Director Amanda Lane has taken the producers of “Confessions of a Gambler” to task in an open letter to the industry regarding the shoddy treatment she allegedly received in the final credit listing of the film. On receipt of this letter on 19 May, Screen Africa requested a response from the film’s producers. Screen Africa has now received a response from Ross Garland, Rayda Jacobs and Costa Theo. Here we publish both letters.

Amanda Lane’s letter to the industry:
May 19, 2008
Dear Filmmaker,

CONFESSIONS OF "CONFESSIONS OF A GAMBLER"

I am sure you are aware of the furore surrounding “Confessions of a Gambler” regarding Rayda Jacob’s directorial claims. I have spent a long time considering how or whether to respond. My initial reaction was to forget about it and move on. However, after discussion with friends and industry professionals, I concluded that a response was required. I have taken Moonyeenn Lee’s advice to share my experience with industry professionals, in the hope of settling any confusion that may have arisen around the nature of my directorial contribution.

In my experience as a director, I have been privileged to work with casts, crews and producers who have generously gone beyond the call of duty to make work that exceeded the crippling constraints of time and money. It is this “generosity of spirit” that gives me confidence in the future of the South African film industry and is the reason I was willing to sign a contract for “Confessions of a Gambler” that did not clearly spell out the formal acknowledgment of credits.

Because there were two directors attached to the film I signed a contract with the following clause “Crew shall receive a credit for directing the Film, shared with Rayda Jacobs, in a format to be determined by the Producer.” I signed this contact in which I waived my moral rights on the understanding that the producer would properly, fairly and ethically credit me for my directorial contribution. At the time Ross Garland and Zaheer Bhyat were the producers of the film. I was not aware that Zaheer Bhyat would be excluded from the completion of the film or that Rayda Jacobs/ Riempie Productions was also a producer of the film.

Despite leading all aspects of the pre-production process, directing every frame of principal photography and participating in the assembly of the first cut, (which closely resembles the final cut of the film), I was excluded, without explanation, from the pickups and the final stages of the post production process. A final cut of the film was eventually sent to me in January. Rayda Jacob’s was given a sole front end director’s credit and I was assigned a rolling end credit as “Director of principal photography”.

I wrote several e-mails, expressing my disappointment at the way we had each been credited. It was not a fair reflection of our directorial contributions. Ross Garland’s response to me on the 30 January 2008 was as follows: “… there are a number of credits where we have no discretion and are required to grant those credits as per the relevant contracts. Whatever the merits of these credits, I trust you understand that the company must comply with its various contractual obligations.” I have no idea what this means and why it should affect me.

In subsequent e-mails I questioned the ethics of his actions. They were not in the spirit of our agreement or reflective of work done. I asked Ross Garland to revert back to the co-director credit that was on the first cut of the film. I was ignored to a point where I was not credited on the poster or even invited to the local premiere. Furthermore Rayda Jacobs has made statements to the press that gives the impression that she was the sole director of the film.

While I greatly admire Rayda’s skill as a story-teller and her bravery as an actress, her moral right to take sole credit as the director of “Confessions of a Gambler” is questionable. Some motivating factors are:

1.The NFVF (National Film and Video Foundation) rejected all 6 drafts of the screenplay Rayda Jacob’s had written. Zaheer Bhyat, Ross Garland and I re-structured and step-outlined the story. Rayda Jacobs used this step-outline to write the shooting script.

2.Rayda Jacobs spent time casting the film prior to going into production. The producers were not happy with any of the actors she had found and none of the final cast was drawn from Rayda’s pool. At the producers’ request we began the casting process from scratch holding professional auditions (Janet Meintjies was the casting director) and open auditions at the Joseph Stone Community centre. Fiaza and Shiraz Moosa were instrumental in helping us set up and run these auditions.

3.Rayda Jacobs did not engage in conversation around the shooting schedule, call sheets or discussions about the practical details of “making the day”. Zaheer Bhyat, Ross Garland (Producers) and Eva Franzen, (First Assistant Director) communicated with me on these matters.

4.Jonathan Kovel (Director of Photography) and myself, spent several intensive days creating a shot list. Rayda Jacobs did not participate in these discussions or with the daily shot list that was printed on all call sheets every day.

5.Rayda Jacobs appeared in virtually every scene in the film. As such she would have found it extremely difficult to direct the performances or camera even if she had wanted to. The day we shot the burial sequence (the only sequence she was not in) she was at her book launch.

6.All the performances were directed by me. One of the motivating reasons for my being hired as the director was an awareness of my reputation as a performance director. Aside from working with professionals, I have had a lot of experience teaching non-actors to act. This experience was invaluable given the fact that the majority of the actors in “Confessions of a Gambler” were untrained actors.

7.Rayda Jacobs herself was a first time actor. As such she was naturally vulnerable and concerned about her ability to carry off the lead role. There were also concerns from the producers about her ability as an actress. I vouched for her and worked intensively with her to develop and hone an honest and poignant portrayal of Abeeda.

8.Rayda Jacobs was so exhausted by the demands of the performance that she found it almost impossible to cope with the acting, let alone the directing. She frequently complained about the ‘’relentlessness’’ of the schedule and her inability to go on. During the casino night shoots she was generally resting or sleeping while we lit, set up and technically rehearsed scenes.

9.Like the character Abeeda, Rayda Jacobs had herself banned from gambling. This authorized casinos to evict her from their premises should she be found on the casino floor. While shooting the casino sequences at Sun City, Rayda Jacobs compromised the production by choosing to gamble in her off time. If she had been caught she would have been escorted off the Sun City premises and the entire shoot would have ground to a halt. She did this, knowing that Sun City was the only casino location in South Africa that had been prepared to accommodate us. We were shooting in a conference room in Sun City dressed with Sun City props and demo machines to emulate a casino.

10.I have an e-mail from Rayda Jacobs in which she describes her directorial contribution. By her admission, this contribution is limited to the pre and post phases of the film. She also directed the pick-ups which amounted to 3 scenes and some establishers. She makes no mention of her contribution to performance or to any other aspect of principal photography.

11.My role as director was never challenged on set and we had a very positive production process. Rayda Jacobs, Zaheer Bhyat, Ross Garland and Costa Theo were always very complimentary about my directorial contribution and professionalism. Bhyat and Garland assured me that I would do the pick-ups and see the film through to the final cut. Many months after the first cut of the film had been assembled, Ross Garland and Rayda Jacobs excluded me from the process without giving me a reason.

Presumably in their eyes the critical work had been done and Rayda Jacobs felt confident that she could finish the film without my assistance or the assistance of Zaheer Bhyat (producer) and Ronelle Loots (editor) who have all been treated with similar professional disrespect.

My intention behind setting out the facts of our production is not to discredit the film but rather to clarify my role in the making of “Confessions of a Gambler”. To my mind, film is a collaborative medium; the whole is a reflection of the sum of its parts. “Confessions of a Gambler” is not the work of one person. It is the work of a talented crew, courageous cast and a generous community who all went beyond the call of duty to make Rayda’s wonderful story and her dreams of being an actress a reality.

Thank you,

Amanda Lane

I sent this letter to key members of the crew to verify its accuracy. Here are their responses.

ZAHEER BHYAT: (PRODUCER) “I commend you for your courage in coming out publicly with the facts of your directorial efforts on CONFESSIONS OF A GAMBLER. I think it is reprehensible that you have not been properly credited on the film. This situation highlights the need for some kind of industry body to deal with complaints of this nature. What is truly astounding to me is that Rayda Jacobs would try to take credit for work she did not do. I wish you strength and great success.”

JONATHAN KOVEL: (DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY) “I've read the letter and would agree with it whole-heartedly...what you say is truthful in every way, and I think you have the right to make the truth be known.” EVA FRANZEN: (FIRST ASSISTANT DIRECTOR) “I think the letter is well put, everything is accurate. You are more than welcome to add my name at the bottom of it.”

UNATHI MAGAQA:(CONTINUITY) “You have hit the nail on the head...By all means do add my full name Unathi Magaqa to your letter, Rayda said at the Premiere in Cape Town that she wouldn't have let someone who was non-Muslim direct the film...and she did not even mention your name”.

RONELLE LOODS: (EDITOR) “I read your letter with attention and think you have made the right decision to address the situation. You have spelt out the actual workings of the set extremely well. If there was anything to add I would say that your directorial input (and influence) went beyond the shoot itself. The cut, even as it stands, would have been poorer if it were not for your input also in the cutting room. Your attention to detail, and especially performance detail was a pleasure to work with and in many instances even protected Rayda Jacobs from herself. That you were not brought back to be part of the pick-ups and final cut is such a betrayal of trust that I still cannot really believe it has all happened. And this especially because we all parted in good spirits and looking forward to the work to be completed at a future date that would have suited us all! As you know I was never really asked to come back on the project (something I've never understood)”