Festival aims to promote film production in the Eastern Cape

The Eastern Cape is fast becoming the destination of choice for film production. Local film makers have contributed to the R12bn industry by producing quality material that can be viewed globally.

Each year the Eastern Cape Film Festival not only celebrates the work of South African film makers, but hosts workshops to equip local producers with movie producing skills.  

Workshops at the fifth annual event, which kicked off at the Miriam Makeba Centre of Performing Arts on Thursday and runs until Sunday, will focus on the national policy framework, local government laws that support the arts and on marketing using public broadcasting platforms. It will also address the value of film in the South African economy.

The festival has partnered with the Eastern Cape Provincial Arts and Culture Council (Ecpacc) to promote the province as a film destination, Ecpacc film development manager Bonganjalo Marala said. The aim also is to build audiences and networks, and facilitate co-production deals.

“Ecpacc has identified a need to collaborate with the existing Eastern Cape Film Festival to officially launch it as a signature film event in the province and elevate it to meet national standards, thereby attracting international investors and film scouts to identify local talent and collaborate with film makers in the province,” Marala said.

He described the festival as a unifying event for provincial film makers as it gave them an opportunity to learn, network and showcase their work.

“While the festival has received recognition throughout the province, it has struggled to get financial support except for letters of endorsement. Despite these challenges, it has gradually recorded growth every year in the number of films screened and the attendance by film makers,” Marala said.

Marala said this year's instalment of the festival would host industry role players such as the SABC, Bay TV and Eastern Cape film maker Jamil Qhubeka, the director of locally produced movie Knuckle City.

Knuckle City is now showing at major cinemas around the country, including in East London.

“The Eastern Cape Film Festival is a platform for promoting film as an all-encompassing sector, drawing film makers, professional and aspiring, industry experts as well as supporting industries, such as tourism and hospitality, to be part of a conversation that talks to the entrenchment of film in the Eastern Cape as an important and core economic driver.

“The festival is a platform for Eastern Cape film makers to showcase their unique artistic capabilities, get critical career defining information and to network. This will help in uniting the province's filmmakers and promote social cohesion as well as nation building.”

Marala said the screenings from budding producers showcasing their work had become an integral part of the programme.

“The Eastern Cape with its fauna and flora, heritage and history is an ideal location for groundbreaking film productions in a booming industry.”