The Eastern Cape Information Technology Initiative (ECITI) incubator programme
encompasses Ocean Media, a co-operative entity which is currently involved in a co-
production initiative in Bamako, Mali, with a Haitian filmmaker based in Senegal.
“We received significant assistance from ECITI which provided filmmaking equipment for
the Bamako project,’ says Pule Molebatsi, co-founder of Ocean Media.
“We intend to take the film to film festivals around the world. When I was in Bamako I
was invited to France to meet with commissioning editors. It’s an opportunity to find a
market for the film as well as locally produced Eastern Cape films,’ says Molebatsi.
He travelled to France in March to promote the development of the film and to find a
market for locally produced Eastern Cape films.
The East London-based filmmaker says the Eastern Cape with its diverse locations,
culture and history, offers an untapped opportunity for the film industry. “Johannesburg
is saturated and in Cape Town established companies put up barriers which make it
difficult for budding filmmakers,’ maintains Molebatsi.
“In contrast, the Eastern Cape has a rich history and a lot of untold stories. If you look
at the landscape and its cultural heritage, you realise there is still a lot of scope for
growth. With support from government and the private sector the film industry here
can blossom,’ says Molebatsi.
He has travelled as far as the United Stated, Europe, Asia and South America perfecting
his art through studies as well as photography, film production and television.
“I started out as a dancer in the 1980s. Then I heard that the International School of
Performing Arts was looking for students from Africa to undertake a dancing and
choreography course. I was presented with an opportunity to study performing arts in
Brussels as well as film and television for a further three years through the Leeds
College of Technologies Host Media Institute.
“My interest in film and telling stories through moving images developed. My dance
background also influenced that,’ says Molebatsi.
Ocean Media’s areas of focus include producing audiovisuals, graphics, performing and
visual arts, television broadcast, film production and entertainment.
Molebatsi says the ECITI Small Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMME) mentorship
programme assists Ocean Media members to develop business skills such as
management and finance.
ECITI is a subsidiary of Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC). Its role is to
help small ICT businesses to properly manage their businesses. They are put through
an 18 to 24 month development programme. The length of time spent in the
programme depends on the needs of the business.
It supports 11 small ICT businesses, nine of which operate at the ECITI hub. The
SMMEs that attended the ECITI incubator programme have so far created employment
for 25 people.
