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| IN THIS ISSUE
4 Durban FilmMart announces call for 2018 projects
23
12 Heineken Mutzig captures the spirit of Cameroon in a vibrant new spot
10
Spotlight On Virtual Reality
31
Tebogo Malope directs Nakhane Toure’s Clairvoyant music video
Black Magic Design production kit brings telenovela Runaways to life
News
FILM
CONTENT SECURITY
High Fantasy explores issues of race and identity...................... 16 Buitenkant: “An intimate look at homelessness and the human experience”.................................. 18 Director Speak: Ari Kruger.................... 20 From Africa to Hollywood...................... 21 From the producer’s mouth: Herman Binge............................................ 22
OTT growth, collaboration and
OnseTV launches on StarSat.................... 3 South Africa up for a hat-trick at the International Emmys....................... 4 Durban FilmMart announces call for 2018 projects.................................. 4 Rushworks appoints Zimele as Southern African Representative.............. 6 GFC supports the 48Hour Film Project................................... 6 Trilogy’s Mentor RG now available from Jasco Broadcast Solutions................ 7 Postponement of Joburg Film Festival 2017........................... 7 Movievision are now representing DMG Lumière for sales and service in Southern Africa......................... 7
TECHNOLOGY NEWS Control upgrade brings improved workflow to Crystal Vision’s
Huawei and Dolby Laboratories announce world’s first Dolby Vision-enabled set-top box............ 8 Autodesk releases Flame Family 2018.3.................................... 8
ADCETERA New Showmax ad captures how we all share a love of stories.................... 9 Tebogo Malope directs Nakhane Toure’s
Clairvoyant music video.......................... 10 The global ‘movements’ to be aware of in 2018................................. 11 Heineken Mutzig captures the spirit of Cameroon in a vibrant new spot..... 12
ADVERTORIAL Visionview community impact initiatives........................................ 14
VIRTUAL REALITY Spotlight On Virtual Reality.................... 23 The rise of Virtual Reality in the film industry................................... 24 Virtually Real!............................................. 26 The other side of VR................................ 28 DISCOP brings Wonda VR’s Film Jam to Johannesburg....................... 30
PRODUCTION
chroma keyer................................................ 8
Black Magic Design production kit brings telenovela Runaways to life......... 31
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a new era of pay-TV delivery................. 32
DISPLAYS & MONITORS How to choose the right display for your broadcast application............... 33
DISCOP JOHANNESBURG 2017 A record-breaking sixth edition of DISCOP Johannesburg....................... 34
FESTIVALS & MARKETS The Cape Town International Film Market and Festival elevates local and international film..................... 36
REGULARS
Social DISCOP Johannesburg 2017.......38 – 39 Marketplace................................................ 40 Upcoming Events...................................... 40
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From the editor
The Team Editor
Welcome to our final issue for 2017! It’s been a good year for all here at Screen Africa and we hope for you too. We’ve welcomed new writers to our team, been part of another successful edition of Mediatech Africa, Durban International Film Festival and Durban FilmMart, DISCOP Johannesburg, and what I’m sure will be a hugely effective and informative PromaxBDA Africa 2017. In our final issue this year we cast a spotlight on Virtual Reality (VR). While the belief by some that VR is going to replace cinema has fallen away (rightfully so), the immersive technology has ‘come into its own’ this year, with most major technology expos, film festivals and markets presenting it in a specialised VR-focused programme. We’ve dedicated eight pages to the current movements being made within the VR space, looking at the technology and immersive experiences in general in relation to film but also delving into the other side of VR with Dondoo Studios – a Johannesburg-based interactive content development studio specialising in Virtual and Augmented Reality (AR). James Gaydon, co-founder at Dondoo takes us through how VR and AR is assisting in various industries including mining and medical – a must read on pages 28-29. Other noteworthy contributions to the issue include an in-depth look at the making of award-winning director Jenna Bass’ feature film High Fantasy – the film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival not too long ago. On page 22 we get up close and personal with the legend himself, veteran producer Herman Binge. Finally, we close off the issue with a report on the recent record-breaking DISCOP Africa. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all – our readers and advertisers – for your continued support. Screen Africa would not be what it is without you. Please feel free to email us regarding what we can improve on, what you would like to see more of, and where you think we are lacking altogether. We are always looking to improve where we can. Till next year! Happy holidays! – Chanelle Ellaya
SCREENAFRICA Publisher & Managing Editor: Simon Robinson: publisher@screenafrica.com Editor: Chanelle Ellaya: editor@screenafrica.com Journalists: Gezzy S Sibisi: news@screenafrica.com
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Chanelle Ellaya is a writer and a journalist. She completed her BA Journalism degree at the University of Johannesburg in 2011. While writing is her passion, she has a keen interest in the media in various capacities. Chanelle is an avid social networker and a firm believer in the power of social and online networking. Between writing and tweeting, she finds time to feed her love for live music.
JOURNALISTS Gezzy S Sibisi is a journalist and photographer with experience in print, broadcast and digital media. Her portfolio of work includes working as a lifestyle reporter as well as contributing business and education articles to The Times, Sowetan and Daily Despatch publications. As a freelancer she has worked on content development for corporate newsletters, community newspapers, blogs and educational websites.
Louise Marsland is an editor, journalist and columnist in the media and marketing communications industry in South Africa, who has been writing about the industry for over two decades as a former editor of publications: AdVantage, Marketing Mix and Bizcommunity. com. She currently writes extensively about industry trends and consumer insight.
Lara Preston is a passionately committed marketer and strategist with a focus in promoting African content and events. Two decades of working across Africa have provided her with insights and experience that she puts to work for the projects she manages. In 2006, Lara founded, and still personally manages, Red Flag Content Relations, a full service below-the-line agency that also focuses on African entertainment and lifestyle brand marketing, strategy, and publicity.
David Cornwell lives in Cape Town, where he writes fiction, films and features for a variety of publications. His debut novel, Like It Matters (Umuzi, 2016), has been long-listed for the 2017 Sunday Times Fiction Award.
Ian Dormer was born in Zimbabwe and has been in the TV business since the 1980s, having served in various positions at the SABC, M-Net and SuperSport. Ian currently works and resides in New Zealand.
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Postal address: PO Box 559, Fourways North, 2086 Editorial Disclaimer The views, opinions, positions or strategies expressed by the authors and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, positions or strategies of Screen Africa or any employee thereof. Sun Circle Publishers makes no representations as to accuracy, completeness, correctness, suitability, or validity of any information and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. Sun Circle Publishers reserves the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner it sees fit comments that it, in its sole discretion, deems to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, or is otherwise unacceptable. All contents of this publication are subject to worldwide copyright protection and reproduction in whole or part, in any form whatsoever, is expressly forbidden without the prior written consent of the Publisher.
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OnseTV launches on StarSat Media power couple, and Afrikaans patriots Hilda and Jaco Ferreira have recently launched OnseTV, a national community channel aimed at the brown Afrikaans community”.
“I
t has long been clear to us that there is no focused TV channel that caters for the entertainment and educational needs of our largest South African Afrikaans speaking community, and mainstream media tends to ignore them,” says Jaco Ferreira, co-founder of the channel. With the September launch of the OnseTV channel, Ferreira says that the “brown community” will finally now have a voice. Ferreira has enjoyed a long career in the broadcast business, from his early days as a volunteer runner on the set of Pasella, an Afrikaans lifestyle show produced by Pieter Cilliers. It was Cilliers who motivated him to pursue a career in television. Ever since then Ferreira has been building a name for himself in the Afrikaans broadcast community; from producing music videos for various Afrikaans musicians including Kurt Darren, Jurie Els and Blackie Swart, to working on various KykNet productions including Wie is Wie and My Storie. Then in 2009, Ferreira and his wife Hilda started their own Afrikaans channel – ASTV (Afrikaanse Satellietelevisie). “Hilda and I make a great team as entertainment and television is her passion too and apart from being my wife she is my best friend too. Hilda has a creative eye and is a sucker for detail. She is a strong leader, has excellent managerial and administrative skills and most important of all she is down to earth with fantastic people skills,” shares Ferreira. Their first venture, ASTV is now known as MYtv and runs on the StarSat satellite television platform, which OnseTV will also now be a part of. With his second channel offering Ferreira is hoping that the new channel will appeal to all South Africans, whilst also educating people of all cultures about the “brown” Afrikaans community – an ethnic group stemming from the KhoiKhoi people. Ferreira believes that contrary to popular belief, Afrikaans did not originate from the Dutch but that it actually has its origins in the KhoiKhoi nation. “The earliest evidence of this has been recorded in 1595 when the KhoiKhoi formed the language to be able to communicate and trade with Dutch
sailors. OnseTV aims to celebrate the rich history, culture and language of the brown community of South Africa.” With that in mind, OnseTV aspires to reach viewers from as far as rural Northern Cape, while also appealing to the Afrikaans community in the Cape flats as well as in Gauteng. “The channel focuses on promoting diversity, unlocking creativity, encouraging rich socio-cultural dialogue and offering opportunities for civic pride aimed at promoting spiritual and cultural well-being within this community,” affirms Ferreira. The 24-hour channel has kicked off with an interactive campaign that asks viewers to send in entertaining videos of themselves: singing, dancing and telling jokes. Apart from that, viewers can enjoy several shows already on offer, including: Kom roer saam met Tannie Koeksuster; Lekke chat show met Moses; Hoe lyk jou Afrikaans?; Op die beat met Reemay and Agterpad met Bouwer Bosch. Kom roer saam met Tannie Koeksuster follows Tannie Koeksister as she goes to the grocery store and talks to a new guest (mover and shaker) every week while preparing great food in the kitchen. Lekke chat show met Moses is a talk show where Moses talks to community leaders and people of interest in the garden route (Southern Cape). Afrikaans.com leads the series Hoe lyk jou Afrikaans? where celebrities and the public share what their “Afrikaans looks like” and what the language means to them. Op die beat met Reemay sees Reemay Damons start each day with some exercise to keep viewers fit. Agterpad met Bouwer Bosch follows Bouwer as he travels off the beaten track to small towns in the Western Cape and visits the local people to find out more about life in a small town.
Hilda and Jaco Ferreira, the founders of MYtv and OnseTV on StarSat
The channel is also currently undergoing a negotiation process with independent producers to screen movies and short stories in the near future. “As we grow we will also include drama, news, comedy and a soapie or two,” adds Ferreira. In the meantime Ferreira is also busy with the appointment of a new management team and staff that will oversee the duties of this new channel from their Centurion-based offices.
“OnseTV is a channel by the people, for the people, that opens up a whole new world of opportunities, job creation and involvement with the channel for people who have never had these opportunities before,” Ferreira says. OnseTV’s is available on StarSat, channel 462. – Gezzy S Sibisi
“OnseTV is a channel by the people, for the people, that opens up a whole new world of opportunities, job creation and involvement with the channel for people who have never had these opportunities before.” – Jaco Ferreira NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
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South Africa up for a hat-trick at the International Emmys Revolting Rhymes is nominated in the Animation category at the International Emmy Kids Awards, where it’s up against Oddbods, Siesta Z, and Trude’s Flatmate. Produced by Magic Light Pictures, Revolting Rhymes was animated at Magic Light’s Berlin studio and Cape Town’s Triggerfish Animation. This means South African companies are now up for a hat-trick at the International Emmys, as Penguin Films’ Disney Cookabout is nominated for Non-Scripted Entertainment at the Kids Awards, while Is’thunzi’s Thuso Mbedu learned last month she is a nominee for Best Performance by an Actress.
Directed by Jakob Schuh (The Gruffalo) and Jan Lachauer (Room on the Broom), Revolting Rhymes is an adaptation of Roald Dahl and Quentin Blake’s classic book of surprising fairytales. It’s voiced by a stellar cast that includes Dominic West (The Affair) as The Wolf; Rose Leslie (Game of Thrones) as Red Riding Hood; and Gemma Chan (Humans) as Snow White. Since premiering on BBC One at Christmas 2016, Revolting Rhymes has racked up four international awards: Best Animated Short at TIFF Kids and Best Animation at the World Banff Media Festival in Canada; Best
The Highway Rat Storytelling at Shanghai International Film and TV Festival in China; and the Cristal for Best TV Production at Annecy in France, the world’s premier animation festival. The International Emmy Kids Awards will be presented at MIPTV in Cannes on 10 April 2018. Last week, the BBC released the first image from Magic Light Pictures’ third collaboration with Triggerfish: an adaptation of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s The Highway Rat, a swashbuckling tale of bandits and biscuits the whole family will enjoy. David Tennant (Doctor Who, Broadchurch) leads an
impressive cast as The Highway Rat. Stick Man, Magic Light Pictures’ previous Donaldson/Scheffler production animated at Triggerfish, premiered on BBC One on Christmas Day 2015 to record ratings of 9.3 million viewers, with an overall 41 per cent audience share, the fourth highest rated programme of the day. The film also won critical praise and a raft of global industry awards including the Annecy Crystal and a BAFTA nomination. – Kevin Kriedemann
Revolting Rhymes
Durban FilmMart announces call for 2018 projects Project submissions for the 2018 Durban FilmMart which takes place during the Durban International Film Festival – scheduled to run from 19 to 29 July next year – are officially open. The Durban FilmMart (DFM) is a joint project of Durban Film Office (DFO), the eThekwini Municipality’s industry development unit, and the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), which strives to support and stimulate the growth of African film and develop connections between African filmmakers and the rest of the world. “With two recent Durban FilmMart projects Inxeba/The Wound (South Africa) and Train of Salt and Sugar (Mozambique) having been selected as Best Foreign Language Films for the next Academy Awards, we are seeing the impact that the support of projects in development has on the industry on a global level,” enthuses Toni Monty, head of the Durban Film Office. The DFM, now in its ninth year, comprises an exciting four day 4 | SCREENAFRICA | NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
programme of workshops, seminars, and networking sessions and is attended annually by approximately 600 filmmakers, distributors, broadcasters, agents and other film industry representatives. Over the years the DFM has supported the development of over 170 African coproduction projects, many of which have been developed into fully-fledged film products with cinema and festival release. Ten documentary and ten fiction feature length film projects will be selected from the submissions, and these projects will undergo a two-day packaging and mentoring programme followed by two days of one-on-one meetings with a panel of film financiers, buyers and distributors from across the globe. The Durban FilmMart is open to full length feature and documentary film projects with Africans in the major creative roles (writers, directors and producers) that are looking for coproducers, financiers, sales agents and
Filmmakers in discussion during DFM 2016
funders. All film projects submitted are reviewed by a selection committee for consideration. All projects must have both a producer and director attached to them, and must be submitted by 12 December 2017. “As we head into our ninth year, it feels like the DFM has really matured,” says Monty. “We are seeing more and more of our alumni projects being completed and doing extremely well on either the festival or cinema circuits. It is really heartening
to see that the effort and energy put into this programme continues to bear great fruit for the growth of the industry on the continent. We look forward to seeing some interesting projects submitted for this edition.” For more about the Durban FilmMart 2018, project submission criteria and how to submit your project, visit www.durbanfilmmart.com.
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Rushworks appoints Zimele as Southern African Representative Rushworks, the well-established provider of cool technology for production, playback and streaming, has appointed Zimele Broadcasting Services (Pty) Ltd, as its distributor in the South African region. Zimele provides tailor made solutions to its customers with value added services from project management to system consulting and implementation, training and after sales support. The partnership marks the latest milestone in Rushworks’ expansion into new and growing global markets that include many European countries, the UK, Israel, Africa and Australia. “We are delighted to be working with such an outstanding company as Zimele Broadcasting Services that
will undoubtedly help us continue our international expansion into Southern Africa; a region where we see potential for significant growth,” says Rush Beesley, Rushworks president. “Zimele maintains an exceptional and experienced team and offers a wide range of services and skills to ensure successful implementation of systems
and solutions, from small to large enterprise projects. We know we made the right choice to work with Zimele.” In its efforts to deliver superior products and services to its customer base, Zimele works with only the most advanced systems in the broadcast, production and live event industries, this new partnership will allow Zimele
to bring Rushworks’ intelligently engineered and much-needed costeffective technology solutions for production, playback and streaming to customers in the South African region. “Zimele, together with our network of international partners, has the capability, expertise and professional staff to support customers and events across the sub-Saharan region,” says Casper Klopper, CEO. “We are now pleased to be able to offer an expanded product portfolio that includes high-performance television production, automation and video streaming solutions from a leading company such as Rushworks.”
GFC supports the 48Hour Film Project The Gauteng Film Commission (GFC) supported seven teams made up of young Gauteng filmmakers from various Gauteng townships including Diepsloot, Alexandra, Mamelodi, Orange Farm, Nellmapius, Evaton, Carletonville and Fochville in the West Rand. The teams competed in the 2017 48Hour Film Project, an international contest in which the teams are tasked to produce a movie in just two days – Friday evening, 22 September and Sunday evening, 24 September 2017. The supported teams were appreciative of the opportunity they were granted by the Gauteng Film Commission as it allowed them the opportunity to get a feel of what it would be like to work on a film set and what it takes to make a film. Zwelibanzi Tshabalala of the Orange Farm film group said he was grateful
6 | SCREENAFRICA | NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
Best Newcomer at the 48Hour Film Project Johannesburg: Orange Farm team with GFC’s Puisano Phatoli
to the GFC for bringing together, for the first time, people who lived in the same community and were interested in film, but who did not know one another. His team, which consisted of 15 people including the actors, made a “buddy movie” about the relationship between a doctor and a teenager with an abusive mother.
Before they commenced production on their film, the team decided on roles for each person in the group. What was considered most valuable to them was the way that they had all managed to learn and grow together – how the relationship between strangers had become stronger. Additionally, Tshabalala says that the team learnt
about the importance of strong time management and disciplined team work. The awards ceremony for the 48Hour Film Project Johannesburg was held on Sunday, 15 October 2017 at the Joburg Theatre where the Orange Farm team won in the Best Newcomer category.
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Trilogy’s Mentor RG now available from Jasco Broadcast Solutions Clear-Com’s recent acquisition of Trilogy Communications, a supplier of intercom solutions and master reference generators, means sub-Saharan African broadcasters can speedily access the company’s new solutions. Jasco Broadcast Solutions will make this offering available to the Southern African market with their appointment as distributor of the Trilogy offering. Trilogy’s Mentor RG sync and test pulse generator (SPG) will be of particular interest to broadcasters, “Trilogy brings South African users a keenly priced alternative product range— from intercom solutions to the SPGs— from a recognised and respected supplier to consider in their system builds or upgrades,” says Paul Divall, MD of Jasco Intelligent Technologies. “The Mentor RG SPG is built on several generations of proven Trilogy Sync and Test generators and brings unparalleled accuracy and reliability for broadcast reference and test signals. There is definite market for this product in South Africa.” “While the market for reference SPG units is limited, as these units are very reliable and long lasting, there is growing demand for this type of solution locally, especially as more legacy installations are upgraded to HD format technology. The flexible range of test and reference signals that the Mentor RG can generate
Trilogy Communications_Mentor RG is also a highly valued feature. The Trilogy SPG products are widely deployed in many broadcast studios around the world and are trusted for their accuracy and dependability. The Mentor RG marks the very first product that Trilogy has released since the Clear-Com acquisition. The Mentor RG generates synchronised video, audio and timecode signals for broadcast purposes to an extremely accurate time signature, often provided by a GPS reference system, which is then passed on to the broadcaster’s mission critical automation system. Says Divall: “The Mentor RG is a single box solution that ensures absolute synchronisation of multiple signals in any broadcast or professional media application. It would typically be installed as the master reference generator in a TV station or an outside broadcast (OB) truck. Since accurate reference signals are crucial to successful operations, two Mentors and a changeover would provide the ultimate in redundancy.” The unit is very easy to install
Postponement of Joburg Film Festival 2017 The Joburg Film Festival (JFF) announced on 11 October 2017 that it will be postponing its second showcase that was scheduled to take place from 20 to 28 October 2017. According to the festival director, Tim Mangwedi, the curatorial team took the decision to postpone this event in order to create a self-sustaining entity. “As an event primarily supported by the City of Joburg, the closure of the City’s Film Office directly impacted the festival,” said Mangwedi. “With the support of all the relevant role-players, we continue to be committed to providing an exciting and progressive platform where South African and African excellence in cinematography can be showcased and rewarded,” he added. The festival organisers expressed
their sincere apologies to the entire film fraternity, partners and sponsors. The tentative dates set for the second edition of the Joburg Film Festival are 26 October to 3 November 2018. All information portals shall remain open in the meantime.
and configure and once set up, will operate 24/7 with extremely high stability and reliability. All SD and HD reference and test signals are generated simultaneously for 525 and 625 standards, with independent timing control for all outputs. The Mentor pays special attention to multiple audio generators assignable for AES audio, including Dolby E and DARS, embedded audio in the SD/HD channels, wordclock and analogue stereo audio.
Key optional features include: • Up to 10 Tri-Level Sync (TLS) outputs for all 720 and 1080 standards. • The ability to lock to external linear timecode (LTC). • Precision Time Protocol (IEEE1588 PTP) to synchronising time sensitive audio packets over Ethernet for IP-based TV stations. • Customisable redundancy options.
Movievision are now representing DMG Lumière for sales and service in Southern Africa Amongst the products shortly to be available are the Maxi switch, the SL1 switch as well as the Mini switch. These state of the art bi-colour panels have a large and very useful set of accessories such as the Dome diffuser, snap grip, dc drivers for battery operation as well as transport bags. At a CRI of 94 on 3200º and 96 on 5600º the units deliver excellent quality. At 3m the Maxi switch provides a staggering 1730 lux at 3200º and at 5600º it is 1880 lux, whilst having a maximum power draw of 520w @ 24v DC – yes that’s right it can also be used from a 24v – 30v battery source. The Mini switch weighs in at 1.7Kg and measures 585x200x20mm ideal for use “on the go”. A unique feature available on this unit is the “dome” diffuser.
NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
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TECHNOLOGY NEWS
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Huawei and Dolby Laboratories announce world’s first Dolby Vision-enabled set-top box
Control upgrade brings improved workflow to Crystal Vision’s chroma keyer Crystal Vision has further improved the operation of its Safire 3 realtime chroma keyer in a live situation following significant changes to the VisionPanel universal control panel. VisionPanel is designed to operate up to 16 Crystal Vision Indigo or Vision frames, with its physical controls making it well suited to those products that need regular adjustment, such as Safire 3. As broadcasters search for increased efficiency, the VisionPanel enhancements all result in faster and easier operation, with various improvements made to the 3U Ethernet control panel’s touch screen, knobs and hard buttons following consultation with expert users who operate chroma keyers on a daily basis. Benefitting from Crystal Vision’s responsive technical support and five year warranty, the Safire 3 modular real-time chroma keyer is ideal for applications from weather to immersive virtual studios, with a simple intuitive workflow for setting up a key, support for resolutions from SD to 1080p and features such as lighting compensation, colour correction and video delay to help solve common real world issues. With the competitively-priced Safire 3 currently enjoying its highest level of popularity to date, Crystal Vision chose to make the enhancements to VisionPanel at this time to make its chroma keyer even more attractive to those seeking the easiest workflow.
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Huawei and Dolby Laboratories, recently announced that the Huawei Q22 set-top box is the first IPTV set-top box in the world to support Dolby Vision high-dynamic-range (HDR) technology. “Locally, with the rapid deployment of high speed broadband networks, IP video with its high quality video and interactive experience will attract a growing number of users,” says Edison Xie, head of media relations Southern Africa region. Leveraging the HDR innovation that powers Dolby’s most advanced cinemas around the world, Dolby Vision transforms the TV experience in the home by delivering greater brightness and contrast, as well as a fuller palette of rich colours. Dolby’s deep expertise in bringing advanced technologies from the cinema to the home has led to distinct features that enable Dolby Vision to deliver extraordinary viewing experiences to home consumers. Dolby today delivers spectacular experiences in broadcast, gaming, music, and other genres, and this expertise serves as the foundation that will enable Dolby Vision to drive the future of entertainment.
Autodesk releases Flame Family 2018.3 Autodesk recently released update 3 for its Flame 2018 family of 3D visual effects (VFX) and finishing software, which includes Flame, Flare, Flame Assist and Lustre. Flame 2018.3 empowers creative professionals to explore new, more efficient ways of working in post, with feature enhancements that offer greater pipeline flexibility, speed and support for emerging formats and technology. Flame 2018.3 release highlights include: - Action Selective: Apply FX colour to an image surface or the whole action scene via the camera - Motion Warp Tracking: Organically distort objects that are changing shape, angle and form with new 32-bit motion vector-based tracking technology - 360° VR Viewing Mode: View LatLong images in a 360° VR viewing mode in the Flame player or any viewport during compositing and manipulate the field of view - HDR Waveform Monitoring: Set viewport to show luminance waveform; red, green, blue (RGB) parade; colour vectorscope or 3D cube; and monitor a range of HDR and wide colour gamut (WCG) colour spaces including Rec2100 PQ, Rec2020 and DCI P3 - Shotgun Software Loader: Load assets for a shot and build custom batches via Flame’s Python API, and browse a Shotgun project for a filtered view of individual shots - User-Requested Improvements for Action, Batch, Timeline and Media Hub
New Showmax ad captures how we all share a love of stories
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Showmax launch commercial ‘There’s A Show For That’
Star Films’ Jonathan Parkinson directed the heart-warming new Showmax ad about a grandfather trying to connect with his granddaughter, written by Showmax’s creative team.
T
he ad has charmed South Africa’s normally cynical Twittersphere: when media personality Anele Mdoda tweeted that it was “so cute,” her followers responded with their own stories of how the ad had them in tears. “I always enjoy working on stories that are real and authentic, so I was really
drawn to this script,” says Parkinson. “It’s a story that every family, will understand.” Showmax’s launch commercial, ‘There’s A Show For That’, won Bronze at this year’s Loerie Awards, but ‘Love of Stories’ marks the first campaign created by Showmax’s in-house creative team. Parkinson was full of praise for creative director and writer Philippa Heal and the team: “Everyone on the Showmax team was willing to explore, and they appreciated the strong push towards the emotional, rather than the practical, going for ‘feel’ rather than overloading with too much information.” “Why did we make such an emotional ad?” says Nicola van Ast, head of acquisition for Showmax. “Because SVOD is jargon; internet TV can be damn scary. We needed to bring our brand into people’s homes and hearts. Then, just maybe then, they’ll be open to being educated on how to use our product.” With Showmax as a client, it was important that the commercial felt as cinematic as the thousands of shows available on ‘Everyone’s Anywhere TV’. Award-winning DOP Rory O’Grady
more than delivered, shooting with anamorphic lenses with that alluring 1:2.39 format. The cold that seeps through the initial frames wasn’t just a trick of Nic Apostoli’s grade though; Newtown played its part perfectly, gifting them a ‘coldest day’ to fit the script. For Parkinson, the real stars of the show were Ernest Ndlovu as the lonely but resilient 75-year-old grandfather and Unathi March as his easily distracted five-year-old granddaughter, who together kept the balance between realism and emotion. “I love working with children, as they are the real magic in life,” says Parkinson, who also made the popular ‘Oreo Princess’ ad a few years ago. “I had seen Unathi in another
casting and realised that she would be ideal for this role. It’s very rare to come across a five-year-old who can be so relaxed delivering dialogue in front of the camera and a crowd of people. She reminded me so much of the little girl on the Oreo commercial and she was amazing; what a little friend to make, with such a great sense of humour.” Ashley Kadish and Maggie Post produced the spot, which was edited by Graham Smith at Orchestra Blue, to a Michael Kiwanuka cover. – Kevin Kriedemann
“I always enjoy working on stories that are real and authentic, so I was really drawn to this script… It’s a story that every family will understand.” – Jonathan Parkinson NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
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ADCETERA
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Tebogo Malope directs Nakhane Toure’s Clairvoyant music video Despite the homophobic threats experienced after his award-winning performance in the Oscar-nominated film, Inxeba (The Wound). Actor, author and musician, Nakhane Toure serves audiences with another contentious performance as he stars in a music video that celebrates black gay love.
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itled Clairvoyant, this emotive and steamy music video has already topped the YouTube charts, with some viewers seeing it as a revolt against the negative press that the Inxeba star received for his role in the Oscar-nominated film. Tebogo “Tebza” Malope, director of Clairvoyant, sets the record straight saying: “What I find interesting is that each time an artist tackles a LGBTQIA subject, it’s always regarded as protest art and should make an ‘impact’. Nakhane and I were intent on not making a protest piece; we just wanted to project love however it may be packaged.” Malope is a good friend of Toure, and got to hear several of the star’s recently recorded songs. However, it was at a music show when the two met to talk about possible video ideas for Toure’s song Clairvoyant. “Our first meeting was about a colour that doesn’t exist; I’m still determined to capture it. And then it was a back and forth with ideas, scenes, colours, etc. One thing we share is a taste for Asian cinema and that played a major role in our collaboration,” shares Malope. The duo’s collaboration resulted in a striking modern interpretation of
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A scene from the music video, Clairvoyant
neo-noir film: “The video has a neonoiresque style and pallet. The intention was to externalise the emotions and narrative of the characters visually. The wonderful thing about neo-noir is that it is a style that is all about the body, where characters are in the frame and how they relate to each other as well as colours. It is through these visual cues that we are able to build on the emotions of the song in a multi-layered way that makes the most out of the film medium,” explains Malope. The video portrays the intimate moments between lovers in their comfort zone; sharing a bathtub, sweet caresses, walking around half-naked in their home and lying naked in each other’s arms. “Often two extremes of love relationships are explored in song and music videos,” explains Malope. “The one is that ‘I’ll love you to the grave’ type of love, a sort of fantasy take on love and then the other is the ‘you drive me crazy and I want to kill you but still love you’ type of love – the Rihanna’esque type of visual… We challenged ourselves to be more real, a day in the life of a typical couple. No bells and whistles. Just simple love.” The video was shot in one day, in a
soft-lit apartment in Hillbrow on the Arri Alexa Mini. Malope says that he also tried to choose a lens that would allow him and his team to get up close and personal with the characters. “We made a creative call to put a lot of time focusing on the lighting of our characters and their environments. The various colours give off different moods that enhance and set the emotion for our lovers. This stylised neo-noiresque imagery helped us craft every single shot as if it was a portrait. In every frame, there is a wealth of information for the viewer to absorb.” Editing was done by Saki Bergh, and other post-production duties were handled by Left Post Production and Bladeworks. “We got some push backs from European channels on some elements of the video which we needed to cut out, yeah that was a hard part,” Malope shares. However despite the criticism of the film and the Clairvoyant music video being described as “controversial” and “provocative”, Malope voices that there should be more inclusiveness in the broadcast of LGBTI issues. “It resonates with me and Nakhane,
“What I find interesting is that each time an artist tackles a LGBTQIA subject, it’s always regarded as protest art and should make an ‘impact’. Nakhane and I were intent on not making a protest piece; we just wanted to project love however it may be packaged.” – Tebogo Malope
it’s true to what we went out to accomplish. I just hope there are lots of other Tebza’s and Nakhane’s out there in the world. If not, I hope the video converts some to Tebza’s and Nakhane’s,” Malope concludes. – Gezzy S Sibsi
TECH CHECK EQUIPMENT • Camera: Arri Alexa Mini
KEY CREW Director: Tebogo Malope Producer: Marc Harrison Editor: Saki Bergh DOP: Trevor Calverley Art director: Gavin Scates Colourist: Craig Simmoneti Make-up: Adie Cohen Actor: Simphiwe Bam
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The global ‘movements’ to be aware of in 2018
Written by Louise Marsland
From the weed economy, to the ‘wokeness’ of new entertainment models and advertisers; brands are scrambling to meet the demands of new movements sweeping the globe.
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n his last global trends presentation for 2017, entitled Zeitgeist 2018 – From Woke to Wide Awake, trend analyst and guru, Dion Chang, looked at the mood of 2018 where business and culture intersects. He and his team have tracked various global movements that will impact on business and society in 2018. When it’s more than a trend, it’s a movement. This is what advertising agencies and anyone else tracking culture and the impact of global trends on their business, needs to keep top of mind in 2018:
• GENDER NEUTRALITY Advertisers and film makers take note: the new wave of gender neutrality and political correctness is driven by the new, young generations who don’t discriminate against gender and believe the objectification of women has to stop. This is a culture shift and slowly advertisers are catching up, with the Cannes Lions advertising festival banning all advertising that objectifies women. This movement aims to sanitise those traditional gender stereotypes personified and encouraged by much advertising today. The gender debate has also gone a step further, with some brands producing gender neutral clothing for boys and girls, such as John Lewis which won’t include any binary labelling in children’s clothing; or the brands launching gender neutral underwear. Transgender models are appearing more and more on magazine covers and as brand spokespeople.
• NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK The focus has all been on millennials in the last decade (18-35 years), shifting to Generation Z (teenagers) in the last couple of years. But Chang says, where do you go after Generation Z? Make sure you start listening to the conversation emerging around Generation Alpha – our youngsters of 10 years and younger who are integrating devices into their lives. Chang says India and China will become the centre of gravity for Generation Alpha. Colleges in the United States are already preparing for Generation Alpha, hosting summer camps at Stanford University, for example, for children as young as six years to teach them coding. Advertising is already focusing on them with high-tech baby products and services. In Africa, we will have our “Generation Alpha moment” towards mid-century when 2 billion babies will be born in Africa by mid-century, says Chang.
• WELLNESS The wellness industry is booming and there is a new model of retail in this space. “Bodyism” is driving this trend says Chang: new spaces are being created that bring together food, fitness and wellness. “The aim is to change people’s lives. They offer what people need. Wellness is more than a trend, it is a movement, part of the fabric of people’s lives.”
Dion Chang
for consumers and letting them experience the products or services that they will then buy online. Amazon’s move into bricks and mortar bookshops and the built-in reading experience, is part of that.
• DARK KITCHENS Food also features in this underground movement, where you have pop-up restaurant kitchens in parking lots and random areas to distribute to customers. This is a dark kitchen: a kitchen set up in a parking lot with couriers waiting to deliver to customers. They are not designed for sit down meals. The same goes for quick fulfilment centres or warehouses to distribute from your “dark stores”.
• VEGAN RUSH The meat-free movement is spreading across the world and the number of people who define themselves as vegan is up by over 300 per cent. Alcohol brands are creating non-alcoholic drinks, which is spawning a wave of non-alcoholic cocktail bars. Pret a Manger now has green logo vegan options. One brand of almond milk saw its sales go up by 2300 per cent in two years.
• ‘WOKE’ ENTERTAINMENT • DAWN OF ‘NEW’ RETAIL There is also a new way of doing retail and looking at retail. Retail has become about creating experiences
The voice of the socio-political narrative is coming through into entertainment. Many movie roles are being flipped in remakes, with
key roles in Ghostbusters, Oceans 11, Lord of the Flies and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, now featuring women. The reverse is also true, with talk of Channing Tatum being cast as a merman in a remake of Splash.
• GROOMING AS A FORM OF ACTIVISM The grooming activist trend is being reflected across the board, says Chang, in pop-culture and marketing and branding. South Africa has the natural hair movement and this is being reflected in pop culture. Chang referenced singer Solange with her “don’t touch my hair” lyrics and philosophy, and the Cape Town mother who created swimming caps to fit natural hair styles. In the United States, a brand called Hammer and Nails provides manicures and pedicures for men in a safe space. There is a return to barbers for men only.
• WEED ECONOMY Marijuana is being rebranded for the 21st century and an entire economy worth billions is being built around it by the “ganjapreneurs” investing in weed couture – from coffee infused weed to an entire weed town experience in a prime-marijuana growing area in the United States. Even Netflix has introduced a range of products with variants for various movie genres.
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ADCETERA
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Heineken Mutzig
captures the spirit of Cameroon in a vibrant new spot
What makes you Cameroon? This is the question posed by Heineken Mutzig’s new commercial, set in the colourful surroundings of Cameroon’s lively Yaoundé city.
“T
he brief from the agency was to capture the spirit of what it is to be Cameroonian, to highlight the life and enthusiasm of the people and to shift the perception of the brand from a more staid to a more lively and youthful profile,” says director Ian Gabriel from Giant Films. Heineken was launched in Africa in 1987, and has since been diversifying its product offerings to beer lovers, which include Amstel, Turbo, Legend and Mutzig; a sugar free brew that has grown phenomenally in the Central African market with local brewers in Rwanda, Burundi, Congo, Sierra Leone and Cameroon. Furthermore, Mutzig is the proud sponsor of Mutzig Star, a Cameroonian
amateur singing competition that lets participants experience a “taste of success,” which also happens to be the Mutzig’s brand slogan. Gabriel has worked with Bruce Reinders at Heineken Amsterdam on several projects in Europe and Africa and in this new Mutzig spot, he is committed to finding the authenticity of Cameroon’s youthful spirit; taking a big leap against re-creating Cameroon in Johannesburg’s back streets to actually setting off to the central African country and really finding out what makes people Cameroonian. A brief was visualised by advertising agency, M & C Saatchi, with Gabriel and his team finding collaborative elements and ideas to work with. Upon the team’s arrival in Cameroon, a casting audition
was held in search of the most interesting talent and events in the country. “We used the ideas in the voice over that the agency wrote as the measure of whether we were finding the right story beats in Cameroon. The voice over raises the question of what it is that makes one truly Cameroonian and then segues through looks, moves, creativity etc. These facets of personality and activity became the linking elements that caused us to include some sequences and exclude others from the spot,” shares Gabriel. However for Gabriel, the brief was to also find a creative and playful way to make the beer brand more appealing to youngsters, whilst also veering off the typical
“animal beer advertising palette”. “So my initiating vision was to be open to all things Cameroonian, and to highlight those aspects that I thought most actively reflected a youthful dynamic culture and zest for life. This tied in perfectly with
“I wanted to give a random sense of a day in the life of Cameroon. This meant recording some live sound that we would integrate later into the prerecorded music track we arrived with, and it meant shooting a lot of handheld, off-the-cuff, on-the-move types of shots.” – Ian Gabriel Director Ian Gabriel sitting with a cast member from the commercial 12 | SCREENAFRICA | NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
| ADCETERA what the client was looking for, which was an absolutely authentic version of Cameroonian life.” Wendy Fredriksson did the wardrobe and production design which included working with a funky splash of neon and colour strip lights for the interiors. Apart from that, the buildings in the spot were chosen keeping in mind the intricate hair designs donned by the country’s young people, while the lifestyle of the Cameroonian nation was beautifully exuded with a clever play on colours resembling the Cameroonian flag. “You have to be careful when you make a decision to tread something as strong as the three primary colours of the Cameroon flag through the commercial,” informs Gabriel. However Fredriksson took on the challenge with
TECH CHECK EQUIPMENT • Camera: Arri Alexa mini and GoPro
The entire spot was shot in two days on the Arri Alexa Mini with DOP Rory O’ Grady additionally capturing some underwater GoPro footage.
KEY CREW Production company: Giant Films Director: Ian Gabriel Producer: Leanne Sanders DOP: Rory O’Grady Art director: Wendy Fredriksson
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the assistance of a local Cameroon production crew. “There’s a great sequence we designed with a traveling installation of chairs that catches a red cloth outside a dye house by chance, giving us a glimpse of the colours of the flag in very real down to earth, charming way.” The entire spot was shot in two days on the Arri Alexa Mini camera. Cameraman Rory O’ Grady also shot some underwater GoPro footage. “I wanted to give a random sense of a day in the life of Cameroon. This meant recording some live sound that we would integrate later into the pre-recorded music track we arrived with, and it meant shooting a lot of handheld, off-the-cuff, on-the-move types of shots,” Gabriel adds.
Post-production duties were handled by Ludus Post Production, and the end result was a very happy client. “They bought into the cut without requesting a single change,” Gabriel enthuses. And as for reaching the targeted market, Gabriel says: “I’ve got no doubt that the spot will resonate with youth in Cameroon because it will be so obvious to them that it was all shot in their own backyard using authentic Cameroon talent.” – Gezzy S Sibisi
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ADVERTORIAL
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Visionview community impact initiatives Education and Sports remain the most potent weapons we can use to change our society and Vision View Productions is committed to contributing towards these ideals. Investing in improving the level and quality of education in South Africa is of prime importance to the country’s future as a developing nation. South Africa’s development is increasingly hampered not only by the shortages of scarce and critical skills but access to higher education remains a challenge especially in these trying economic times. To address these issues, Vision View Productions has raised its hand as a corporate citizen to offer bursaries to deserving students from previously disadvantaged backgrounds. To date we have over 14 beneficiaries with full bursaries at universities across the country. Our work in rural and peri-urban communities has made us extremely proud as this has seen our employees directly engaging with their communities by volunteering and sharing their experiences and knowledge about their crafts.
FET Students
OUR FLAGSHIP PROJECT – EDUCATION Vision View Broadcast Career Exhibition which was previously directed mainly at High School students has also attracted a keen interest in the H.E.I sector. Vision View Productions in partnership with Ekurhuleni East College hosted a two-day programme to expose their community of 3 500 students to careers within the ICT Broadcasting, Marketing, and Aviation industries. The event was held at the Ekurhuleni East College Springs Campus on 12 to 13 October 2017. The 12th saw the ICT, Media and Graphic design students at the college interact with our state of the art outside broadcast trucks and chatting to our employees about the different options in the broadcast industry.
VVP Crew Engaging Learners
Our operations manager, Miss Thandekile Nyembezi, gave an impressive presentation to a packed hall of students on 13 October, she shared the stage with prominent business leaders on the broadcasting landscape. The other delegates were from Vodacom, SAA, SuperSport and MegaPro to name a few.
SPORTS Vision View Productions supported an emerging local township boxing promotions company, Team DIDA Boxing Promotions as they hosted a successful 6 Bout Tournament on 28 October 2017. This company is led by the dynamic duo of Meme Dipheko (boxing promoter) and Dida Dipheko (former international boxer and trainer). Their stable has scores of amateurs and professional boxers who have turned into fitness ambassadors in the West Rand. Our involvement saw us contributing in the following manner: 1. Event management 2. Marketing of the event 3. Technical – including Lighting, Sound 4. Boxers purse 5. Packaging and Live Streaming of the Event Since their first tournament in November 2016, the boxing promotions company has fought and produced three Titles, two Gauteng Championships and one WBF ALL AFRICA TITLE. Vision View Productions is excited to be associated with partners who are making a difference in our communities and are turning the tide
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Mpho Seforo – (Black Shorts) Gauteng Flyweight Champ
Thato Bonokoane – WBF All Africa Jnr Featherweight Champ
against negative social ills that confront our youth. Our values based on the overarching value of Ubuntu, continue to shape us into a dynamic company that seeks to give our society a more humane face.
FILM
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High Fantasy explores
Not a day passes in South Africa without the news headlines highlighting issues of inequality, racial injustices, colonialism and land politics.
“S
outh Africa is an incredibly hard place to be in,” comments actress Qondiswa James from the film, High Fantasy. “How are the oppressed majority expected to co-exist, to engage in ‘illicit cohabitation’ with their oppressor? And how do people of colour (the slaves and the labourers) restore dignity to themselves? I don’t know, but we must struggle forward towards liberation still.” High Fantasy is a body swap satire film that aims to bring these subjects to light in an unapologetic and profound manner using young, vibrant voices. “It is assumed that South Africa has had reconciliation within the country; that we are a ‘rainbow nation’ but that
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concept is just a way of denying the racial battles that apartheid has left behind. Most of our working class still lives within on the outskirts that we were forcibly removed to. Yet within the middleupper classes the real racism issues and conversations are brushed over. The film also highlights those dynamics, different races and ‘woke’ young voices,” shares supporting actress, Loren Loubser. The 90-minute film – directed by Jenna Bass and written by her and the small cast – follows a group of friends, who are a representation of the diverse and multi-faceted backgrounds, races and classifications in today’s South African society. The pals decide to go on a camping trip in the remote Northern Cape – a vast land that is also home to
one of the characters. Lexi (Francesca Varrie Michel) comes from a white family that supposedly stole or unfairly gained their land during the years of Apartheid. “All this land belongs to one man? One white man?” the character Thami (Nala Khumalo) candidly remarks, while protruding from the car as he overlooks the many acres of farmland. Thami is the only male in the group and was only brought along on the getaway because Lexi’s parents insisted that it’s not safe for three women to be travelling alone. As the group settles at their camping site, we get to know more about these characters, and their views and experiences as ‘black’, ‘white’, ‘coloured’ and/or ‘mixed race’ citizens in a democratic South Africa. Francesca Varrie Michel expands on her role as Lexi: “My character, Lexi, is a white female – as a white person your body represents destruction and colonialism… It explores the white body rejecting the white body, because of its symbolism of destruction and
privilege. It also explores the white person who feels silenced because they don’t feel they have the right to an opinion and how that affects identity. It’s a case of helping the white body to learn and be better. A white person will never be able to understand the pain, but they can be better by bettering their understanding by listening and taking part in the dialogue.” Qondiswa James plays Xoli, a militant and vocal black woman who has endured systematic abuse in her protests for free education and against other political injustices. “Xoli is a black Xhosa womxn who is grappling with her identity within the violence of white supremacist capitalist hetero-patriarchal hegemonic order. I found through Xoli something a lot like rage, the rage of slave/labour lineage raised through me; landless and dispossessed,” shares James. Loren Loubser plays the role of ‘mixed race’ Stacey-Lee who feels like the world views her as “grey matter” because she looks white but actually identifies as
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Film
issues of race and identity TECH CHECK EQUIPMENT • Camera: iPhone 7 and DJI drone
High Fantasy 1: High Fantasy actors and co-writers: Liza Scholtz, Francesca Varrie Michel, Nala Khumalo and Qondiswa James a woman of colour, trying to fight the same struggle as James. “Stacey-Lee represents the ‘mixed race’ voice; she can be perceived as white and feels she has a responsibility to put white people in their place. She doesn’t align herself with anything white and wants to fight the fight alongside people of colour as this is what she identifies as,” shares Loubser. The characters in film soon discover that while struggle protests and harsher penalties for perpetrators have been a great defence in the fight for change; stepping into the shoes of the victim or even culprit, may lead to greater understanding, an honest reflection and maybe true reconciliation. The groups’ carefree expedition suddenly turns into horror when they wake to find they have swapped bodies with each other. The film then uses a ‘selfielike’ shooting style to capture the humorous and traumatic experience, which forces them to see the world in each other’s shoes. Director of the film, Bass says; “I was fascinated by the body-swap genre, but felt I’d never really seen a film that did it justice in all the awkwardness, grossness, weirdness and horror I would expect if it were to happen to me. At the time, I was also looking for a way to tell a story around the complex identity politics which have been so important to my generation over the past few years, and a body-swap story seemed to be a perfect way to do this.” The millennial generation’s reaction to any delightful and bizarre experience is to capture and share it on their phones; so Bass and her cast/crew decided to capture the film on their iPhones. The crew and characters used two
iPhone 7’s and were able to shoot in 4K using Filmic Pro software. Aerial shots were also captured by a DJI drone. “Though I’ve worked with small cameras and intimate cinematography, I’ve never shot on a phone before, or in this particular style. The iPhone seemed like the perfect choice of camera for High Fantasy – because it was so in sync with the generation the film is about. Not to mention that phones and social media are such a major part of our identities and self-image, that this choice couldn’t have been better for a millennial body-swap story,” says Bass. Shooting took place in the hot and humid Northern Cape for two and a half weeks, with a few extra shots done in Cape Town. “We shot in peak summer, which in the Northern Cape can reach 40 degrees or over. And it did. The iPhone would frequently overheat, meaning we’d have to put it in a cooler box to calm down. This was somewhat expected, but then we also had a flash flood which definitely wasn’t,” shares Bass. High Fantasy was financed by Bass and producers Steven Markovitz (Big World Cinema) and David Horler (Proper Film); with the assistance of executive producer Irshaad Ebrahim, Deal Productions, Sound and Motion Studios as well as Refinery Post Production. Editing was done by Kyle Wallace, while online was handled by Stephen Abbott. Grading, FX and delivery were then done by The Refinery. The film had its international premiere at the Toronto Film Festival (TIFF) where they also won in the Best High-Concept Premise category at the Verge’s TIFF 2017 Awards. Furthermore, the TIFF
Next Wave committee, which is made of young voices, has recommended the film on its top films to see in 2017. “The response was overwhelming. Sold out screenings and grateful audience members, who personally came up to us to thank us for this film, was quite something,” shares Michel. High Fantasy also recently screened at the American Film Institute (AFI) Festival, and the film’s cast and crew hope that it will help further the dialogue on global inequalities and lead to transformation. “Racial dynamics and conflicts is something that South Africans should never and can never ignore. Apartheid is something personal to South Africans, but land politics, colonialism and racism is an international conversation and reality. It allows all races to open up, be honest and question a lot,” says Loubser. Bass is already working on her next project titled, Flatland, an allfemale Western adventure that will be starting production soon. “So far I have made tiny-budget films with stories that were possible to tell that way, which utilised the resources and friends I had available at the time, which proved that you don’t need money to capture beauty, drama and emotion. I hope to make films that find an audience, that inspire people to make their own films and also make it possible for these other films to get made. I can’t take pride in my work if it’s made in a vacuum. I will be happiest telling my stories when everyone around me feels equally empowered to tell theirs,” Bass concludes. – Gezzy S Sibisi
“The iPhone seemed like the perfect choice of camera for High Fantasy – because it was so in sync with the generation the film is about. Not to mention that phones and social media are such a major part of our identities and self-image, that this choice couldn’t have been better for a millennial body-swap story.” – Director Jenna Bass
KEY CREW Director: Jenna Bass Producers: Steven Markovitz and David Horler Cinematographers: Qondiswa James, Nala Khumalo, Francesca Varrie Michel, Liza Scholtz, Loren Loubser and Jenna Bass Writers: Qondiswa James, Nala Khumalo, Francesca Varrie Michel, Liza Scholtz, Loren Loubser and Jenna Bass Assistant director: Rafeeqah Galant Executive producer: Irshaad Ebrahim Editor: Kyle Wallace
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FILM
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Rehane Abrahams in her role as a homeless woman in Buitenkant (The Outside)
Buitenkant : “An intimate look at homelessness and the human experience” “I live in a part of Cape Town where there’s a sharp contrast between the lives of middle class professionals who get to live in apartment blocks, and a very nuanced homeless community who live on the streets directly outside,” shares filmmaker William Nicholson.
H
is empathy for the homeless stemming from seeing these two very different realities exist alongside each other led Nicholson to set about the making of his latest project. After much research into the subject of homelessness and interviews with people living on the streets; a moving tale named Buitenkant (The Outside) took form. “I spent a lot of time interviewing homeless women in particular and reading about homelessness. I still don’t know nearly enough about homelessness, and so it was important to me to make this more about what I believe about general human behaviour rather than hoping to make
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some kind of accurate exposé on homelessness,” says Nicholson. In the film actress, Rehane Abrahams plays an everyday homeless person. We witness her journey as she battles with the hardships of not having a place to call home, while tapping into the physiological, emotional and territorial behaviours faced by many people living on the streets. In a stroke of luck she discovers a set of keys to an apartment – a discovery which grants her an opportunity to escape her harsh reality, even if it’s just for a moment. At first, she does what might be expected of someone in her position and ransacks the place, looking for food, clothes and other items to
steal. However as time goes by her stroke of luck brings with it its own set of challenges and turmoil. “From here her emotions become highly complex and volatile: she goes from finding ways to ‘mark her territory’, to angrily avenging her poor fortune by vandalising the homeowner’s wardrobe, to eventually calming down and rectifying some of the damage – some kind of gesture towards the sacredness of having a clean, safe space to call home.” “The film is ultimately a question about the intersection between identity and circumstances,” explains Nicholson, “Do we get to choose who we are, or are we purely shaped by our surroundings… or is it some strange blend of the two?” Nicholson shares that the film’s script was initially rejected by several funders, but that did not discourage him from pursuing his project, even if it meant funding the film from his own pocket and with the help of a few supportive friends. “I don’t blame them because on paper it could seem like a very trivial story,” he says. “However, through carefully crafting the story with our amazing actress and crew, we managed to walk the fine line of turning a fairly mundane series of events into something that many people
find almost unbearably tense, and in the end, deeply moving and relatable.” Nicholson and his team set out to complete the project in just one day, using the Sony FS-7. “The Sony FS-7 camera is a pretty versatile affordable camera that works for a doccie-type look and feel. We put some primes on there but nothing fancy – just DSLR ones.” For financial reasons, the apartment used to shoot the film is actually Nicholson’s own apartment; with some props and images borrowed from his female friends to turn it into a more feminine setting and family home. Nicholson’s apartment is also in fact located on Buitenkant Street; which he decided to take as inspiration for the title of the film. Nicholson and his team worked swiftly to complete most of the shots on the first day, with only a few additional shots taken the following day. “Pierre De Villiers (the cinematographer) and I designed the film to be something we could shoot with a roaming handheld camera and only natural light. So we had only two people – Pierre and his assistant Fuad Casker – handling the whole camera, lighting and grips department! We played to the strengths of this, going for a look and feel
that is raw, immediate and immersive.” The 11-minute film has often been mistaken for a documentary, which Nicholson credits to the stripped down, immersive approach to the story and character. “It was very scary! We committed creatively to having virtually no dialogue, no music, as well as an almost-real-time approach to editing.” After watching Buitenkant, the film’s editor, Mieke Vlaming has remarked on how weird it is that even after going through this journey with the character, we still do not know who she is. “That caught me off guard and made me really worried at first, but then I realised this feature is exactly what gives the film its power: the lead character is in some sense a manifestation of the faceless, nameless ‘everyman’ – the person we all see every day roaming the street for a meal or spare change, but whose name we can’t be bothered to ask or remember,” comments Nicholson. Chris Bornman was responsible for the sound, while grading and online was done by the Priest Post team (Francesca Verveckken, Amelia Cohen and Jessica Cash). Buitenkant had its premiere at the 2016 Shnit Film Festival where it won the Jury Prize for Best Made in South Africa Short Film. After that, the film has gone through its journey round the festival circuit, which included this year’s events at the Jinzhen Short Film Festival in Hancheng, China and at the Ile Courts Film Festival in Mauritius. However, the film’s most recent highlight is being selected as the Vimeo Staff Pick and receiving over 100 thousand views in just 48 hours after being on Vimeo’s list. In addition, the film has achieved impressive reviews from other filmmakers and industry players including award-winning directors, Dan Mace and John Tengrove, as well as a nod from Vimeo Staff Pick alumni, Ari Kruger for a well-deserved win. “It’s been a massive confidence booster. I didn’t consider the film to have much mainstream appeal, so it was a big surprise to see that what I consider a very niche film, receive such a popular response both locally and abroad, as well as encouraging support from local filmmakers I admire,” says Nicholson. “I suspect it’s because the film is an exercise in empathy building. On one level, building empathy for the less fortunate in what is the obscenely unequal society of South Africa. On another level it’s about basic interpersonal empathy: we can’t
TECH CHECK EQUIPMENT • Camera: Sony FS-7 camera
“The Sony FS-7 camera is a pretty versatile affordable camera that works for a doccie-type look and feel. We put some primes on there but nothing fancy – just DSLR ones.” – William Nicholson
KEY CREW Writer, director and producer: William Nicholson Assistant director: Riordan Allen Director of Photography: Pierre De Villiers Camera assistant: Fuad Casker Editor: Mieke Vlaming Location sound and sound design: Chris Bornman
judge someone until we’ve walked in their shoes. Stylistically, I think people like the film because it refuses to rely on any conventional devices to steer the audience’s emotion – the audience needs to meet the film half way and bring their own interpretation to what they see,” he concluded. – Gezzy S Sibisi
“The film is ultimately a question about the intersection between identity and circumstances: do we get to choose who we are, or are we purely shaped by our surroundings.” – William Nicholson
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FILM
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Director Speak What has been your biggest career challenge to date? My biggest project to date has definitely been creating Tali’s Wedding Diary. The turnaround times were really fast, from writing the show to preproduction and production. It’s all been a beautiful blur. We were concerned with how to pace ourselves on set for five weeks but after the first few days we got into a rhythm and it became quite addictive. It was five hard weeks of running on adrenaline and instinct.
Ari r e Krug
Meet SuzelleDIY co-creator and Sketchbook Studios co-founder
Ari Kruger…
What is your background and how has this shaped you as a director? My background is in character animation and VFX, which really helped me prepare for becoming a director. Working in 3D meant that I had to create my own virtual sets, place the cameras and physically breathe life into the performances of the characters. It’s definitely given me the confidence to rely on my instinct for blocking scenes with actors and positioning cameras on set. Being able to create my own 3D previsualisations before a complicated shoot is also a huge added benefit. Describe the moment, if there is one, when you knew you wanted to become a director? I never really had that lightning-bolt moment where I realised that I wanted to be a director. In fact, I don’t even think I knew what a director was until I was in animation school. I did however fall in love with the process of making videos when I was a kid, as I used to watch my dad make high-end home videos by editing footage together using our VHS machine and his video camera. He also used to draw animated titles and film them for the intro sequences. I basically stole his video camera and started making home movies with my friends, from wrestling videos in my garden to ridiculous skit shows. Thankfully YouTube didn’t exist back then otherwise the immaturity of my teenaged years would have been forever embedded in the internet. Where do you find inspiration? I find my inspiration from everywhere. From other films, YouTubers, rappers and comedians to start-up founders, travelling and everyday encounters that tell an interesting story. Do you have any local mentors? Trevor Clarence, from my commercials production company Your Girlfriend, showed me the ropes in many ways and taught me the art of pitching. He also has great comedic sensibilities and instinct and I gain huge value from bouncing my ideas and new projects off of him. Daniel Levi is another director for whom I have the utmost respect. He was extremely encouraging when I was transitioning from animation into directing.
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Top three favourite directors? Why them? My favourite directors are always changing but I love the DIY directors, the guys who have carved out their own careers by taking action in their own way, so to speak. Spike Jonze, Robert Rodriguez and Steven Soderbergh were my big influences early on. I also love that they get their hands dirty, often shooting their own work and editing it too. I was very hands on when I was starting out and still am to some degree, although I’m trying to stick to just directing and writing these days. Which projects are you currently involved in? I’m currently in post-production on our new TV show, Tali’s Wedding Diary, which is premiering on Showmax in December. It’s been an incredible project to work on as Showmax gave us full creative freedom and support to make the show that we wanted. I’m really hoping that our show will be a step forward in shifting the landscape of traditional South African television. What kind of content do you enjoy creating? For whatever reason, I seem to gravitate towards comedic storytelling, which could be because I always secretly wanted to be a stand-up comic. I love creating and developing characters with actors; I love narrative work and exploring new techniques of how to tell a story. I’m also happy to work across all formats, like short films, music videos and online videos. I’ve loved the process of making a TV show and would do it again in a heartbeat.
What has been the highlight of your career thus far? One of my highlights was being selected for Tropfest 2011, the world’s largest short film festival, for my short film, Focus. I had been previously rejected three times so it felt REALLY good to finally get in there. I’m also a big fan of Australian film and I got to meet some of my local filmmaking heroes there. Another definite highlight is having created SuzelleDIY with my supremely talented wife Julia Anastasopoulos. Suzelle really changed our lives and opened doors for us in ways that we could never have imagined. It has also allowed us to create our own content consistently for the past few years and we’ve been able to work with brands in a liberating and rewarding way. We’ve also learned a huge amount about YouTube, algorithms and different strategies to consider when creating content. We’ve since launched our own production company Sketchbook Studios. The idea behind Sketchbook is to work with brands in creating original content and memorable characters, using the knowledge and experiences that we’ve learned from SuzelleDIY. We’re also looking at creating more original content for VOD platforms like Showmax. If you could produce an African version of a Hollywood classic, what would it be? I would make an African version of Chinatown and replace the California water crisis with the Cape Town one. I’d need to find a great African Jack Nicholson though... Top three favourite films of all time? That’s the hardest question in the world. I’d say these films because I can always watch them again and again: Being John Malkovich; The Godfather; The Life Aquatic. What is your dream shoot location? Everyone says Iceland so I’ll say Iceland – that prolonged golden hour is just something special. Who would play you in a biopic? Paul Rudd If you weren’t a filmmaker, you would be…? I’d be producing music — or trying to be a stand-up comic.
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TECH CHECK EQUIPMENT • Camera: Blackmagic Design Pocket Cinema camera
KEY CREW Africans of Hollywood
From Africa to Hollywood They say if you can make it in Hollywood, you can make it anywhere. However Kenyan-born, Los Angeles-based filmmaker, Phyllis Thinkii disagrees; she believes that creatives should succeed in their home country, and as a result, Hollywood will come to them!
“T
he people I know in the African entertainment market are because of what they have done in their respective countries. People like Pierra Makena of Kenya, Pearl Thusi of South Africa, Yvonne Nelson of Ghana or even Ann Kansiime of Uganda,” mentions Thinkii. “Bloom in the country where you are and the western market will recognise your talent in your country and recruite you from there,” she advises. However for Africans who have “made it” or have already come to Hollywood in search for greater fame, the American dream is still a cut-throat industry, causing some to even form support groups. In her latest work, Africans of Hollywood, Thinkii aims to show how the great lesson of Ubuntu can help African artists pursue their craft in a foreign land. “The show, Africans of Hollywood came about after reading and hearing many mentors and even Hollywood executives always stressing that a writer should write what they know and what they’re passionate about, not what the market needs. And I realised that the story of the immigrant struggle in Hollywood, especially the African immigrant struggle in Hollywood, had not been told,” shares Thinkii. The show features a group of friends from the African continent including countries like Burundi, South Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya and Nigeria. Much like Thinkii, who comes from Kenya and has been living and working in Hollywood for 12 years now, her
characters portray different African backgrounds, experiences and journeys. Kiki, played by Adinett Nsabimana, has newly arrived in Hollywood and is still naïve in her expectations of the place. While Tory, played by Salome Mergia, has been in Hollywood the longest amongst her friends. She has already gone through all the struggles and is now cynical of the whole “American dream.” Other characters include uber optimistic aspirant actor Terry, played by Usman Ojibara; the deranged composer Daniel, played by Tuksie Mogoje; and Rose Wakesho who plays the role of Rose, a performer who’s desperate to make it. “The main theme of the show is: one needs a support group while you’re pursuing your dreams. No matter what the team goes through, they have to value their friendship. At the end of the day, your support system, your close friendships will always help you endure the harshness of life and that of pursuing dreams,” says Thinkii. Thinkii’s own Hollywood journey started in 1998 when she moved to Washington DC to study computer science. She later fell in love with the art of storytelling and decided to leave the computer industry in 2005 in favour of Hollywood. “While in college in Washington DC, I’d watch a TV show, then write something similar to it for the Kenyan audience. I later came to learn the Hollywood term for what I was doing was called a ‘specking of a show’.” Amongst her previous works is a
web series called 16 and Awesome, a few sketches entitled, How to piss off an African and a book on Amazon called Karimi – a tale based on an African princess. It is because of her tough and persistent journey in the Hollywood industry, that she felt inspired to write her latest work, Africans of Hollywood. The show’s script won over the heart of a Hollywood writer, who then agreed to mentor Thinkii for six months, while teaching her the ins and outs of television writing. “It is a hard career and anyone crazy enough to pursue it must approach it like a calling otherwise you abandon the harsh realities of it. So I decided who better to tell this story than me; an African, who knows how challenging it is to make it in this market,” shares Thinkii. Thinkii says that Africans of Hollywood carries a similar tone to that of HBO’s hit television series Entourage, bringing a good mix of witty humour and drama to the story. “Our uber talented director, Josh Aguilar brought the idea that Hollywood needs to be a character in the show and I fully agreed with him. Josh and our talented cameraman, Kak Lee filmed the pilot episode with the Black Magic camera and imbued the essence of Hollywood by carefully crafting every shot, every angle to enhance not only the performances of the actors but to capture the beauty of our biggest star, Los Angeles.” Africans of Hollywood will consist of 13 episodes, which will each be 10 to
Phyllis Thinkii, producer of Africans of Hollywood Creator/showrunner: Phyllis Thinkii Producer: Phyllis Thinkii Director: Josh Aguilar 1st Assistant director: Francisco Nunez Editor: Jayden Avery Romero Director of Photography: Kak Lee Set decorator: Anna Ayvazyan
15 minutes in length. The first season of the show is currently underway and aims to finish filming in February 2018. The show’s rollout is scheduled to happen by April 2018. “For now, we will keep it on YouTube, until we can negotiate another network or VOD platform for it,” says Thinkii. Thinkii’s hope for the show is that it gets viewed worldwide and that it’s seen for its lessons on the harsh realities artists go through while pursuing their Hollywood dreams, and what it takes to make a dream of any sorts happen. “I’m glad I never gave myself a time limit to pursue this dream. A lot of people in the Hollywood community tell you that you need atleast 10 years in this business to see the fruition of your hard work. Hard work with capital ‘H’. People work hard here,” stresses Thinkii. Like the quote in the movie, Pretty Woman: “Everyone comes to Hollywood, but not everyone stays.” Thinkii is persevering through the struggles of an African in Hollywood and she intends on staying and living her dream! – Gezzy S Sibisi
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From the producer’s mouth:
Herman Binge line producers and unit production managers are appointed who represent the main producer’s interests. During post-production, the producer has to supervise the cutting of the film and is involved in the decision making about scenes that have to be changed and the sound mixing of music and effects. Finally the producer has to work with marketing and distribution companies in order to sell the film or arrange its distribution rights.
How did you come to find yourself working in film and TV? Was it always the plan? On my parents’ insistence, I first completed a LLB law degree like they wanted me to, but after that I studied drama and started working in television like I wanted to. What exactly does the job of a producer entail? The short answer is that you have to be a jack of all trades and you have to appoint somebody else – these days there are a variety of producers on feature films – who can fill in the gaps in your own capabilities. In the development phase of a film, the producer has to have some literary appreciation to recognise a good book, script or idea and raise the money to pay for it all. You have to find an appropriate screenwriter and contract people like the film director, cinematographer and production designer and have some say on which cast or crew get hired. A producer’s role will also consist of approving locations, studio hire, final shooting script, production schedule, and the budget. During production, the main producer’s job is to make sure the film stays on schedule and under budget by managing and staying in contact with key creative team members. Often on large productions, executive producers,
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As someone who has produced across genres and formats, in both film and television, what kind of content do you enjoy creating most and why? Creating content for television is different to film. Television productions normally get commissioned by a broadcaster who carries the full financial risk. The television producer therefore represents the interest of the broadcaster and in many ways becomes an extension of its staff. Some of the major decisions about story and budget as well as crew and talent appointments are made by the broadcaster in line with their editorial policy. The television producer carries out these decisions and ensures that the production stays on schedule and under budget by managing the process under supervision of the broadcaster. The television channel will hold the producer responsible for the satisfactory completion and delivery of the production and will pay the producer a set fee or mark-up for his services. The film producer makes a lot more key decisions and enjoys a lot more artistic freedom, although there is still a responsibility towards the investors in the film. The film producer shares in the profits of a film once the investors have recouped their investment, so the possibility always exists for him or her to do well financially if the film is a “hit.” Both worlds make different demands on the producer and I enjoy the challenges that each production offers equally. Your most recent project, Waterfront, is shot at the
Renowned film and television producer Herman Binge chats to Screen Africa…
V&A Waterfront in Cape Town. What was it like filming at such a busy tourist location and how did you manage to secure this as your location? It was extremely difficult at times to work in the most popular tourist destination in the country. Without the co-operation of the Waterfront staff, it would have been impossible. Although we had many stakeholders to answer to and many home and business owners to work around, we tried to prove our goodwill by behaving professionally at all times. This of course placed a lot of extra responsibility and strain on the crew and cast of Waterfront. But I am happy to say that our team maintained an exceptionally high standard of discipline and decorum. We have been tenants of the V&A Waterfront ourselves for many years and our location managers have been working in this environment on many productions in the past. We have therefore built up longstanding relationships with the Waterfront staff that stood us in good stead. As someone who I’m certain has mentored many in the industry, who were/are your mentors? Why them? In my early days, there were not the amount of film schools that there are today, so we had to learn ‘on the job’ while working professionally. People like Jan Scholtz, Elmo de Witt, Jans Rautenbach and Katinka Heyns – all pioneers in the local industry – taught me a lot and created early opportunities for me. However, I can safely say that early in my career my biggest mentor was director Manie van Rensburg. I had tremendous respect for him as an intellectual, a craftsman, an artist and a warm and generous human being. Lately in television I worked very closely with Marida Swanepoel, an insightful and sensitive veteran of the television business, who was one of the founders of kykNET. She taught me to understand and respect the local audience who we are responsible to and dependent on. What has been the biggest challenge in your career to date? Each production that you tackle is one’s biggest challenge. You would think that one would ‘know’ this business after 35 years… but you don’t. Every production is entirely different and presents one with challenges that you have never
been faced with before. However, it was a massive challenge to get the South African production of Idols off the ground. We suddenly had a cast of thousands and thanks to a dedicated team, we pulled it off successfully. A documentary series like Scorched Earth – on the concentrations camps during the Boer War – was also a challenge because of the vast subject matter and because you had to fight and struggle to find and secure each historical image. What has been your career highlight(s) to date? It would be like admitting to you who my favourite child is. It would be wrong to choose. There were just too many. I suppose I have to say that it was a highlight working in television and film, and living in Cape Town. That is all I ever asked of life. What advice do you have for young people wanting to follow in your career footsteps? Please do not to follow in my career footsteps. Create your own. It is not easy to make a living in this industry. Supply is big. Demand is small. The budgets are big. Our audience is small. You have to want to do this desperately, otherwise you will not last. Have that kind of tenacious commitment. Work extremely hard and enjoy it to the fullest. Three people, dead or alive, that you would love to work with on a production? Only three? Alfred Hitchcock, Federico Fellini, Ingmar Bergman and David Lean – all dead. Francis Ford Coppola, Joel and Ethan Coen, Martin Scorsese and Milos Forman – all very much alive. If you weren’t working in film and television, what would you be doing? I came very close to spending my days in a court of law. If I had not followed the desire I had to tell stories and to share in the magical experience of telling them to an audience, I would be dressed in a black robe in downtown Cape Town experiencing as much real life human drama as I am able to portray in film and television. What can we expect next from Herman Binge and Lion’s Head Productions? Retirement!
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Photo credit: Murray Walker
VR developer Murray Walker in studio
The rise of Virtual Reality in the film industry
With Alejandro G. Inarritu’s Carne y Arena (Virtually Present, Physically Invisible) debuting at this year’s Cannes as the festival’s first-ever Virtual Reality (VR) installation, and with Kathryn Bigelow co-directing a VR documentary about elephant poaching called The Protectors, it is clear that some of the world’s biggest talents are exploring the filmmaking possibilities of virtual reality.
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ou might have seen (or even tried out) an Oculus Rift or an HTC Vive, but how will this burgeoning technology affect the film industry? And how can South African filmmakers begin to prepare for the challenges of working in this new medium? Murray Walker, a VR developer based in Cape Town, explains that although a lot of money is being invested in VR hardware and software development (especially in the United States and China), so far this has largely been concentrated on the gaming industry, with “business areas like training, education, medicine and travel all
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attracting investment now, too.” Indeed, part of what is so exciting about VR’s infiltration into the film industry is that the question of how exactly it should be used is still being worked out. “Storytelling in VR is so exciting to me precisely because there are no answers right now,” Walker says. “It’s really like being back in France when the Lumieres were fiddling with their cinematographe and there were no rules or best practices yet.” Walker explains that there are two main avenues for filmmakers to explore: virtual reality and 360-degree video. He explains that, “VR is made in a game engine and rendered in real-time at 90 frames
per second. 360 video is not the same as VR, but is also consumed via a headset. 360 video is captured by an array of cameras, anything from 2 to 16, and the images are then stitched together to make what seems like a screen that entirely envelops the viewer. Both avenues are interesting from the point of view of film, with VR emerging more from the animation angle, and 360 video from the live capture side.” Contemporary conversations around VR in the film industry centre around the related issues of interactivity and immersivity: of the audience member being ‘surrounded’ by the media experience, and able to navigate it themselves. As far back as 2013 (in an interview with Variety magazine), Steven Spielberg declared, “We’re never going to be totally immersive as long as we’re looking at a square, whether it’s a movie screen or whether it’s a computer screen. We’ve got to get rid of that and put the player inside the experience, where no matter where you look you’re surrounded by a three-dimensional experience. That’s the future.” Walker agrees with these sentiments, and is particularly enthusiastic about the interactivity that VR could provide. In fact, he
thinks that this is precisely the challenge that filmmakers should embrace: “Think about giving up control as to where you want the viewer to focus and imagine nonlinear storytelling. In the context of VR, I think this is really the only viable direction film can take, to be honest. When the viewer has the freedom to look anywhere, it’s incredibly hard to get them to focus where you want them to focus.” Instead, he feels the drive should be towards “bringing gaming technology into the equation, and incorporating the ever-improving conversational AIs that are out there. That way you can create a kind of film/game hybrid that will offer a unique experience for every viewer.” While a project like this might sound far removed from traditional filmmaking, there are already products on the market that could pave the way for such experimentation. One exciting innovation has been the development of light-field cameras (such as the Lytro Immerge), which offer new ways of digitising and spatially mapping physical spaces such as film sets. As Walker puts it, “With these cameras, even when using traditional methods of capturing action, your output will be entirely 3D – allowing
| the viewer to change their field of view at any point.” There are, furthermore, some interesting physiological challenges involved with working in the medium of VR. Walker says that he has observed that “suddenly immersing someone in a different space has this stunning effect, where the viewer has this almost cognitive dissonance while the brain tries to figure out what’s just happened. The first 30 seconds or so, the viewer is really spending all their energy just orientating themselves. So I’ve found that starting them in a simple space and not having much happen until they are comfortable and paying proper attention works well. Also remember that high-end VR headsets only allow movement in a two-by-two metre area, so you can’t ask the viewer to move around too much.” He also points out that “the sense of personal space exists in VR just like in real life. It’s pretty uncomfortable to have someone right in your face. And in VR, your face is essentially the camera, so positioning stuff at least an arm’s length away is a solid guideline.” Finally, he draws attention to the crucial role that sound plays in the VR experience. “Sound is
extremely important to immerse the viewer effectively. In VR, the viewer is spatially aware in a 360-degree sense, so if sounds don’t come from the correct place in space, it can break the immersion pretty severely.” Battling to understand how all of these components might come together to form a coherent narrative experience, I asked Walker to describe the best example of VR film that he’s seen. “It has to be Gnomes & Goblins by Jon Favreau. It was only a demo, but I think it really shows the way that film in the age of VR will go. In it, you need to befriend a little, shy goblin. You do this by gently giving him an acorn. Move too quickly and he runs away. It can take ages to get him to trust you enough, and the essence of the experience is that he really starts to feel like he’s a living being. When you finally do win him over, he gives you a present in return. It’s a really simple concept, but it was beautifully put together – obviously entirely in CGI, made in a game engine – and it properly impressed me. I was laughing out loud thinking of the potential that this little ‘film’ demonstrated.” Although the possibilities suggested by this kind of ‘media
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“Storytelling in VR is so exciting to me precisely because there are no answers right now, it’s really like being back in France when the Lumieres were fiddling with their cinematographe and there were no rules or best practices yet.” – Murray Walker
melding’ are genuinely exciting, Walker doesn’t see VR as a replacement for film at all. “I think it will just be another option for filmmakers. I don’t believe traditional 2D film will be consigned to the entertainment dump any time soon. VR is a new storytelling platform, not a direct replacement of an existing platform. For one thing, headsets are – by design – isolating, which takes the social aspect out of watching a film, which I think many people enjoy. For another, most of us watch films to relax: we don’t necessarily want to be the actor. Imagine how exhausting it would be to ‘play out’
Die Hard! I think, at least for the next few decades VR will run parallel to normal ways of filmmaking, offering an entirely different set of challenges and opportunities. It won’t suddenly make normal filmmaking and storytelling redundant.” So even if the future of film is ‘safe’ from major disruption at the hands of VR, it will be interesting to see how South African filmmakers respond to the advent of new these technologies – especially in the light of the recent growth and continued international interest in our animation industry. – David Cornwell
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2017 has been a bit of an odd year for Virtual Reality (VR). Last year it was all the rave and people believed that virtual reality had a pretty decent chance of becoming a thing – unlike the 3D ‘experiment’ that failed somewhat in the past.
Google partnered with Chinese company Yi Technology to launch the high-end Yi Halo VR camera
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his year VR hasn’t really been at the top of the agenda at the big trade shows, but the interest shown has been enough for a trend to start developing and the murmurs being generated in the background are enough to turn TV producers and broadcaster’s heads, and start the thought process as to how VR can be used to deliver new forms of drama, documentary and storytelling. Virtual Reality, in simple terms, is the act of using a combination of computing power and optics to simulate a visual and auditory experience that seeks to fool the user into believing they’re someplace else. It seeks to replace reality with something else, rather than enhance it. This is usually done by combining optics, headphones and head tracking, so you can look around the virtual environment and, in some cases, move within it. At Cannes back in April this year, virtual reality was being touted as the next mass medium that will take television to a new
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level and the release of a new generation of VR headsets from the likes of Google, Samsung, Sony, HTC and Oculus VR have brought the technology and the whole idea of virtual reality into prominence. The problem is that only around 20 million headsets have been sold thus far, including fewer than 2 million of the “tethered” devices, which require a connection to a powerful computer, but with research companies predicting that spending on VR experiences is likely to see US$30 billion injected into the industry by 2021, TV executives are seriously looking at how they can incorporate these ‘real-life’ headsets to deliver new forms of storytelling across the genres and broadcasters are looking closely at the content that is available now. The existing VR model delivers mainly free content, and the content owners are focusing on showcasing sample and preview material at most which is a reflection of the infancy of
the technology. There are paid content examples, such as games and apps which can be purchased on the Oculus Gear VR Store for example, but these are the exception rather than the rule. As a result of the free content model, company sponsorship provides a crucial contribution to production costs, allowing brands to both experiment and demonstrate their innovation. With this in mind, the question arises as to which model will work best for VR to succeed? For VR live streaming perhaps pay per view or subscription based models would work, and perhaps pre-recorded content works best for pay-TV operators and the big networks? Once there is a reasonably sized catalogue of content, there is no doubt that a subscription based broadcasting model would work and pay per view would be the ideal for premium content such as live events. Just as interoperability continues to be an issue in the broadcast industry,
VR is no exception to the problem. It is obvious that the VR industry goal is for much greater interoperability in order to minimise production costs and increase the overall social aspects of VR, which leads us into the matter of cost and performance, an issue for both the consumer and especially the broadcaster. Current VR headsets are divided into two categories. At the lower end are the devices you plug into your smartphone to deliver VR that’s instant, wireless and convenient. At the other, higher end, are the more powerful headsets that require a PC connection. While both can be used for a unique broadcast experience, it’s important for broadcasters to consider their target audience and their preferred platform, as this will dictate the content they deliver in the long term. Companies experimenting with content include the likes of technology giant Sony. PlayStation VR, released last year, was initially focused on gaming but Sony’s
Real! commitment to offering content other than gaming has seen PlayStation VR expand further into television with its own VR films such as The Walk, Goosebumps and Ghostbusters as well as massive investments into live sporting events. Many believe that sport will dictate the rise and development of VR in the future. Fox Sports is also no stranger to VR. The network broadcast Super Bowl 51 in VR as well as the CONCACAF Gold Cup soccer championship back in July. But in terms of broadcast commitment to virtual reality prospects in sports broadcasting, it’s the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the US that is taking the plunge. Just last month they announced that they are making the entire 2017/18 season immersive, broadcasting every game live in VR. All this is being made possible by capture and delivery technology company NextVR, a Californian 3DTV broadcast company who switched over to VR in 2012. NextVR have invested millions into the technology because they firmly believe that VR is the future of sport broadcasting. Lighter, more comfortable headsets have increased the average viewing time from seven minutes 42 seconds, to an entire game and about 40 per cent of sporting fans say that they are interested in watching live VR sport broadcasts, encouraging news considering the NBA alone attracts 22 million viewers nightly. Broadcasting live events is one thing; editing and finishing professional quality 360 videos is a different kettle of fish that involves massive amounts of post work. Both Avid and Adobe Systems have heavily invested in VR finishing as part of their latest software updates. In their biggest update yet, just last month, Adobe added a ton of new features allowing one to edit immersive VR the way it’s viewed — wearing a VR headmount. They have added audio based orientation into their audio editing platform and a plethora of immersive video effects and transitions. Adobe acquired Skybox technology earlier
in the year to help them develop the VR applications. Adobe also isn’t the only company that’s made an effort to acquire others in the virtual reality space. In the past year, Google has been aggressive about acquiring studios and individual developers in the VR space, including Owlchemy Labs, a video game developer best known for its virtual reality and award winning video game – Job Simulator. Google has also entered into the same enterprise territory as Adobe, partnering to help launch the high-end Yi Halo VR camera earlier this year. As virtual reality headsets try to move from being a niche interest into a more popular medium for interactive video, Adobe undoubtedly will ensure that it remains a strong option for creatives and studios who want to produce videos and other experiences built in VR. VR experiences are also set to transform the music industry. Recently, Coldplay – in association with Samsung – offered fans a free VR livestream of the band’s A Head Full of Dreams concert in Chicago, and fans who utilised the service reported that it was as good, if not better as being there on the night. The VR experience offered front row seats and on stage ‘virtual passes’ providing access to fans around the world to experience the energy of the live gig without physically being there. Experiencing a concert in VR is something that people are willing to pay for and could become one of the most important revenue streams for musicians and producers in the future. While VR is still making its first baby steps into the vast world of broadcast, there is no doubt, that with careful planning and continued development of technologies, it will be hugely successful with the potential to deliver much more exciting and interactive viewing experiences for the everchanging needs of the consumer. As long as we remain curious, there is no doubt this will happen…really! – Ian Dormer
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VIRTUAL REALITY
VR headsets by htc, Oculus, Samsung and Google
Just as interoperability continues to be an issue in the broadcast industry, VR is no exception to the problem. It is obvious that the VR industry goal is for much greater interoperability in order to minimise production costs and increase the overall social aspects of VR, which leads us into the matter of cost and performance, an issue for both the consumer and especially the broadcaster. NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
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VIRTUAL REALITY
| OPINION
The other side It has been another year of incredible developments in the world of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). A year that has seen so many interesting and arguably expected updates to the evergrowing landscape of immersive wearable technology.
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rom the announcement of the Oculus Go, and its rival standalone headsets from the likes of Qualcomm, Lenovo, and Google. To the grand moves made by Apple to incorporate AR in to their new iPhone 8 and iPhone X ranges with ARKit, the impressive new marker less AR SDK. It has become a full-time job trying to keep up with the endless updates, but what does that mean for the South African market and even more importantly the average South African consumer. The honest truth is that all this technology is unlikely to land in the average South African’s living room. With a high-end VR headset like the HTC Vive likely to set you back at least R20 000 when you take in to account the need for a high-end PC or laptop. And although smartphone penetration in South Africa is high, the capabilities of the types of smart devices in circulation in South Africa are not quite up to scratch when it comes to the latest in these technologies. So, your immediate response may be, “Why should I care?”, and you wouldn’t be blamed. However, the answer is, you should care a lot because these technologies are here to stay and although initially, you may not have a VR headset in your living room you are very likely to see them springing up in your office, at your local shopping mall, and on your favourite social media platforms. So, let’s take a deeper look at the technologies and how they might affect you in the near future. Let’s start in the workplace. One thing South Africa is in desperate need of is better, more efficient, and cheaper training and learning facilities and products. Specifically in the realm of technical skills such as complex machine operators, and tradesmen. VR is an incredible tool when it comes to being able to simulate multiple situations and utilise an immersive, user friendly means of guiding learners through their learning, all the while enabling complex data to be gathered on their performance. This data includes heat maps that detail where a user is looking or engaged the most. Think of the applications for understanding what draws a potential employee’s
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attention in a working environment when presented with different scenarios. VR allows employers and trainers to better understand and analyse the reactions and responses of users. Your next job interview might include a spin in an HTC Vive or Oculus Go, so be ready. Dondoo Studios, has been working for over three years with some of the continents biggest mining companies to develop the next generation of training content for developing operators in mining operations. Branding, and advertising is also an interesting space to keep your eye on. Both VR and AR offer a number of interesting possibilities for presenting consumers with new ways to interact and engage with their favourite brands. In the VR space, both YouTube and Facebook have offered 360 video viewing for over a year now which has slowly introduced mainstream consumers to the capabilities of 360 video and VR. But now that users have been introduced to the technology the appetite for content is growing, along with the expectations from users with regards to the experiences offered. Marketing campaigns are starting to include VR activations and experiences both narrative and interactive. Similarly AR has just begun to hit the mainstream thanks to the massive introduction by Apple with their ARKit SDK
which allows users to place 3D content almost anywhere in their environment. This had led to a massive surge in the development of AR based branded apps, games, and mobile tools. The big question with regards to AR is, when is it going to be wearable? Right now you need to hold your phone up to enjoy AR experiences but in the near future (we are talking five years max) people will be walking around with Google Glass inspired AR headsets that will augment their environment at all times. This is going to fundamentally change the way in which people interact with computers, and in so doing the way we interact with advertising and brands. Then last but not least, there is the social media and entertainment aspect of these technologies. You would be forgiven for forgetting (or not even
knowing) that Facebook purchased Oculus for a whopping $2 billion. There is a definite reason for that kind of investment. It is Mark Zuckerberg’s belief that the social media experience will eventually be a mixed reality experience. Blending the real world with the virtual. Imagine a world where you are walking down the street with an AR headset as mentioned above and your headset recognises your friend based on his or her Facebook profile before even you do. Or being able to have an immersive Skype style chat with your friends on the top of Mount Kilimanjaro from the comfort of your own home. Apple’s ARKit and Google’s AR Core have brought AR to the masses and AR gaming has already seen its first killer app from the likes of Pokémon Go. The possibilities of the technology are infinite and as the hardware improves so will the experiences out there to enjoy. Now you might be saying, yes but like you said I won’t be able to afford it, but you won’t have to. Companies like IMAX and Disney are already building immersive VR and AR capable amusement parks and entertainment areas. With the advent of wireless VR and mixed reality headsets, these kinds of
OPINION
of VR futuristic arcades are going to become commonplace, allowing you to test your next holiday experience, to flying you through outrageous rollercoaster experiences, to everything in between. There is no doubt we are living in one of the most interesting times in human history. The introduction of VR and AR combined with the next big tech advancement, high-end
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VIRTUAL REALITY
Written by James Gaydon,
co-founder and creative director at Dondoo Studios
artificial intelligence, is guaranteed to change the world. It is guaranteed to change your world. There is no doubt the next five years are going to be a virtual, augmented joy ride!
Facebook purchased Oculus for a whopping $2 billion. There is a definite reason for that kind of investment. It is Mark Zuckerberg’s belief that the social media experience will eventually be a mixed reality experience. Blending the real world with the virtual.
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DISCOP brings
Wonda VR’s Film Jam to Johannesburg The Wonda VR Film Jam participants and organisers at DISCOP Johannesburg 2017
The first African VR Film Jam project took place during DISCOP Johannesburg 2017, which ran from 25 to 27 October at the Sandton Convention Centre. the city to actually create those tracks, and to curate those sounds and do a couple of live sounds from the various places where they are; and who knows in the future, it will incorporate smells and other experiences with new technology,” commented Gareth Steele from Alt Reality who was the Green Team’s mentor.
Blue Team: In-Human
Arnault Labaronne presenting the VR Film Jam at the DISCOP Johannesburg VR showcase
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igital Lab Africa together with the French VR studio, Wonda VR facilitated the global initiative which travels to various cities around the world, giving creatives a 48-hour “WondaFull” VR assignment. Arnault Labaronne, VR Film Jam artistic director explains: “Wonda VR is new software in the virtual reality scene that has already showcased in several cities across the world including Beirut, Chicago, Singapore, Hong Kong, Chang Chun and Taipei… It’s about creating interactivity between sequences of 360 degree videos…” Twelve creative professionals from different art disciplines started their 48-hour journey on 24 October. Their challenge was to write, shoot and edit a four to six-minute VR film experience under the theme ‘mixed cities’. Furthermore, this Johannesburg leg of the initiative was inspired by Desmond Tutu’s quote: My humanity is bound up in
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yours, for we can only be human together. “We choose Tutu’s quote because of its stand against racism and xenophobia and in keeping with the philosophy of Ubuntu,” said Arnault Labaronne, VR Film Jam artistic director. The creatives were grouped into teams of three. The teams were named according to colour; green, blue, yellow and red. “It was important for each team to have three types of skills, which included design skills, field direction and a performance talent,” comments Labaronne. To assist with the challenge, each team was given a mentor to guide them throughout the challenge as well as equipment including Samsung VR cameras, headsets, and a tripod. They were also tasked to make use of the Wonda VR software to edit and view their VR films. On the final day of DISCOP Johannesburg, Labaronne helmed a quick presentation on the VR Film Jam
initiative as well as the creative journey of the different teams. The teams were also there to present their final works and allow the audience to view their VR films.
Green Team: Jozi Music Match “The theme was mixed cities so our idea was that no matter where you are in Joburg, there are always two perspectives to any story and we wanted to fuse these perspectives into one,” said Sharp-Lee Mthimbula. This, they did by creating an immersive experience of Johannesburg, that allows the viewer to see two parts of the city at the same time. The experience is enhanced with different soundtracks for each scene. Additionally, the viewer can create their own experience depending on which part of the city they want to explore. “Ideally if we were to take this concept further, we would get local producers, different guys from different sides of
Anita Szentesi described the 48 hours as “exhausting”, “tense” and “fun”. “I learnt so much,” she added. Szentesi is an architect by profession and is also busy pursuing her Masters in filmmaking. In-Human is the name of her group’s project, which is about the light and dark side of humanity. “No person is either all good, or all bad; everyone has a good and a bad side. It’s about being human inside this immersive experience,” shared Szentesi. The Blue Team’s VR experience takes place within an elevator, where participants are faced with different choices that could either be good or bad for them. Coming out on the wrong floor could get you killed, while staying in the elevator allows you meet different strangers. Szentesi’s teammate and actor, Muzi Mthembu comes into the elevator at some point; looking like a scruffy young man with a guitar. The film hopes to also touch on human prejudice and the misconceptions people have about others. Other works include the musical project named, Iphupho (Dreams) by the Red Team and, Who took my milk? by the Yellow Team. Erika Denis, regional head of Media, Film and Music at the French Embassy thanked all the participants, mentors and sponsors including Maxum Digital and Tshimologong – Digital Innovation Precinct. – Gezzy S Sibisi
Black Magic Design production kit brings telenovela Runaways to life
Originally produced in Latin America, telenovelas, or ‘Spanish soap operas’, have become a prominent form of storytelling across the world. Different from TV shows, series or soap operas, telenovelas have an estimated ending date, usually running for one year or less.
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hroughout the years, telenovelas have shaped society’s views and behaviours, provided all-day entertainment to millions and launched the careers of many actors worldwide. Canal 13, Chile’s second oldest television station, has been recognised for its innovation and high quality programming. Known as pioneers, the Santiago-based station was the first to broadcast in colour and became the first station in Chile to have a full high definition TV studio. Canal 13 is also recognised for defining the success of local television series and telenovelas, including Runaways (Preciosas), which became an instant success in Chile and around the world as an online phenomenon. The series has now been brought to South African screens by Rewayat Fox. Runaways gave the team an opportunity to explore more sophisticated visuals and take storytelling to a new level with a cinematic feel. “Herval Abreu, who served as director and executive producer for Runaways initially approached our Engineering Department to propose using Blackmagic Design’s digital film cameras,” says Hugo Terán, chief of Technical Projects at Canal 13. “For a production like this, which we also call “gourmet productions”, we use equipment that is not used on the other programmes we deliver; this equipment offers stunning visual quality.” But selecting a camera that delivers
CASE STUDY
the perfect cinematic feel is not always an easy task, especially when your six in-house studios are already set up with production equipment worth thousands of dollars. “The cameras we had in studio were great, but they didn’t accomplish the aesthetic we wanted as they were broadcast cameras.” “To convince Canal 13 that the URSA Mini 4K was the right choice, we shot a couple of scenes and compared the footage with our existing broadcast camera. We saw a huge difference in the image quality, better contrasts, superior look and colour, and clearer backgrounds. Also, the fact that the camera is less expensive than our existing equipment blew everyone away,” Terán explains.
Welcoming the new gear Terán collaborated with Robert Diaz, a DaVinci Resolve Studio colourist and cine veteran. “Robert has worked in the cine industry for years, and in fact, has been using Blackmagic Design products for a very long time. He was the perfect person to bring on board to help us best utilise the cameras,” says Terán. “Initially, one of the biggest challenges the crew faced, including camera operators, assistants and lighting and audio teams, was making the change from using studio cameras to the standalone URSA Mini 4K cameras,” says Diaz. “There were a lot of choices for customising the
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PRODUCTION
camera’s setup, and the team eventually selected the Blackmagic Arduino Shield to optimise the camera control.” “Once the crew was familiar with the cameras and saw the results, they were blown away,” adds Diaz. “They were able to capture shots that highlighted skin tones, textures and colours of clothing without losing quality, and at the same time, achieving the highly desired cinematic look. Because the crew felt the cameras were so user friendly and intuitive, everyone was able to capture shots easily without having to go back and forth changing settings and compromising filming time.” When filming Runaways, Canal 13 took advantage of the URSA Mini 4K’s optical features. “Because our clients haven’t transitioned to 4K yet, we filmed the telenovela in HD and used the Teranex 2D Processor to down convert from progressive HD to interlaced HD, all while preserving the frame cadence,” comments Terán. “With the URSA Mini 4K, we were able to achieve the cinematic look we wanted for so long thanks to the camera’s Super 35mm sensor. Because of this, we believe our audience was able to enjoy visuals they had never seen before from Canal 13,” says Diaz. “This gave Runaways the telenovela feel that other international networks, like Rede Globo in Brazil, have been doing for some time.” After filming wrapped, Diaz used DaVinci Resolve Studio for colour grading and some editing. “In this instance, our favourite feature was the Power Windows, which helped us finesse our shots, specifically the colours, temperatures and enriching the original material,” he explains. “We divided colour grading for Runaways into two parts: ‘The Exterior World’ and ‘The Jail World,’” says Diaz. “For the first part, we graded the scenes to emulate the Technicolor Cinestyle LUT of the 50s, highlighting strong and bright colours. For the second part, we generated a LUT blockbuster look, highlighting tilt and orange.” “To generate these LUTs, I graded the cameras, then by highlighting the gamma and offset, I achieved the look the director was going for. In addition, I used the temporal noise reduction on nocturnal and dark scenes. Blur tools were used on faces, backgrounds and flashback scenes,” Diaz adds. DaVinci Resolve Studio was also used for some editing on the telenovela. “Even though we mostly used it for colour grading, DaVinci Resolve Studio proved helpful when adjusting shots, stabilising images and adding special effects,” Robert concluded.
“To convince Canal 13 that the URSA Mini 4K was the right choice, we shot a couple of scenes and compared the footage with our existing broadcast camera. We saw a huge difference in the image quality, better contrasts, superior look and colour, and clearer backgrounds. Also, the fact that the camera is less expensive than our existing equipment blew everyone away.”– Hugo Terán NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
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OTT growth,
CONTENT SECURITY
OPINION
collaboration and a new era of pay-TV delivery
A media landscape where consumers can watch movies, TV programmes and sports at any time, through any device they want, is the new reality around the world.
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lobal OTT revenues have been estimated by some to reach $65 billion by 2021. As mentioned in my previous article for Screen Africa on 360 security, a report from Digital TV Research has predicted that OTT revenues in sub-Saharan Africa alone will reach US$640 million by 2022. For operators, getting OTT services and content to as many screens as possible and as quickly as possible is the key to winning customers. But they face challenges in ensuring that consumers can receive premium content securely, and with the best possible user experience. Meanwhile, pure OTT services like Netflix, which launched in South Africa in January 2016 as part of a global expansion which saw it launch in 130 countries around the world, have taken advantage of this consumer demand for OTT content. However, the market dynamic between pay-TV service providers and OTT service providers – unyielding adversaries only a couple of years ago – is evolving.
Collaboration, content and control Many operators today are looking for ways to collaborate with services like Netflix or even non-traditional TV platforms. It’s clear by now that we are not living in an “either/or” scenario. Collaboration, or at least strategic co-existence is often a practical and efficient way to enhance the overall user experience, which is a key differentiator in today’s competitive market. With so much content on offer globally, it has become difficult for one operator alone to satisfy all the content demands of consumers, which is perhaps signalled by an estimated levelling of global pay-TV revenues and even subscriber decline in some markets. The Global Pay TV Revenue Forecasts report from Digital TV Research estimates that global payTV revenues will peak at just over $202 billion this year, but decline slightly to just under $200 billion by 2022. However, the same report estimates that pay-TV revenues Sub-Saharan Africa will surge by 57 per cent (up by $2.40 billion to 32 | SCREENAFRICA | NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
$6.59 billion) between 2016 and 2022. Whether looking at a global or regional viewpoint, there is no denying that increasing choice is changing consumer habits and demands. To meet these evolving needs, the winning approach for operators is to offer a hybrid set-top box (STB) with linear TV and OTT services – be it their own or from partners such as Netflix. This way the operator controls the HDMI 1 and gets consumers to come to their platform for all their content needs.
New content delivery platforms Set-top box platforms have evolved over the past few years from closed environments using proprietary middleware to increasingly open environments, such as Linux, RDK and Android. While open environments cause some concerns among operators regarding control and security, they create many business benefits that outweigh these concerns. On the far end of the “open spectrum” is Android TV, an excellent option for operators who want to launch a hybrid set top box quickly, with low development and operational costs. By leveraging built-in features of Android TV, operators can add their broadcast service in six to nine months, or shorter if they leverage a pre-integrated solution from a security partner. Besides the cost and time advantages, they give consumers instant access to thousands of OTT and other apps in the Google Play Store. Android TV allows operators to future proof the STB and expand business opportunities beyond media. Securing this open platform requires careful planning, but it is well worth the work for the benefits Android TV offers.
Written by Steeve Huin,
vice president of Strategic Partnerships, Irdeto partnership with home and professional appliance manufacturer, Vestel. With preintegrated pay-TV security capabilities within a TV, consumers can now have the best of both worlds – instant access to their favourite pay-TV service, on the big screen without extra equipment. For operators this has the potential to make subscriber acquisition easier, by providing consumers with frictionless instant-access pay-TV services on a new TV that they purchase. It’s clear that broadcast services will remain extremely important in the pay-TV market in sub-Saharan Africa for the foreseeable future, but demand is increasing for OTT content across unmanaged devices as well. As they look at collaboration or just coexistence with OTT
Effort-free sign-on to reach new subscribers However, what if the consumer is on the fence about your broadcast service? How can you make the sign-on process easier and cheaper? One is to embed CA directly into TVs, as Irdeto has recently done in
Steeve Huin
players, operators must ensure they have an effective hybrid strategy to delivering premium content to their customers securely, whether through the STB, unmanaged devices or direct through the TV.
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
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DISPLAYS & MONITORS
How to choose the right display for your broadcast application Written by Bazile Peter,
global product manager, OLED
Changes in the broadcast industry are bringing far-reaching repercussions. In particular, studios, control rooms and production houses alike are all seeking ways to streamline processes, adapt workflows and work in a faster and more intuitive way. This has given rise to a number of trends across the industry. But should equipment designers and manufacturers be swayed by these when choosing display technology?
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ne of the most noticeable shifts over the past few years has been the move towards the style of technology we now take for granted in our everyday lives; for example, consumer-style touchscreen controls. Replacing analogue switches and dials with capacitive touch functionality not only creates a more seamless finish to the product, it replicates our smartphones and tablets and is, therefore, more intuitive to use. There are other advantages too; replacing push buttons or rotary dials with touchscreen controls can save on space and actually simplify the manufacture of the product. However, the end product will be used in a complex environment and design engineers must choose wisely. Some touchscreens have the potential for electromagnetic interference from other internal components and the resulting noise may lead to false touches. On a mission-critical device such as a replay and highlight system for live sports broadcasting or an audio transmitter for live news, this could have serious consequences. While we’ve become used to touchscreens, relatively high quality cameras on our smartphones have raised the bar when it comes to image quality. As a result, equipment manufacturers are striving to offer stunning optics with wide viewing angles. There’s also a growing demand for higher resolution displays and, in some cases such as in component displays used in colour grading equipment, displays that are 4K-ready. The knock-on effect is a shift from monochrome to full colour displays in equipment as small as a 1U rack. This progress is not without its challenge; for example, when it comes to ensuring that the display is bright enough and contrast high enough across a
wide range of viewing angles. However, while the displays and touchscreens used in consumer technology are rarely expected to last more than a few years, those used in broadcasting need to be considerably more hard-wearing. So design engineers must bear this in mind when selecting the substrates to be used for cover lenses, as well as considering solutions such as optical bonding which can increase strength and reduce potential for damage from dust or moisture behind the lens.
Future-proofing investments But if broadcast equipment is to last, it also needs to be designed with future changes in mind. While it’s not possible to anticipate every trend, factoring in emerging developments, such as the growing adoption of 4K, will help extend its life. It’s also becoming increasingly fashionable to use displays and touchscreen on air. For example, in-studio video walls are popular, while many broadcasters are also looking at how presenters and reporters can use displays to show graphics and visualise data. When it comes to video walls, an important consideration is how to make the matching of displays as seamless as possible. This means ensuring any gaps between display panels are invisible and that the optical performance of each display is consistent, so there are no obvious visual differences between them. The growing use of 4K is important here too. Even though it is not currently mainstream, it’s vital to ensure that the displays won’t need to be replaced when the capability is more widely-used. From control equipment through to live broadcast and even post-production,
broadcasters are increasingly looking for all-in-one solutions featuring integrated displays rather than remote monitors. Naturally, the considerations for such a solution depend entirely on the environment in which it will be used as well as its function. However, important factors to consider include how far from eye-level the display will be viewed? What kind of ambient light is the display likely to be used in? How often will the display be used? Is full colour necessary and is any kind of touch functionality or haptic feedback needed?
The need to customise Many equipment manufacturers are being forced to shorten their product development cycles to match the acceleration of requirements, standards and technologies. As a result of this continual change, many end users are encountering new challenges that don’t yet have off-the-shelf solutions. In these cases, selecting the right display technology lies in working in close partnership with specialists to develop a solution that draws on the right combination of technologies to meet specific needs. For instance, this could be the option to integrate haptic feedback technology, i.e. vibrations to signal a touchscreen button has been pressed, into Touch Sensors, which can be tailored to suit your project requirements.
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Johannesburg
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REPORT
DISCOP Johannesburg A record-breaking sixth edition of
DISCOP Johannesburg 2017 had an air of business about it this year. With an increased focus on meetings and networking, the event was somehow more focused and serious than in previous editions, less glitz and glamour – but definitely more deal-making and demand.
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ith over 1 500 delegates in attendance (the highest so far) and a condensed lay-out, buyers and sellers seemed more intent on one-to-one meetings, particularly around African content. In fact, DISCOP Johannesburg 2017 saw a 50 per cent jump in the number companies selling content “Made In Africa” in comparison to last year, with many companies from the continent (IROKO | AFOREVO | RTI | DIFFA ) confirming significant deals. In previous years DISCOP Johannesburg has boasted cocktail lounges, informal networking spaces, and a host of rooms dedicated to side-bar programmes. This year, all elements were hosted within the
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main exhibition floor of the Sandton Convention Centre, giving the event a focused and more streamlined feeling. An expanded space for smaller meeting tables meant more opportunities for smaller players to get maximum benefit from the event. Talking to many attendees, the atmosphere at this year’s event was definitely one of seriousness and intent. Over the past two years DISCOP has been making a concerted effort to reach out to independent producers, offering more affordable ticketing and meeting table opportunities so that the event is not just a showcase for the major international players. This outreach seems to be paying-off, as this year there were over 300 independent
African producers in attendance, all intent on selling their content. As Sheryl Navarro, DISCOP’s head of Customers Relations explains further, “During these three days, all signs pointed to intensifying competition between distribution platforms hungry for content. For the first time, sellers had more leverage and ended up with better deals. Competition is also growing between global entertainment brands who dominated the marketplace until now, and home grown content rapidly catching up on quality and cross-border potential.” While the major international brands were all there this year with massive and impressive stands, somehow it was the producers who were the stars of
the show. With focuses on technology, co-productions, and building bridges across Africa, independent producers and international distributers alike all realise that central to the future of the industry is quality and accessible content. Patrick Zuchowicki, founder of DISCOP Markets puts it this way, “Until recently, the Sub-Saharan African entertainment content marketplace was dominated by one or two players, and thus negatively impacted by minimal income opportunities and chronic lack of funding for independent producers. Today, competition is intensifying, with massive investments in internet connectivity, a steady migration to digital terrestrial television and significant smart phone adoption, mobile, digital and
REPORT
online content distribution platforms are challenging the dominance of previously dominant operators.” To this end, various pitching opportunities included the Mahala. tv Pitch Marathon, as well as the competition from Animation South Africa (ASA), that earlier this month partnered with Turner, the Annecy International Animated Film Festival, Animation Magazine and others to host the first ever Animation Lounge at DISCOP Africa’s Johannesburg event. The Mahala.tv Theatre had dozens of delegates buzzing with its comprehensive digital solution for producers to distribute, monetise, and fund content, while other major players such as Cote Ouest are putting a focus building bridges across Africa through multi-language co-productions. These initiatives see opportunities for producers expanding exponentially, with examples including the partnership between French production and
distribution group Lagardère Studios is partnering with South Africa’s Urban Brew Studios to produce a telenovela that will be in both French and English. Just this month, Canal Plus International secured Agent, a glitzy series set in the glamorous world of African soccer, a co-production with Mauritius’ Cinebar Studios and Collective Dream Studios, it features cast and crew from Mauritius, South Africa, Nigeria, the U.K. and France—a clear sign of the show’s ambitions to appeal to both English- and French-speaking markets. DISCOP has also shown its ability to stay relevant and on top of industry trends with an increased focus this year on technology; from augmented and virtual reality, to a strong focus on digital, OTT and VOD platforms, the make up of the exhibitors and programming is evolving with the times. Additionally, DISCOP has identified other areas of growth within the industry, specifically that of synch
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JOHANNESBURG
deals, licensing, and music composition for content. In partnership with East Africa’s ONGEA! AFRICA, this year saw the launch of DISCORE – what will become a stand-along programme aimed at bridging the gap between the music and entertainment sectors. The press conference and panel for DISCORE took place on Friday afternoon, in previous years this would have meant empty seats, however, this year saw the exhibition floor full until late on Friday, and the DISCORE Panel discussion was filled to capacity with an engaged and very enthusiastic audience, many from the music industry who had never previously attended a DISCOP event. The feedback on the launch of DISCORE was overwhelmingly positive and it appears that going forward this will be one of the highlights of the expanded DISCOP programme that will also see the launch of DISCOMICS aimed at the animation and video game industries. The collaborative and open platform
creates the ideal space to build bridges both economically and culturally. Even in the age of technology, there is something very powerful in being able to sit down face-to-face with colleagues from across Africa and the world. This kind of personal discussion is what leads to partnerships between events like the Zanzibar International Film Festival and the Cape Town International Film Market and Festival, the details of which will be announced soon. DISCOP Johannesburg was an exhausting and exciting three days for anyone serious about content in Africa. The expansion of DISCOP Markets into East Africa, with DISCOP Zanzibar taking place from 11 to 13 July 2018, and DISCOP Lagos scheduled for 2018, means that these face-to-face powerful opportunities will now be accessible to even more producers and creatives than before – and that can only be a positive thing. – Lara Preston
NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
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FESTIVALS & MARKETS
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The Cape Town International Festival elevates local and The inaugural edition of the Cape Town International Film Market and Festival marks a milestone for the industry in the Mother City. Long without a flagship festival event, Cape Town’s industry can truly benefit from this event if the various elements within the industry can work together to further develop and expand its reach.
T
Pearl Thusi at CTIFM&F 2017 opening night
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he industry in the Cape, despite being a multi-million rand a year business, is still extremely fractured and not quite sure of its place within the country, continent and globally. Long known as a destination for foreign productions, it is only more recently that local stories and productions are taking their rightful place. The CTIFM&F has stated its key aim as collaboration, and this will be increasingly necessary in order to grow the event and its appeal to the industry as well as to the public at large. One of the roles the festival will also need to play is one of education – many people both in and out of the industry still have a lot to learn in terms of what an international festival entails, how films are selected, judged and awarded. Additionally, the various elements of “the business” of film and content are not always understood even by role-players within the industry. The importance of networking and creating
a strong base of production companies and allied services is critical to building Cape Town’s film industry. While this kind of business networking may not be as sexy as mingling with international buyers, it is the cornerstone of creating a long-term sustainable industry. The CTIFM&F’s first annual expo in this regard was therefore a difficult sell to many who were expecting the typical buyer – seller market such as those at Durban International Film Festival and DISCOP. However, having started discussions with DISCOP earlier this year for collaborations and co-marketing support, it was clear that the CTIFM&F needed to establish its own niche that would benefit the industry without trying to replicate other models. The expo however, was just one element of the event that was highlighted by an incredible schedule of industry events and discussions. The 10 days of the event this past October was probably most successful in terms of this programme that created a space for dialogue, networking, and learning amongst industry professionals across spheres. A diverse and very strategic schedule of master-classes, workshops and discussions put top experts on display to share local and international best practice. A stellar line-up included Oscar winning Aron Warner (Shrek), Sharlto Copley, the Snake Nation collective from the USA, local animators Hilton Treves and Stuart Forrest and many many others. Almost every session; from the hands-on session on Bitcoin that opened the festival, to the final heated Couch
Conversation discussion about sexual harassment in Hollywood and beyond, was well attended and produced amazing opportunities to learn and share. Particularly encouraging was that students and young filmmakers were in attendance in abundance at these sessions. While a host of well known and more established professionals in the industry, were also around during the 10 days, it was really the younger generation of filmmakers that dominated the events and the discussions. Hence, the popularity in particular of the Snake Nation sessions. This collective of inspired creative and rebels is based in Atlanta, Georgia and Cape Town, and their insights into the future of content and collaboration where a highlight of the programme. On the film side, the festival was a feast of international film. Billed as an international festival, the CTIFM&F succeeded in most areas, however an area for significant improvement is the inclusion of films from across the continent. The festival had a major selection of films from the Nordic regions, and whilst many of these were powerful and beautiful films, the film line-up would have benefitted from more films from across Africa, with hardly any included in the line-up. Encouraging in this regard is the initial commitment for collaboration between the CTIFM&F and the Zanzibar International Film Festival (ZIFF) from 2018 that will see some of ZIFF’s award-winning African films screened at the festival. South Africa was very well represented
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FESTIVALS & MARKETS
Film Market and international film
however with over a dozen feature and documentary films from SA, many of which had their World or African premieres at the festival. Some of the South African films were in fact the most popular and well-attended screenings, with packed houses for both Kagiso Lediga’s films, Catching Feelings (winner of the festival’s Best South African Feature Film), and Matwetwe. Extremely powerful was also the
hosting of the World Premiere of District Six: Rising from the Dust, a truly Cape Town story from director Weaam Willams. The inclusion of a host of films from Cape Town based producers was also especially encouraging for the promotion of the local industry. The CTIFM&F has vowed to increase its outreach to the various elements within the industry across Cape Town and South Africa – with their signing
of partnerships with the Limpopo Film Commission held as an example of the kind of cross-provincial collaboration required to grow the entire industry. The expansion of the expo to truly include all of the industry support and allied industries, as well as an increased focus on South African and African films will be important elements for the growth and success of the festival. Already a lot of these pieces are
in place to develop a festival that is representative of the multitude of voices that make up Cape Town’s film industry, and although one event can never adequately represent the local industry in its entirety, the CTIFM&F is starting a journey that can, in the long run, be a powerful and beneficial one for the entire industry. – Lara Preston
NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
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SOCIAL
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DISCOP Johannesburg 2017
PHOTOS BY Chanelle Ellaya
Launched in 2012, DISCOP Johannesburg has become the world’s number one destination to acquire and co-produce content ‘Made in Africa’. The sixth edition of DISCOP Johannesburg took place from 25 to 27 October 2017 at the Sandton Convention Centre. Seen there were…
Apophie Komugish & Sylvain Be`letre
Bibi Mbangula, Chantal Morifi & Forunate Sibiya
Doug Boynton, Karyn Peterson & Joyce Ngoh
Gregg Garber & Terry Hritz
Happiness Mwakalindile & John Arowojolu
Izu Osuigwe & Phumzile Mashinini
Joseph Saha, Flore Mbense & Michel Kuate
Kaletso Phiri & Bontle Zoukana
Kgomotso Dipale & Refilwe Cele
38 | SCREENAFRICA | NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017
| SOCIAL
Malcolm Marwa, Philip Obwogi & Gilad Elazar
Nombulelo Maliza & Nombuso Mbembe
Pascar Proctor, John Rowan & Barry Anawana
Patrick Pakonss, Lionel Antoine & Harvey Pemba
Shadi Ledwaba & Thandiwe Xaba
Steve Martin & Anne-Marie Nwaobasi
Tshiamo Kgaladi, Thabo Sekhabisa & Kamohelo Salemane
Tumi Moatshe & Joy Matambo
Zlatena Fortunova & Mickey Dube
NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017 | SCREENAFRICA |
39
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