Recreating the rest of Africa down here at the southern tip is common practice, but can
cost quite a bit of dosh. There is also a growing awareness among the African markets
that many ads are shot in South Africa to look like their home, not good where people
are extremely proud of their identity. So why not venture out there more?
Africa is an enormous market. It’s growing to such an extent that it’s considered the
next biggest marketing opportunity after China and India.
Speaking to Brett Wild of Hammersmith and Elephant productions, he is confident that
shooting in West Africa is vital to capturing the reality and enhancing that element of
African pride.
These days there is a far greater appeal in the African market for quality productions,
but this doesn’t mean a small crew can’t achieve this. As any DOP will tell you, there is
magic wherever you point the lens in the Africa beyond.
Horror stories about shooting in Lagos and Accra abound, but the truth is it can be a
magical experience that lends itself to the film and leaves one with a far greater
understanding of that part of the world, something South African marketers and
creatives are lacking.
Wild has a deep passion for Africa fuelled in part by motorcycle adventures through
some of its darker recesses and shoots in the wild places of West Africa. “Balancing an
Arri on a dhow isn’t easy, and capturing the crew pumping the oars as they row out to
sea bellowing a hypnotic chant is hard to recreate on Clifton – doubly hard if you want
to shoot a dusty sunset over the city of Accra.’
Shooting in these parts takes negotiation skills, something Wild’s travels have prepared
him for. It also takes a scout with clout and the name Ian Davison of Scoutenge comes
up. Most of all it takes confidence, understanding and respect for the people. Wild has
this in bucket loads.
Few venture there, demanding the comfort and certainty of the south, but here is
someone who’s done more than taste it, and he wants to devour it whole. For the real
Africa on film – there’s no better place to shoot. Go West, young man. Or should we
say, go Wild.
