The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) will lead the South African delegation to the Association of Film Commissioners International (AFCI) locations expo that runs from 15 to 16 June in Los Angeles. This is the 10th year South Africa is taking part in the AFCI locations expo, with the aim of promoting and marketing the country as a filming destination of choice.
AFCI, with a worldwide network of more than 300 commissions from 30 countries, is the official professional organisation for film commissioners who assist film, television and video production throughout the world.
The 2012 AFCI will be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center. This venue was chosen to bring an opportunity to align the expo with the prestigious Los Angeles Film Festival which attracts over 90 000 visitors, with almost half of these being film industry professionals. The event will not only feature the traditional locations show expo, but also conferences, workshops, seminars, screenings and informal lounge areas for networking opportunities.
The South African pavilion will be hosted by the NFVF in partnership with Cape Film Commission, Durban Film Office and the Eastern Cape Development Corporation. This partnership will strengthen South Africa’s presence and participation at AFCI, ensuring that all goals set are achieved.
Says NFVF CEO Zama Mkosi: “The AFCI locations expo presents us with another great opportunity to showcase what South Africa has to offer to the international film industry. The important aspect about AFCI is that it focuses primarily on film locations which gives commissions a unique opportunity to market and grow the international profile of their regions.’
Mkosi further elaborates that “looking at South Africa’s incentive structure for foreign film production, combined with our diverse film locations across various regions of the country, we believe that we do have a competitive package to offer to the international film industry and platforms like the AFCI locations expo allow us to showcase that.’
South Africa will also host a presentation event on 14 June 2012 at the Sheraton Hotel in Los Angeles. NFVF and the film commissions will respectively present the country’s offering to international producers and industry professionals invited. Through this platform, South Africa will also be able to sell the country’s comprehensive infrastructure, competitive rebates and financial instruments.
The country’s focus in Los Angeles has been further expanded to participating at the BRICS summit on the industry opportunities within the BRICS Nations taking place on 15 June. The NFVF, as one of the Summit sponsors, represented by Mkosi will give a 15-minute presentation about South Africa to the industry practitioners interested in working with the BRICS Nations.
The country will also have presentation slots on topics comprising Partnering for the Future – Co-productions and Co-Financing with BRICS Nations. The BRICS summit is an international relations event where representatives from the BRICS Nations explore how the fast-growing film and TV economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa are critical to the constant development of the entertainment industry.
“It is therefore imperative for the country to be represented by its national film body as we continue to expand our media industries,’ adds Mkosi.
Since participating at AFCI, South Africa has attracted Hollywood studios, resulting in films like Invictus, 10 000 BC, Safe House and Chronicle being shot in the country.
