Durban FilmMart Daily Newspapers Day 1

21

at the Durban Internationa

l Film Festival 2018

BROUGHT TO YOU BY:

JULY 2018

FESTIVAL & MARKET DAILIES DURBAN FILMMA RT – DAILY 1

WELCOME TO THE

DURBAN FILMMART 2018!

REGISTRATION: 08H30 - 17H30 DAILY

09h00 - 10h00

Celebrating Transformation in the Industry: Panel Discussion led by South African Women in Film & Television Suite 5

10h00 - 12h00

Are there any Sacred Cows in Filmmaking? Led by SASFED Suite 5

10h00 - 12h00

Co-Production Treaties - Treat or Trifle? Panel Discussion Suite 3

12h00 - 13h00

National Film and Video Foundation: Marketing and Branding Your Film Suite 3

14h00 - 15h00

National Film and Video Foundation talks Filming In South Africa Suite 3

15h00 - 16h00

What’s the Deal with Financing Films in Africa: Panel Discussion Suite 5

16h00 -17h00

Women Led Film: Round Tables Suite 3

14h00 - 16h00

Breaking the Rules with Reza Memari – Talents Durban Master Class Suite 4

16h00 -17h00

Breaking through into Business of the Business: Panel Discussion Suite 5

– DFM Official Project Pitching Forum | Suite 2

T

he Durban Film Office (DFO) and the 39th Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) extend a warm welcome to friends, old and new, who are joining us for the 9th edition of the Durban FilmMart.

Since its inception in 2010, the Durban FilmMart has worked with more than 140 African co-production projects, many of which have subsequently been produced as acclaimed films, making DFM one of the leading industry platforms in Africa, with an annual attendance of film professionals from over 30 countries. Now in its ninth year, DFM has become an integral part of the African film industry, and is often the place where cinematic successes have their genesis, providing a space in which film projects can nurture, grow, and find the most appropriate production partners, funders and agents.

The DIFF and the DFO, has, for the last nine years, presented this important gathering for filmmakers from across the continent and beyond with the specific aim of establishing Durban as an important hub for growing the South African and African

DFM Programme Saturday, 21 July

09h00-17h00

Antoinette Monty, Durban Film Office

film industries. The market attracts a wide selection of film talent from all sectors of the industry and is globally renowned for providing an important springboard for African stories and ideas, collaborations, and investment in film projects. Durban FilmMart has steadily become one of the key enablers in the South African film industry and has a significant impact on the economy of the creative sector in the country and beyond.

The FilmMart brings in over 400 experts, people, and organisations interested in potential film projects for further development. We are very excited to see so many DFM alumni projects that have come to fruition and are doing very well on the local and international festival and cinema circuits. Most recently, these include Rafiki, which is DIFF’s closing film this year, Inxeba: The Wound, and Five Fingers for Marseilles, as well as Silas which is also screening at DIFF this year. Additionally, several titles from DFM alumni have also been submitted as their country’s nominations for the Academy Awards’ Foreign Language category. This is exactly the strategy created by the DFO and DIFF nine years ago and it is extremely encouraging to see the long-term value it provides for the African film industry.

Our annual programme would not be possible without our partners and sponsors. We extend thanks and appreciation to the partner markets, funding bodies and development organisations who have continued to work with us in bringing African cinema to the world.

DFM

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DURBAN

FILM MART

w w w. e a s t e r n c a p e fi l m . c o m

MFD

THE 9

03

DURBAN FILMMART 2018

A BIRD’S EYE VIEW OF

GLOBAL INDUSTRY TRENDS

Stephen Follows © Enhlecreatives Photography

S

tephen Follows, a prolific data journalist, film industry researcher and analyst, gave an informative presentation on international film industry trends. It takes a talented speaker to hold an audience of filmmakers’ attention for two hours; Stephen Follows proved to be such a speaker. Follows started the session with fun examples of what data analysis can do. Have you wondered when Nicholas Cage’s career peaked? The numbers

prove it to have been Con Air, says Follows. Is there a correlation between willingness to perform nude and dancing skills? Definitely! Proficient swing and tango dancers proved far more willing to strip down on camera.

But soon Follows got serious.

According to IMDB stats, the number of feature films made in the last ten years has more than doubled. Yet the number of wide Hollywood studio releases has stayed pretty much consistent. “This comes down to a raw, hard fact – there are 52 weeks in a year,” Follows said.

But while Hollywood releases have stayed consistent, cinema releases by independent studios and filmmakers have increased dramatically, with 16 or 17 movies opening every week in UK cinemas. And even with those figures, only around 10% of films made get screened in cinemas! Clearly, an “oversupply of movies” exists.

Despite this oversupply, the major Hollywood blockbusters continue to take three quarters of the box office revenue.

The studios continue to make the same

number of movies, and those are the films making the money. “Huge changes are happening, but not in Hollywood,” said Follows. “The studios are doing the same business they’ve always been!”

A major change affecting both independent and studio filmmakers is the rise of the Chinese film market.

The cinema admissions between 2012 and 2016 increased by 169% in China.

Meanwhile, the number of Chinese accredited buyers at the American Film Market grew by 354% from 2005 to 2014.

The share of international revenue from 2011 to 2016 has grown from 6% to 18% – and that figure is still growing. As China grows, international movies will be altered for their local audiences. This will include cultural and geographical changes, an increase in diverse casting and nods to the Chinese censors. Follows cited the Transformers franchise and Looper as films that have already been affected by this.

Follows debunked a myth around cinema audiences becoming more female, and revealed that the gender of audiences

NEW BROOM SWEEPS CLEAN

A

cting CEO at the NFVF, Shadrack Bokaba, assured film industry stakeholders that the clean-up at the NFVF is in full swing, and they are committed to leading the charge in creating a sustainable and diverse audio-visual industry. He led a spirited debate and fielded many thought-provoking and emotive statements from the audience, which included the challenges that filmmakers face with regard to accessing distribution to their films, the lack of support for local films, and the fact that funding rejections are negatively impacting first-time filmmakers.

Mr Bokaba also reinforced the NFVF’s strategic goals in the short and longterm, which include: Transformation: Accelerating the support and development of PDIs in the audio-visual industry in line with the transformation agenda of the country and the three-tiered approach. (With increased support and focus given to new entrants to the industry - those with little to no experience).

Human Capital Development: Increase

the number of people trained focusing on PDIs and areas of scarce skills.

Content Development and Production: Increase the number of films written, produced and directed

by PDIs Audience and Markets for SA Content: Promote the South African film industry locally and globally and increase audience access to SA films.

Infrastructure Development: Increase access to production facilities and screening platforms for South African films.

Policy and Research Development: Lead and influence development of film industry related policies and strategies at a local, provincial, national and regional level.

Social Cohesion and Nation Building: Enable the telling of stories of national significance in indigenous languages.

Partnerships: To collaborate with and influence relevant stakeholders.

Africa Focus: Increase engagement and trade opportunities between South Africa and the rest of the continent.

NFVF Acting CEO Shadrack Bokaba

has stayed around 50/50. The change has been that groups previously under-catered for by Hollywood – including women and minorities – are starting to make more conscious choices around the kind of content they would like to watch, and are demanding fair representation.

While the spread of cinema-goers’ gender hasn’t changed, Follows dropped the following bombshell: “Fewer young people are going to the cinema.” Older audiences, whom he termed “senior cinephiles” are going to expect higher quality, well-reviewed films, less remakes and representation. Follows believes we’re going to see a rise in films tailored to older audiences, such as Red and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.

At the end of the day, Follows believes that microtrends – such as distribution methods – should not be the focus of the conversation. “The big changes in the industry are the global changes in the way humans exist,” he said. “If you’re looking for changes and trends, you need to zoom out.” For more of Follows’s work, visit www.stephenfollows.com

04

DURBAN FILMMART 2018

AESTHETICS OF

AFRICAN CINEMA A

n engaged and dynamic panel debated the meaning of ‘African Aesthetics’ in a contemporary world.

Chaired by Sihle Mthembu, a writer, film critic and filmmaker, and consisting of an inter-continental, all-star line-up, the panel discussion on the Aesthetics of African Cinema left audience members with plenty of food for thought.

Mthembu kicked the discussion off with the following question: “How do we go about defining the aesthetics of African cinemas?” For Peter Rorvik, the former director of the Centre for Creative Arts at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, the answer lies in the quality of stories.

“For me, first and foremost it’s about the story,” he said. He believes there is no single, discrete African aesthetic – but rather, there is a chorus of stories that is calling to be heard.

“There’s no African cinema in my opinion,” said Chioma Onyenwe, a Nigerian filmmaker and director, taking Rorvik’s ideas one step further. While Rorvik mentioned Nigerian cinema as easily recognisable, Onyenwe believes even within that industry there is a huge

range of separate looks and feels. JeanPierre Bekolo, one of Cameroon’s most famed filmmakers, agreed too. “What does cinema have to do with borders?” he asked rhetorically.

But if filmmakers on the continent are so different, what hope is there for collaborations intra-continentally?

Katarina Hedren believes that it is a risk with any co-production. Onynwe suggested that to enter constrictive coproductions, each country’s team needs to have a unique selling point – and those kinds of collaborations would lead to growth in the industry across Africa.

“The best collaborations are those that are not forced,” added Rorvik. Too often co-productions are treated merely as financial and marketing decisions, rather than creative ones, and he hopes that will shift.

Mthembu bemoaned the lack of knowledge amongst young African filmmakers when it comes to knowing the work of the giants of African cinema.

“They will know more about a Quentin Tarantino than a Med Hondo,” he said.

Hedren responded scathingly. “It’s a choice,” she said. If young filmmakers

aren’t willing to do the work, then nothing more can be done. Onyenwe disagreed, believing it is vital to facilitate the learning process and make information about African cinema more easily accessible online.

Bekolo believes the issue is far more complex. “Cinema has been developed and pushed and experienced as a capitalistic project, and at the same time we have other expectations on cinema,” he said, referring to how we expect cinema to educate and inspire – as well as entertain. “We should get cinema out of capitalism.” While cinema remains a capitalist endeavour, many important African stories will be ignored. “One example I like is Nigeria, and Nollywood […] there’s a lot of money involved and it’s doing very well,” explained Bekolo.

But no matter how many films were made in Nollywood, “none of these films […] would show Boko Haram.” He asked his fellow panelists and the audience: “In this free market, in this free business and filmmaking dynamic, how come something happening next door is not shown?”

Onyenwe believes cinema is a form of

escapism in Nigeria, and that’s what the audience is expecting. “Is it compulsory for the filmmaker to make films that are conscious?” she asked, before adding that even the most escapist films – such as comedies – can be conscious too.

Looking towards the future, the panellists seemed hopeful. While some focused on structural issues like distribution and marketing, Rorvik said, he would like to see a “a rainbow of all of the different shades of filmmaking” emerging from the continent.

LOOKING TOWARDS THE FUTURE, THE PANELLISTS SEEMED HOPEFUL. WHILE SOME FOCUSED ON STRUCTURAL ISSUES LIKE DISTRIBUTION AND MARKETING, RORVIK SAID, HE WOULD LIKE TO SEE A “A RAINBOW OF ALL OF THE DIFFERENT SHADES OF FILMMAKING” EMERGING FROM THE CONTINENT.

SISTERS WORKING IN FILM & TELEVISION (SWIFT) PRESENCE AT DIFF & DFM

F

ollowing highly successful and meaningful engagements with the film industry last year, Sisters Working in Film & Television (SWIFT) once again has a strong presence at this year’s Durban International Film Festival and the Durban FilmMart.

A women-focussed industry lobbying, advocacy and networking NPO, SWIFT focuses exclusively on the common concerns and shared experiences of women working in film and television, and has become a hub of support, empowerment and inspiration. The organisation, which had its birth at the DIFF and DFM 2016, has in two short years become a force to be reckoned with within the South African film and television sector and is also making its mark on the international film arena with its formidable presence at the Berlinale this year.

The organisation recently launched its powerful #ThatsNotOk campaign of public service announcements (PSA’s) which illustrates what sexual harassment

in the film industry workplace is and how it affects women – all giving a visual reference to both victim and perpetrator.

Funded by the KZN Film Commission, and directed by Sara Blecher in a collaborative effort of women, the PSA’s will be screened before all films at DIFF. ‘We are most grateful to the KZN Film Commission for the funding of the PSA films,” says Sara Blecher, Chairperson of SWIFT. “The campaign came out of a survey we did on sexual harassment in the SA Film and TV industry in 2017. Besides other disturbing revelations, the survey indicated that over 66.7% of womxn in film & TV feel unsafe at work.”

“The six PSA’s are all based on reallife experiences of women and aims to help the industry to recognise what harassment is, and to reveal that those who speak up are not alone or imagining harassment. What is most important is for people to recognise that abusive behaviour is “NOT OK” in any shape or form and to make victims aware of

the psycho-social and legal resources available to them via our membership,” Zoe Ramushu, a SWIFT Board member.

“By screening the PSA’s at DIFF, not only do we want to show our solidarity with women in the film industry, but we also hope the message around #ThatsNotOK is landed with the broader public – men and women – alike as what happens with our industry, happens elsewhere too,” says Chipo Zhou, Manager of DIFF. On day one at DFM, SWIFT presented the first of two panels, Sexual Harassment and Race in the Industry which looks at structural challenges and abuses of power as they affect women working in the local landscape lead by local producer and female powerhouse Lwazi Manzi who recently premiered her feature film ‘The Harvesters’ in Cannes and Zoe Ramushu, a producer, legal consultant and SWIFT board member prominently driving SWIFT’s ‘That’s not OK’ platform as well as other voices on

the issue.

And ‘Pioneering Diversity in the Industry’ in-depth account of personal experiences from prominent and emerging voices on defining their trajectories as women in the film world including the likes of Sarah Dawson a festival program manager at Sheffield Doc Fest and filmmaker Jenna Bass who is embarking on women driven approach to production on her upcoming feature film ‘Flatland’ and other prominent women on the rise.

SWIFT will also host its AGM at the Durban FilmMart. Durban FilmMart Head, Toni Monty says “We are pleased to be able to continue these important discussions around the industry with SWIFT pioneering the route for women filmmakers. The organisation has already made such an impact on the role of women in film, as well as inroads into shifting policy within the industry in the country.”

an agency of the Department of Arts and Culture

sessions

National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) Participation at Durban FilmMart 20 July 2018 National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) Industry Feedback and Engagement Time: 12h00 – 13h00 Venue: Suite 3, Elangeni Hotel Description: The session will be a presentation of the NFVF’s performance for the

2017/18 financial year, highlight the strategic objectives for the 2018/19 financial year

and provide the industry an opportunity to engage with key executives from the NFVF.

21 July 2018 Marketing and Branding Your Film

Time: 12h00 – 13h00 Venue: Suite 3, Elangeni Hotel Description: The focus of the session is for Marketing and Digital experts to share their knowledge with the South African film industry on the importance of Marketing and

Branding principles, guidelines and tools that can be effectively utilised in the marketing of films in the South African market.

National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) Talks Filming in South Africa

Time: 14h00 – 15h00 Venue: Suite 3, Elangeni Hotel Description: Addressing issues such as permits for locations, film and television rebates,

tax incentives, bringing in film equipment into South Africa and visa processes for working

in South Africa, the session is aimed at equipping industry with crucial information related to filming in South Africa.

22 July 2018 Copyright Amendment Bill

Time: 12h00 – 12h30 Venue: Suite 3, Elangeni Hotel Description: Discussion on the NFVF's position concerning the Copyright Amendment Bill and discussion of the position as articulated by other film industry organisations.

Gender Matters Study Launch

Time: 12h30 – 13h00 Venue: Suite 3, Elangeni Hotel Description: This will be an official launch of the study to provide information and

statistics on women participation and roles in the local film industry, and challenges they face as practitioners.

Spark Master Class

Time: 09h00 – 10h00 Venue: Suite 3, Elangeni Hotel Description: The Sediba programme embraces best practices of international

screenwriting, and uses the teachings of international masters of our craft. It is in no way narrow, prescriptive, or limiting. The aim is to equip feature film writers with tools that will allow them to shape their own talent, originality, and creativity into screenwriting of an international standard.

27 July 2018 Tier 3 Funding Workshop Time: 10h00 – 14h00

Venue: KZN Film Commission

Description: The NFVF will educate Tier 3 Filmmakers on funding opportunities as well as the funding application process.

06

DURBAN FILMMART 2018

SEEN ON SOCIAL #DFM2018

The Callsheet @TheCallsheetSA Packed house at the @nfvfsa engagement session at @durbanfilmmart with some weighty and important topics being raised by local industry. #DFM2018

Hakeem Kae-Kazim @hakeemkaekazim On my way to the Durban International Film Festival. @DIFFest See you there! #hakeemkaekazim #diff2018 #letsgo #friday #fdf

ThatAdwoa @ThatAdwoa

7 likes | @durbanfilmmart

36 likes | @nolwazi_magwaza

@enhlecreativesphotography

Another tactic on how China manages the money flow of their films & film industry is that there is very limited space for films that aren’t majority Chinese owned.

The money doesn’t leave the country. #DFM2018 @durbanfilmmart

Dayo Ogunyemi @AfricaMET

40 likes | @durbaninternation...

20 views | @kymonmedia

47 likes | @durbaninternation...

Funny and insightful presentation by @StephenFollows on global film industry trends at #DFM2018. #DIFF2018

SOCIAL MEDIA @durbanfilmmart @durbanfilmmart @DIFFest @Durban.Filmmart.Africa @DurbanInternationalFilmFestival

@enhlecreativesphotography

@enhlecreativesphotography

4 likes | @durbanfilmmart

#DFM2018 | #DIFF2018

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