The 33rd Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), supported by the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (principal funder) presents not only a feast of cinema in the form of over 290 screenings around the city, but also a host of new and more established initiatives aimed at stimulating the growth of the African film industry at a variety of levels.
This year will see the 5th installment of Talent Campus Durban, an intensive five-day skills development and networking programme for 50 selected African filmmakers who are in the early stages of their careers. Bringing together filmmakers from 18 African nations, Talents will participate in master classes and workshops with industry professionals who are leaders in their fields, attend screenings, and participate in networking activities. This year will also include two specialist mentoring programmes – Doc Station for documentary filmmakers, and Talent Press for journalists and film reviewers. Six selected Talents will also take part in the three day script development workshop, the Produire au Sud Script Studio, coordinated by Festival 3 Continents – Nantes, as part of the France – South Africa Season 2012 & 2013.
The 3rd edition of Durban FilmMart (DFM), a partnership project between the festival and the Durban Film Office will take place from the 20th-23rd July. This increasingly important global platform for Africans highlights challenges in the fields of finance, marketing, distribution and new digital developments. Based on the Cinemart model at the Rotterdam International Film Festival, the DFM Finance Forum component provides opportunities for filmmakers of 23 pre-selected projects to hold meetings with film financiers and potential production partners. DFM also offers selected documentary projects the chance to participate in structured pitching sessions with international commissioning editors during DOC Circle (in association with IDFA, the International Documentary Festival of Amsterdam). Access to the Finance Forum is for preselected projects only, but accreditation for masterclasses, seminars and networking activities can be attained by registering online at www.durbanfilmmart.com for a fee.
DIFF 2012 also brings into action an exciting new partnership with the World Documentary Exchange (WDE) whereby IDFA (the globe’s largest and oldest documentary festival and the initiator of WDE), Hot Docs (the largest documentary festival in North America) and Busan Film Festival (the largest film festival in Asia) collaborate in an exchange to widen access to markets for films and filmmakers in the respective countries.
In another developmental strand of the festival, thousands of school learners will be attending screenings and workshops of films in order to enhance their film literacy, and inspire them in the appreciation of cinema and the messages they carry. Participation is now closed for the 2012 School Programme, but schools are invited to email cca@ukzn.ac.za to indicate interest for future programmes.
Open Workshop Programme
There are programmes taking place daily at the Blue Waters Hotel that are free of charge and open to anyone who is interested in issues pertaining to film, both professional and public. Topical industry challenges are addressed in Africa in Focus seminar series and other programmes. Cooperation with a broad spectrum of associates, Documentary Filmmakers Association, Film and Publications Board, S.A.G.E and others, has resulted in a rich programme engaging such topics as acting for screen, digital media, African coproduction opportunities, film funds, transmedia, training programmes (such as the NFVF’s scriptwriters’ programme, Sediba SPARK), dealing with press and publicity, film commissions, journalism, wildlife filmmaking, indigenous languages and film, editing and film classification, to name just a few. The festival has had an ongoing, 12-year-long, partnership with the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), and will this year include three NFVF “In Conversation with….’ sessions, among other panels.
Through this broad workshop programme DIFF continues to create opportunities that nurture and inspire local filmmaking constituencies.
Pick up a pocket programme at the the Blue Waters and other film venues for further workshop details, as well as a full screening schedule. The programme is also available online at www.durbanfilmfest.co.za . Participation in workshops is free but requires registration, so make sure you bring your ID book.
Organised by the Centre for Creative Arts (University of KwaZulu-Natal) the Durban International Film Festival is supported by the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (principal funder), National Film and Video Foundation, KwaZulu-Natal Department of Economic Development and Tourism, HIVOS, City of Durban, German Embassy, Goethe Institut, Industrial Development Corporation, The French Season in South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal Department of Arts and Culture, and a range of other valued partners.
Follow DIFF on @DIFFEST and follow DIFF publicist Sharlene Versfeld on @sharlvers
