going to read this? I love all my clients. Describe the Loeries weekend in one word. Madness.

What was your best moment of the Loeries? The year we won two Gold Loerie awards and no one went up to collect as the team were shooting 8.ta’s launch TV commercial. And I was hit with extreme vertigo and doctors orders were, ‘Stay in bed, no walking”. But Andrew Human’s a nice man and all’s forgiven now :) Who do you rate at the Loeries this year? Everyone. I believe there’s great individual talent spread across the industry. Do you have any exciting projects in the pipeline? Yes. Yes. Yes. Unfortunately when they’re exciting, they’re usually also very confidential. What is your background (art direction/copywriting) My key craft is art direction but I cross over into writing and strategy too. Essential skills for anyone in a creative leadership position. Along with psycho analysis, multitasking, economics and NATO-like peace keeping capabilities. Who was your most memorable client? The one I’m currently working on. Describe the Loeries weekend in one word. Gehenna.

What was your best moment of the Loeries? Oops, my silver tints will be showing, but hey has to be a toss up between my very first Grand Prix, an Outdoor for City Lodge back in some last century, 1987, or the huge surprise of that first Special Achievement Grand Prix three years ago. Who do you rate at the Loeries this year? Hmm, now that would be telling. But hey, anyone who manages to pick up any metal, kudos to you. You have the mettle. Acknowledgement and respect from your peers in this competitive business doesn’t come easy. What are you currently working on? Just finished Oudemeester epic with Jamie Foxx. Now in the trenches of shackland and hope with a development film for grassroots baseball. Inspiring stuff. Do you have any exciting projects in the pipeline? Gaining traction with a whole bunch through our Nonprofit MAL Foundation, just launched ideas4good.com, and hosting 20 talented pdi youngsters producing a cool new youth magazine LIVE . What is your background (art direction/copywriting)? Failing as a rock musician. Writing wrongs. Thinking of things that can’t be done. Describe the Loeries weekend in one word. Hey?

MARIANA O’KELLY - OGILVY JHB

DEVIN KENNEDY - KING JAMES

PEPE MARAIS- JOE PUBLIC

What was your best moment of the Loeries? Last year when I could fit into a dress again after having had my twins two years before. Who do you rate at the Loeries this year? Every agency that has managed to sell great legitimate creative work to their clients. What are you currently working on? Perfecting the basic chocolate cake. In a recent focus group, 9 out of 10 people said “yum”. Do you have any exciting projects in the pipeline? I’ve just finished the MKis campaign for MK TV Channel which has been one of the most exciting projects I have worked on so far. I pray there will be more of those coming our way soon. What is your background (art direction/copywriting)? Art Direction Who was your most memorable client? The brave ones. The ones that has a passion for doing things differently. Describe the Loeries weekend in one word #imissmyboys

What was your best moment of the Loeries? My best moment was a couple of years ago when we won big on Allan Gray for the first time. We’ve been building the brand year by year trying to do better and braver work with every campaign. So it was very gratifying when Beautiful won the Grand Prix and we picked up a few golds across the board on Allan Gray. Winning is always nice but sometimes the most important thing is not the award, but the lesson to be learnt from it. And in this case it’s that, in this game, the rewards aren’t always immediate and the harder you work the luckier you get (Yes I stole that last quote from Gary Player. Sorry Gary.) Who do you rate at the Loeries this year? I don’t know if there’s a piece of work that stands out head and shoulders above the rest like in many previous years so it’s really hard to say. I’ve been asking myself the same question. Who was your most memorable client? About ten years ago we had Mavericks Revue Bar as a client and that was certainly memorable, maybe not for the right reasons. Describe the Loeries weekend in one word. Uh-oh...

What was your best moment of the Loeries? Every time our people are rewarded for the great work they pour their hearts into. Who do you rate at the Loeries this year? Anyone whose done work of true substance. What are you currently working on? An awesome new positioning campaign for one of SA’s most iconic brands, Clover. Do you have any exciting projects in the pipeline? We have quite a few on the go for our new client, FoodCorp. What is your background (art direction/copywriting)? Art Direction with an absolute love for writing. Who was your most memorable client? Our first client, Full House. They paid us R800 for their name generation, pay-off line and design. We danced around their boardroom table when they handed us the cheque. Thirteen years later, they are back for a logo evolution. Proof that good work goes a long way. Describe the Loeries weekend in one word Inspirational.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION LOCATIONS With so many great things to offer filmmakers South Africa remains a popular shooting destination - however one of the biggest feathers in the local industry’s cap remains the wide variety of locations we can offer international clients

ale Bedford of amazing Spaces explained why she thinks we are such a film-friendly destination, saying: “a number of internationals comment on the variety of locations available in South africa. Many films or commercials that appear to be set in the U.S., Europe or even the Saharan dessert have been shot here and these spaces can all be found within an hour or so of each other. We have private homes with such varied architecture that can appear to be in Germany, Tuscany, Provence or even middle america as well as community and public spaces that can pass for Mexico or even an airport in the Czech Republic.“ South african locations have doubled up as New York, London, the Sahara Desert, Brazil and many more, all this with experienced English-speaking crew and a well-established film industry means that companies like General electric and BMW have both shot several commercials

Amazing Spaces Amazing Spaces

here. a National Geographic advert from last year, Live Curious showcased the gorgeous variety of locations to be found in South Africa. Dale concluded: “Pricing

in general needs to stay low, as this keeps us competitive.” Antoinette from The Location Corporation said: “South africa will always be one of the

Robert Bentley

top destinations to shoot in for the simple reason that you can reach such diverse locations and landscapes in less than an hour either way. South africa offers international level production companies, rigging companies, modelling and location companies so we are on the same professional level as the international film industry. With regards to the future of the industry and ensuring it remains attractive to international clients, Antoinette added: “We can as location companies educate our location owners, on the current budgets the international clients are arriving with and what a realistic competitive price structure would be”

Live Curious commercial

IS THE SA FILM INDUSTRY RECESSION-PROOF? Genevieve hofmeyr

Marlow De Mardt

David Wicht

GENERAL INDUSTRY South Africa’s film industry seems to be almost recessionproof, and with widespread reports in the global media of a second, possibly more serious recession looming, this is good news for the local film industry.

hE SoUTh african producers The Callsheet spoke to all agree that the exchange rate and the status of rebates play a massive role in how the industry has weathered the 2008 recession. They feel these factors will also play a role if the industry is forced to ride out another economic downturn. David Wicht, the CEo of Film Afrika, believes there are several reasons for the amount of work the local industry is doing despite a global slowdown. David points to the obvious

factor of good production values at a reasonable price. David said: “The skills level across all departments means very few foreign crew travelling to SA which is a big saving, and often a hidden cost in other destinations.” He added that while the Rand is strong against the Dollar it hasn’t strengthened as much against the australian and Canadian Dollar. at the time of going to print, the South african Rand was at over R8 to the $1, a very attractive rate for foreign investors. The international climate with regards to rebates is also a huge contributing factor, as David pointed out the US has scaled back on rebates on the whole, while our rebate system is relatively simple compared to tax shelter rebates elsewhere - which are quite complex. In addition local co-pro-

ducers have shown ingenuity and worked extraordinarily hard to create film opportunities via the use of treaty coproductions and EU financing. David concluded: “South africa remains the lowest cost English language film destination in the world, and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future. We need to constantly up our quality and grow our crew base if we’re going to remain a world leader. The rebate is critical to our success, and we need to commend the DTI [Department of Trade and Industry] for their vision and successful implementation.” Cape Town has a world class studio complex that is attracting a variety of new productions and expands the overall offering of shooting in South africa. locations remain a huge drawcard for

international productions, due to the breathtaking variety of locations all within a short distance of each other. a desert landscape can be found within two hour’s drive of a beach or a cityscape in South africa. Moonlighting Films producer Genevieve Hofmeyr believes Sa will remain a desirable destination in the event of another recession. She said: “In a major recession, more than ever, decisions are driven by cost. South africa’s cost of production has remained competitive even in the face of exchange fluctuation and a strengthening Rand. Our costs are reasonable but I believe that what makes us ultimately desirable as a filming destination is that our competitive cost is coupled with great quality and exceptional production value. It is the antithesis of the concept “you get what you pay for” - in South Africa, time and time again the feedback we get is that foreign producers ‘get way MORe than they pay for’. This, I think, keeps us in the game – despite world economic crises.” Genevieve concluded: “even though there are fewer films made during a time of recession, they still need to be made somewhere so as long as we keep our costs down and our quality up, we will stand to participate in a larger piece of a smaller pie.” Marlow De Mardt, co-owner of Do Productions, is less optimistic and believes while we have experienced and will

continue to experience the effects of recessions in South Africa, there is much that we can do to counteract the effects of a downturn. Marlow explained: “We’ve seen a falloff of work and a strong rand hasn’t helped, the indie films we [Do Productions] make are very susceptible to changes in currency.” She explained that this is due to a variety of factors, namely our geographical distance from partners, the fact that broadcasters are paying less globally. She does believe that the rebates are the best thing that has happened to the industry and says the way they are managed is very efficient and reliable. Marlow cautioned that South african producers need to be more proactive about networking with international partners. She said: “We need to work harder to establish relationships. Times have moved, we need to understand market needs a lot better before we’re making product, and we need to be more informed. We need to narrow the gap and use a more collaborative approach when we work with our international partners.” The consensus from the top South african producers we canvassed seems to be that we can weather another financial crisis if we’re careful not to let prices get too high and concentrate on researching the needs of international clients. Kate hodges

ONLINE NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

Cerelac commercial

LATEST NEWS GENERAL news from the South African film and commercials industry. You can load your own stories to our website at www.thecallsheet.co.za Bruce Mac Shoots Cerelac Spot BRuCE Mac of the Fabulous Boomtown Boys has become well known for directing commercials featuring appealing kids and babies, with his latest Cerelac spot being no exception. Shot through Publicis Ghana and currently flighting in over 20 countries, the commercial showcases a special bond between mother and baby. The commercial was

shot in sequence, using onset editing to ensure minimum acting time from the little hero, whilst the 50mm lens spontaneously captured all the charming moments. Amazing Spaces Charity Challenge AMAZINg Spaces have taken on an initiative to raise money for a charity they support and have signed up to take part in an iron-distance triathlon called ‘Challenge Cape Town’. The Challenge Series is coming to Cape Town for the first time in November this year. It takes place in cities around the world throughout the year and the organisers have guaranteed to host one in the Mother

City every year for at least five years. The triathlon consists of a 3.8km swim, a 180km cycle and a 42.2km run. The date has been set for Sunday the 6th of November. Amazing Spaces will be splitting the course between three and have entered as a team. Julia (MD at Amazing Spaces) will be swimming, Simon Raubenheimer (a portfolio manager at Allan gray) will be cycling and Dale (marketing manager at Amazing Spaces) will be running. The cut-off time is 17 hours and they’re aiming to do it from start to finish in 12. The training involved has already been gruelling and the next two months will be tough. Julia hasn’t swum since school days but says, “This Challenge is the perfect excuse to kill two birds with one stone - getting swimming fit again, and more importantly doing something really tangible towards raising money for this great little school. I have to admit the open water scares me somewhat, especially the temperature, but it feels good to be part of something that can make a difference.” Simon is a very experienced cyclist on the other hand who’s doing this cycle as a bit of a warm up the week before his big ‘Wines to Whales’ expedition. Dale has taken to sleeping in compression gear and is aiming to

complain about aching knees much less in the future. They are aiming to get each kilometre sponsored at R100 and are looking for donations. The school that this money will go to is called Simunye and it’s located in gugulethu. This school forms a small part of a much larger vision held by Nadia Lubowski and the A.L. Educational Trust. They’ve designed two sponsorship options for you to get involved in the project - be it through one of the options or on a more casual ad-hoc basis. You can either opt for Title Sponsorship or Journey Sponsorship. For further information, please contact Dale directly. SABC1’s Generations adopts tapeless technology Generations will be broadcast in a tapeless environment from 19 September 2011, becoming the first television show in South Africa to do so. The popular soapie will no longer utilise the current tape-based VTM Machines and will instead move to a server-based mode of transmission which requires no tapes. The SABC is promising this will result in better picture quality for viewers. The following are some of the recurring transmission problems experienced with the current tape-based system: • Picture and sound quality

degenerates as the tape is replayed. • Tapes often snap in the middle of broadcast. • Tapes spooling during transmission. The tapeless environment will eliminate such technical problems and thus provide the viewers with a more pleasant viewing experience. The channel’s aim is to expand the tapeless transmission scenario to cover every single title on our schedule. “As part of the schedule improvements in October, we are continually looking for ways to improve on the services we provide to our viewers. We are excited with the new tapeless technology and the impact it will have on the quality of the material we transmit,” says Vukile Madlala, SABC1 publicity manager. “The introduction of the new tapeless technology reinforces SABC1 as being the authority when it comes to staying on the cutting edge of local content and delivering it.” Correction: ARRIVE Alive – Love to Meet You on page 13 of the August 2011 Callsheet in our Loeries contenders spread was incorrectly titled, the advert is actually for Drive Dry and therefore should have read: Drive Dry - Love to Meet You.

ONLINE NEWS HIGHLIGHTS LATEST NEWS Here’s To Good Times Targets multi-lingual audiences THE mini-series, made up of six 45 minute episodes is English, Afrikaans and Xhosa with English subtitles and targeted at a young South African audience. It was shot with a Sony EX3 and the filmmakers exploited the handheld shooting style to create a fast-paced style. The young cast and crew, mainly from City Varsity, started shooting in January 2009, and spent the next year shooting around school and work schedules. Another year in post-production means the series has just recently been finished. The dual narrative tells the story of a group of young adults dabbling with crime and a mysterious local who returns home looking for redemption. Riaz said: “We wanted to make a show that looked at the pervading culture of violence and recklessness in our youth, and the effects and repercussions of those attitudes. We also wanted to look at the cost of redemption of those wanting to make amends for those attitudes. We loosely based the story on a lot of real incidents that took place mainly on the Cape Flats.” How To Steal 2 Million Selected for top US Film Festival HOW to Steal 2 Million, South Africa director Charlie Vundla’s compelling debut feature film, has been selected for this year’s Fantastic Fest, the larg-

est genre film festival in the US. The festival runs from 22 29 September 2011, in Austin, Texas. “Fantastic Fest is a hugely popular film festival so this is excellent news for everyone involved in the movie,” says Jeremy Nathan, producer of How to Steal 2 Million. “The festival specialises in horror, fantasy, sci-fi, and action movies from all around the world. The organisers aim to choose only the best international films, so their selection is a wonderful accolade for How to Steal 2 Million, and especially for Charlie Vundla as this is his first feature film.” The film tells the story of Jack (Menzi Ngubane), who has spent five long years in jail after being arrested for robbery. His partner in crime and best friend Twala (Rapulana Seiphemo) never got caught and Jack never talked. When he is released, Jack decides to go straight. He wants to start a construction business, but after being rejected for a loan he must find another way to get money. An opportunity presents itself when Twala suggests they rob a home where the take is worth R2 million. The film also stars Terry Pheto, Hlubi Mboya and John Kani. According to Helen Kuun, CEO of Indigenous Film Distribution, How to Steal 2 Million performed 15% better than Jerusalema did on its opening weekend. “This is most encouraging. It’s great to see that South African films are becoming increasingly popular.”

Here’s To Good Times

Animated Feature Zambezia Announces All-Star Voice Cast TRIggERFISH Animation Studios and international sales company Cinema Management group (CMg) announced today that voice talents Jeremy Suarez, Abigail Breslin – star of Little Miss Sunshine & Rango, Jeff goldblum, Leonard Nimoy of Star Trek fame and Samuel L. Jackson have joined the voice cast of the 3D animated feature Zambezia. Additional voice talents include Richard E. grant , Jim Cummings and Jenifer Lewis. Zambezia is South Africa’s first 3D animated feature of this budget and talent cali-

ber and is directed by Wayne Thornley. Executive producers include greg Becker and Claire Becker of Wonderful Works, Mace Neufeld (Invictus, The Hunt for Red October), and Edward Noeltner of CMg. Original screenplay was penned by Andrew Cook, Anthony Silverston and Raffaella Delle Donne. “We couldn’t be more thrilled to have these amazingly talented actors give life to our colorfully animated bird characters in Zambezia,” said executive producer and international sales head Edward Noeltner. “They certainly added a vibrant emotional rich-

ness to the film as well as many laugh out loud moments.” Both Zambezia and Triggerfish’s second 3D animated feature Khumba, the story of a little zebra born with only half its stripes, currently also in production in Cape Town, are being represented for international sales by Noeltner’s Beverly Hills-based CMg. In Toronto, Noeltner and CMG’s VP Sales and Operations, Dene Anderberg, will be available for meetings in the Filmmakers’ Lounge at the Hyatt Regency. For more on these and other stories visit www.thecallsheet.co.za

SHNIT SHORT FILM FESTIVAL BACK IN CAPE TOWN

SHORT FILMS Shnit, the international film festival devoted to short films is coming to Cape Town for the second time from 5-9 October 2011.

ET to take place in Cape Town’s hippest venues including The Labia Theatre, The Grand Daddy Hotel and the Rocking The Daisies festival, Shnit is an international shorts festival that showcases some of the most creative and cutting-edge short films from around the world. The Cape Town satellite festival will run concurrently with legs in Berne, Switzerland; Vienna, Austria, Singapore, San Jose, Costa Rica and Cologne, Germany. The films are selected on the basis of how contemporary, cutting edge

and high-quality they are. This year only 300-odd films were selected from over 4000 entries. The programme includes: • A number of curated film programmes including animated shnit, Shnit experiments, peeping Shnit, queershnit (gay and lesbian), feel good Shnit, six feet under, black and white and more • The Shnit-OPEN international competition, in which 80 films compete. • Specialised local programmes in each host country. In South Africa, this takes the form of the Kaapse Bobotie programme, a showcase of the best out-of-competition offerings from South Africa, as well as films by students or filmmakers that show great promise in years to come. • Three international jury awards, an international au-

dience award and individual awards for each host country are presented each year, for prize money totalling over R300,000. In Cape Town, Shnit will have a presence at the popular Rocking the Daisies music festival as well as at 'playground’ venues which will embrace art, music, collaboration and expression. Movies will be screened at a variety of venues in town, with the Labia Theatre hosting the bulk of the shorts that make up the festival programme. In addition, Shnit shorts will be screened at Rocking the Daisies 24 hours a day. At Shnit’s Rooftop Lounge at the Grand Daddy Hotel’s Airstream trailer park and at 95 on Hout Street. 95 on Hout will be screening the more risque shorts on Friday and Saturday night.

Another intriguing component of the festival is the Realtime - Cape of Storms challenge. This exciting challenge will see three Cape Town filmmakers creating films inspired by the theme Cape of Storms during the course of the festival. The films will be screened on the final night of the festival and a winner will be chosen afterwards. The international jury will include South African filmmaker Oliver Hermanus (recently a winner at Cannes for Skoonheid), while the South African jury will be made up of Akin Omotoso, Simon Hansen and Moonyeenn Lee. The festival will be bracketed by two special nights the opening night and the awards night at the end of the festival. Both nights will take place at the Labia. Opening night will preview the fes-

tival's programme, while at the end of the festival audience and jury prizes will be handed out and the Realtime filmmakers will present their work. The Cape Town leg of Shnit this year is being organised by Be Phat Motel screenwriter and producer Sean Drummond. Sean, who wrote the screenplay for Sweetheart, is very excited about the festival, and what it means for Cape Town. He said: “It’s a great honour to be part of a network representing the future of the film festival - global, interactive and collaborative. It’s more than just films - it’s an exchange of culture, ideas and art. This second year in the Mother City sees our little festival growing bigger and better, with more shows, more venues and more local content. It’s a celebration, all about bringing the best of the world’s short cinema to South Africa, to be inspired by and learn from, and to present the best of what South Africa has to offer to the world and to the industry and audiences here. Long days and sleepless nights... but thanks to really great support and partners, our small but dedicated team here in Cape Town is pulling out all the stops this time around. Come and support, prepare for an audiovisual feast!” Shnit’s official partners include: Labia Theatre, Grand Daddy Hotel, 95 on Hout Street, Rocking the Daisies; with support from the Cape Film Commission. Co-operation partners are: Be Phat Motel, RKS-Productions, Sound Events, Digicape, Cinemuse, Backsberg Estate Cellars, Grolsch and Little Big Productions. Realtime co-operation partners include: Zootee Studios, Priest Post-Production, The Monk, Sound Surgeon Studios and Fugitive VFX. Presold Tickets are available from the Labia Theatre, and weekend and day passes are available. For more information visit: shnit.org and facebook.com/shnit.org

LOERIES PHOTOGRAPHY WINNERS the edgars shoe Affair

PHOTOGRAPHY

Waldman

tHe Loeries photography crafts winners this year included sacha Waldman, Huw Morris and david Prior.

title: Albino girl Product: the Edgars Shoe Affair Medal: Craft Certificate Photographer: Sacha Waldman

CoMMUNICAtIoN desIGN: desIGN CRAFts - PHotoGRAPHY title: INJOZI Carnivale Product: iNJOZi website Medal: Craft Certificate Photographer: Ross Garrett

PRINt CoMMUNICAtIoN: NeWsPAPeR AdVeRtIsING title: Suburbia Can’t Compete Product: National Geographic Kids Magazine Medal: Campaign Silver Photographer: David Prior

PRINt CoMMUNICAtIoN: PRINt & CoLLAteRAL CRAFts - PHotoGRAPHY title: Love To Meet You Product: Brandhouse Drive Dry Medal: Campaign Craft Gold Photographer: Sacha

PRINt CoMMUNICAtIoN: PosteRs title: Love To Meet You Product: Brandhouse Drive Dry

Medal: Campaign Silver Photographer: Sacha Waldman title: Car Parts Product: tracker Medal: Bronze Photographer: huw Morris INteGRAted CAMPAIGN: title: The Voiceless Campaign Product: the Zimbabwean newspaper Medal: Campaign Gold Photographer: Dirk-Jan Visser, James Oatway, Robin hammond suburbia Can’t Compete

MOBILE ENTERTAINMENT AFRICA 2011 TECHNOLOGY Hosted by All Amber, the Mobile entertainment Africa event at the glamourous one and only hotel in Cape town on 23 and 24 August 2011 provided delegates with a host of information about this constantly evolving industry.

ith a raft of interesting speakers including Emma Kaye from Bozza, Musa Kalenga, Russel Southwood from Balancing Act, Candice Goodman from Mobitainment and Jon Hoehler from Starfish among others. topics were far-ranging with talks on topics suchas sms gaming and the rise and rise of ebooks, delegates were never given a change to grow bored. the event was smoothly run, and the catering from the One and Only and Reubens restaurant meant the event was well-attended right through to the end of day two. At the end of day two an App Circus was held, where several developers presented well-researched, well developed apps to an experienced panel and eventually Anna Shongwe’s presentation for a mobile game to combat sexual violence was overwhelmingly declared a worthy winner. Mark Rayner from Multichoice spoke about tV content for mobile devices, revealing that mobile video

makes up two-thirds of the demand for mobile content. Mark pointed out that the changes in technology (larger screens, increased memory capacity) are driving growth in this direction. Fela Oke, the founder of Goldrush Entertainment looked at a similar topic, asking questions about the convergence of film, TV and mobile. he assessed whether traditional video formats are viable on the small screen. Candice from Mobitainment discussed the growing interactivity with tV made possible by the growth of mobile device ownership. She discussed how brand loyalty is being built through mobile phones, and her revelations about the numbers of mobile phone users in South Africa reinforced the idea that this is very good business for brands. One of the highlights of day one was the talk by Emma. She discussed mobile filmmaking, looking specifically at how the mobile phone can be a tool for citizen journalism. Emma introduced the room to Bozza, a project which hosts content shot on mobile phones in the townships by people who live there. Following on from Emma was director Aryan Kaganof who produced film SMS Sugar Man using only a mobile phone - a Sony Ericsson W900i. On day two Musa got things off to an energetic start with his talk on marketing to the youth using mobile devices. Musa was an engag-

Mobile entertainment Africa Panel

ing speaker, and he held the room’s attention while he talked about engaging with your audience in ways that interest them in order to achieve your marketing objectives. Wesley Lynch’s talk on ebooks looked back at how the music industry has been changed by downloads, and predicted a similar revolution in publishing. his talk prompted an interesting panel discussion at the end of the session where the hot button issue of piracy was discussed. the afternoon talks were

around the subject of gaming on mobile, with a fascinating look at two different ways of building communities from Mxit’s Gavin Marshall and Motribe’s Vincent Maher. the event provided a wealth of information for delegates and the speakers were entertaining and passionate about their subjects. the speakers at Mobile Entertainment Africa were people at the cutting edge of their field, excited to share their work with like-minded people.

Andrew from All Amber said:”Naturally, we’re delighted with how Mobile Entertainment Africa was received – our intention is to facilitate business development and we certainly achieved that. But for us as the organisers what we’re most pleased about was the strong appetite for learning about content creation and consumption on mobile devices and the buzz amongst attendees to take this to the next level. Feedback has been outstanding.” Kate Hodges

EMC: COMEDY AND SITCOM MODULE eMc participants

SCRIPTWRITING Scriptwriter Andrew Brittan attended the entertainment Master class in cape town which focused on comedy and Sitcom and took place from 9-15 September 2011.

“

We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.’ John. F Kennedy may just as well have been talking about getting a genuinely funny sitcom on television as he was about landing a man on the moon. If that sounds like hyperbole then consider that even the

insanely funny John Cleese and his then wife and co-writer Connie Booth spent six weeks writing each episode of the definitive Fawlty Towers. This was the sobering and equally heartening word from Humphrey Barclay, veteran British TV producer and lynchpin of the international entertainment Master Class held this September in Cape Town. Sobering because it confirmed that even the greatest talents still sweat over every single line in a script. And heartening because those who’ve tried and found situation comedy such a hard nut to crack now know they share this pain with these true greats.

Because there’s no ‘unified theory of funny’, the weeklong master class brought with it a crack squad of top industry pros, each considering comedy from another angle. Keri Lewis Brown is an ace in media trends and she profiled the new frontiers of the ever inventive British comedy industry including the latest innovations from Ricky Gervais and the Little Britain team. In turn it emerged that the Americans look at all that happens in the U.K. and typically ask ‘why do the Brits have to keep on reinventing the wheel?’ It’s a fair question given American television’s success in creating multiple, syndicated seasons of their own comedies. Their ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ approach takes a good comic formula of situation and character then puts it through the machine - legions of writers to work on every element of every script; from storyline and structure to character and dialogue. It obviously works since no one was chaining us to our couches through Seinfeild, Frasier or Will and Grace. They’re funny – bottom line. Norman A. Kurland should know. As an American agent he has represented the creators and writers of everything from Cheers, to the aforementioned Frasier and Will and Grace. At the workshop

he spoke with great authority on what makes for successful and enduring comedy; he also championed the writers without whose work no sitcom would ever get out of the starting blocks, going so far as to good naturedly accuse one producer of slavery for his practice of keeping script rates as low as humanly possible. And that was a novelty to the South African scriptwriters on the master class since this country has the shameful distinction of practically no recognized literary agents representing scriptwriters. Zero. In a nation not unknown for mobilizing itself in every other sector there remains this glaring area of neglect. Not simply in setting a minimum wage but as importantly in securing good rates that reflect the worth of a good script. But who is to blame? The master class asked whether South African scriptwriters will rouse themselves to get some mighty agent negotiating their rates and selling their talents – or whether they’ll simply revert to type and continue delivering the golden egg whilst financially cutting their own throats, because they love writing anyway. On the content front, Germany’s Christian Munder who is director of development for a major european channel,

looked at women in comedy from Murphy Brown to Sex And The City. Being a psychiatrist too, Mr. Munder analysed how a show like Murphy Brown is as substantial as it is successful. i.e. the comedy is rooted in emotional truth, is relevant and therefore endures. The delegates to this master class were by no means all local. In fact the split was about two thirds international to one third local; broadcasters, writers and producers from europe to Malaysia and South Africa were all here to learn how to recognize comedy’s equivalent of The Right Stuff - then how to develop it from concept to broadcast [putting the guy on the moon]. This meant classes on comedy of situation versus comedy of jokes and invaluable pitching sessions where the expert panel actually explained their reactions instead of simply announcing ‘we’ll call you’. What constitutes a copyrightable idea or format? Which of these ideas go on to make money? What is funny to a 12 year old? All were addressed. There was even a wonderfully approachable and insightful local commissioning editor in attendance. Which suggested anything is possible. Andrew Brittan

ENTERTAINMENT MASTER CLASS GALA DINNER E N T E R TA I N M E N T MASTER CLASS DeLeGAteS from the entertainment Master class which took place in cape town from 9-15 September 2011 were treated to a delicious dinner at 1800 degree restaurant at cape royale.

he dinner was organised by ten students currently studying events management at Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), on behalf of eMC, Waterfront Studios and Film & event Media. Guests were treated to a specially designed menu. F.I.L.M was the nominated association that the ten CPUT students supported in these events. And The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) kindly took headline sponsorship and support for this very educational and informative event that supports growth for the film and event industry. A big thank you to SHeN who kept the guests very entertained and got them dancing. This was the perfect send off to the eMC international delegates. There were speeches by Juan-Claude Humphreys and Lance Gibbons from Film and event Media as well as by Seton Bailey from F.I.L.M. A special thank you to all our sponsors for the event: entertainment Masterclass (eMC), NFVF, Victoria Junction Hotel, Cape Royale, Superior Vision and Value Logistics.

MONTHLY WRAP PARTY AT THE TAJ INDUSTRY EVENTS FILM & Event Media’s August monthly wrap party, on 25 August 2011 at the Taj Hotel, was a huge success as guests networked in the swanky Mint restaurant.

HE ﬁve-star Taj, situated in Wale Street at the entrance to St George’s Mall opened their doors to networkers who were welcomed with a delicious glass of wines and the strains of piano - played by a pianist in the corner of the lobby. The well-attended event took place in The Mint, a gorgeously appointed restaurant that opens onto the Mall. Delicious canapés and snacks were circulated through the room for much of the evening. Adstream South Africa MD Mike Smit and Loeries CEO Andrew Human addressed the crowd made up of ﬁlm and advertising industry. Andrew premiered the Loeries music video, much to the crowd’s delight. We would like to thank all our sponsors: Adstream, Royale International; Croydon Wines; Panalux; Cape Film Commission and Superior Vision and all the attendees who helped make this function such a successful one. Our next wrap party will be at Grinder Films on 27 October 2011. Visit our Facebook page to see the full gallery.

Andrew Human

Gys Styn and Martin Biddulph

Jade Hughes, Nicky Scheepers and Hillary Greve

Rutendo Mtutu and friends

Neil du Toit and Alexis Roberts

Helga Nefdt and Carla Allen

Dawid Minnie and Mallory Ferguson

Christine Metcalf and Mike Smit

JOZI WRAP PARTY AT RANDLORDS INDUSTRY EVENTS

The view from Randlords

FILM and Event Media held another successful Johannesburg wrap party at Randlords - a gorgeous venue that looks out over the City of Gold’s skyline. The event took place on Friday 9 September 2011.

Rudi van Schalkwyk and Anton Katz

Mike Smit, Adeesha Ramprith and Nathan Williams

Morris Ketwa

Jo Schuter, Brent and Lauren Esch

Michelle Barrett, Carrie Barret, Holly and Yvonne

Daniel Adidwa, Iris Qacha, Olivia Kumalo and Bongani Mbatha

Candice McGee and Heidi Davis

Dale Bedford and Ray Burgess

AMESON Irish Whiskey welcomed guests with a whiskey Mojito and made sure the Jozi crowd had a generous supply of their favourite drink throughout the course of the evening. Randlords provided a great spread with a selection of cheeses and delicious cold meats as well as tapas. Our sponsors for the evening were Jameson and Adstream, and guests listended to speeches from Trevor Latimer from Randlords, Mike Smit from Adstream and Loeries CEO Andrew Human. With Andrew speaking it was no surprise that the advertising agencies in the capital turned out to the function in full force. Our Randlords function was a great success, with guests dancing to the beats from the DJ, and attracting the largest number of guests we’ve had at a networking function outside of Cape Town. A huge thank you to all who attended the event as well as to our amazing sponsors. Our next Joburg wrap party will take place at Shine Studios on 3 November 2011. Visit Facebook to see the full gallery.

DIARISE OCTOBER

UPCOMING FEATURES Troye Sivan with the cast of Spud at the Cape Town premiere

MIPCOM Content Market 3-6 October, Cannes, France Eco Kids Film Initiative 3-7 October, Cape Town Aardklop National Arts Festival 4-8 October, Potchefstroom, North West Province New York Showbiz Expo 5 October, New York, USA shnit International Short Film Festival 5-9 October, Cape Town Chicago International Film Festival 6-20 October, Chicago, USA Wildlife Film Academy 9 October-8 November, Longkloof Studios, Cape Town Digital Content Monetisation East 11-13 October, New York USA Photo & Film Expo 13-16 October, Coca~Cola Dome, Johannesburg Abu Dhabi Film Festival 13-22 October, Abu Dhabi, UAE A State of Violence 14 October, cinemas Kenya International Film Festival 21-31 October, Nairobi, Nakuru, Kisumu, Mombasa, Eldoret, Kenya South African Horrorfest Film 26 October-4 November, Labia, Cape Town Promax/BDA Africa 2011 28 October, Sandton, Johannesburg

State of Violence starring Fana Mokoena and Neo Ntlatleng

unearthed is a documentary being ﬁlmed in South Africa investigating possible hydraulic fracturing ‘fracking’ for natural gas in South Africa.

JOBS & OPPORTUNITIES WHY POVERTY SHORT FILMS CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS STEPS are looking for short film ideas of between one and five minutes long. The shorts will be used on the web and broadcast supporting their eight full length films that are in production. as part of its cross media project WHY POVERTY. The short films should challenge the preconceptions about poverty, provoke discussion and action. Thousands of films have been made about poverty, but STEPS are looking for fresh ideas that will be unforgettable. As the shorts will be used to support the programming of the long films STEPS are looking for films that deal with

the following themes: maternal health, corruption/good governance, food security, charity vs justice, gender, solutions to poverty, education, inequality, urban poverty and economic justice. Interested parties must mail an idea for a ﬁlm in less than 10 lines, with an additional 2-3 line biography to brian@steps.co.za with a subject line – WHY POVERTY SHORTS ROUND TWO. For more information visit http://whypoverty.net

by and/or about people of African descent although filmmaker needn’t be of African descent. Films should preferably depict positive and realistic images and can be of any genre - drama, comedy, horror, adventure, animation, romance, science fiction, experimental, etc. The PAFF accepts features and shorts; narratives and documentaries. Deadline to submit films for the Pan African Film Festival 31 October 2011.

PAN AFRICAN FILM FESTIVAL CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS THE Pan African Film Festival is currently accepting applications for ﬁlms and videos made

$100 FILM FESTIVAL CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS THE Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers is pleased to present the annual $100 Film

Festival from March 1-3, 2012. The festival embodies the spirit of independent filmmaking and brings the experience of projected celluloid to our audience by only screening film prints. It is the only competitive festival in Canada that screens exclusively on Super 8 and 16mm film. The $100 Film Festival does not charge any entrance fees and pays artist honorariums for all films selected for the festival. The selected films will also be eligible for festival prizes. Deadline for Entries 1 December 2011. For more information visit www.100dollarfilmfestival.org

DIARISE NOVEMBER American Film Market 2-9 November, Santa Monica, California, USA Leeds International Film Festival 3-20 November, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England AfricaCom Conference and Expo 9-10 November, CTICC, Cape Town

David Hasselhoff and Patricia de Lille at the 2011 Loerie Awards.

Humphrey Barclay speaking to delegates at the Entertainment Master Class held in Cape Town.

Stockholm International Film Festival 9-20 November, Stockholm, Sweden Audio Video Appliance Expo 10-13 November, Johannesburg

2012 SONY WORLD PHOTOGRAPHY AWARDS CALL FOR ENTRIES THE World Photography Organisation is calling for entries for the Sony World Photography Awards 2012. The Sony World Photography Awards is the world’s most comprehensive photography competition. It includes a Professional competition, which invites entries from the world’s leading photographers and ‘serious enthusiasts’, and an Open competition for everyone with an interest in photography. Each competition has been refreshed with new categories for 2012. For a full list of categories, please visit the

website. A new Youth competition has been launched for younger photographers under 20 years of age and the Student Focus competition will continue to support and connect the next generation of photography pros. Entries for the 2012 Sony World Photography Awards close on 4 January 2012. The winner of the L’Iris D’Or Sony World Photography Awards Photographer of the Year Award will be presented with $25,000 (USD) plus Sony digital SLR camera equipment. The overall Open competition winner will receive $5,000 plus Sony digital SLR camera equipment.

For more information please visit www.worldphoto. org. FILM TRAVEL AND TOURISM VENUES AND EVENTS SATFA gets a great number of requests from travel and tourism product owners who needs new videos. Register at SATFA to get a copy of these requests. The goal of the Southern Africa Travel and Tourism Film & Video Awards is to provide a showcase for travel products and artwork to as wide an audience as possible. This is done via the opportunity offered by public screenings on the Internet and top class shopping malls.

The best films and videos will be shown at popular Ster Kinekor, NuMetro and Avalon cinemas countrywide. And some of the best films and videos will make it to traditional television broadcasters. The very best will be entered at international film festivals. hotels, B&B’s, guest houses, game lodges, holiday resorts, caravan parks, hiking routes, etc are all welcome to enter their videos. For more information visit http://www.satfa.co.za or email tvreporter@satfa.co.za

Charl Fourie

Out in Africa Gay amd Lesbian Film Festival 11-12 November, Ermelo, South Africa Tokyo Filmex International Film Festival 19-27 November, Tokyo, Japan Landau International Film Festival 21-26 November, Landau, Germany M-Net Vuka! Awards November, Theatre on Track Kyalami, Gauteng Platteland 25 November, cinemas For more, visit www.thecallsheet.co.za/diarise Compiled by Charl Fourie

OCTOBER ISSUE Booking deadline: 05 October 2011 Material deadline: 07 October 2011 Print deadline: 14 October 2011 • PUBLISHER: Film & Event Publishing • PHYSICAL ADDRESS: 57 2nd Ave, Harfield Village, Claremont, Cape Town • PHONE: +27 21 674 0646 • PRINTER: CTP • PUBLISHER: Lance Gibbons (lance@filmeventpublishing.co.za) • EDITOR: Kate Hodges (kate@thecallsheet.co.za) • COPY EDITOR: Sally Fink (sally@filmeventpublishing.co.za) • HEAD OF DESIGN: Jess Novotná (jess@filmeventpublishing.co.za) • ADVERTISING EXECUTIVE: Makkie Slamong (makkie@thecallsheet.co.za) • ONLINE CO-ORDINATOR: Charl Fourie (charl@filmeventpublishing.co.za) • HEAD OF PRODUCTION: Nadia Samsodien (nadia@filmeventpublishing.co.za) DISCLAIMER: Opinions expressed in The Callsheet do not necessarily represent the official viewpoint of the editor or the publisher, while inclusion of adverts/advertising features does not imply endorsement of any business, product or service. Copyright of this material is reserved. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, The Callsheet and/or its employees may not be held liable or responsible for any act or ommission committed by any person, including a juristic person, referred to in this publication. It and they furthermore accept(s) no responsibility for any liability arising out of any reliance that a reader of this publication places on the contents of this publication.

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