The inaugural Cape Town International Film Market will take place as part of the Cape Town & Winelands International Film Festival (CTWIFF) in November and is open to film projects from countries with which South Africa has co-production treaties and memoranda of understanding (MoUs). Projects from Africa also qualify for submission.
Formerly known as the Cape Winelands Film Festival, CTWIFF has rebranded and moved from its regular slot in March to 1 to 10 November, at the particular request of sponsors Wesgro and the City of Cape Town. The rationale behind the move is to fill the large gap left by the long defunct Sithengi Film & TV Market.
According to festival director Leon van der Merwe, the idea of a co-production market was raised by the festival sponsors in 2012.
He continues: “At last year’s Cannes Film Festival we met with Tiina Lokk, the director of the Black Nights Film Festival in Estonia. Tiina has a big interest in South Africa and has organised a successful co-production market at Black Nights for the past 12 years.
“We are planning to launch the Cape Town International Film Market at this year’s Cannes Film Festival as we believe it’s the perfect place to launch an event such as this. The focus of the market is South Africa’s treaty co-production countries – Canada, Germany, Italy, France, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland. In addition, we will include MoU countries such as the Netherlands and Brazil.’
Organisers are looking at a three-day market with several panels of local and overseas experts, between three and four networking events, and two official receptions hosted by embassies. The call for project submissions will go out in June.
Van der Merwe notes that part of the market will be devoted to Afrikaans language scripts, in conjunction with market partner, the Afrikaanse Taal en Kultuur Vereniging (ATKV). This focus is due to the fact that South Africa is currently experiencing a boom in Afrikaans films.
A Talent Campus, which is still in the planning stages, will also form part of CTWIFF.
With the help of FIPRESCI (International Federation of Film Critics) and the Abu Dhabi Film Festival, Van der Merwe is organising a special focus on films from the Arab world. Titled Arabian Nights, the programme will include several films that screened at the Abu Dhabi Festival last year and Arabic films which won FIPRESCI awards in 2012.
Van der Merwe points out that Arabian Nights will open up a new market for CTWIFF – that of the Muslim community in Cape Town, which has been neglected in terms of film screenings to date.
“We will once again have a focus on Brazil, a country that has been with us since the Cape Winelands Film Festival first started six years ago,’ comments Van der Merwe. “The Brazilian ambassador is keen to bring people out for the festival and is organising with the CTWIFF a focus on South Africa in Sao Paolo. The concept behind this exchange is similar to the France / South Africa Season.’
In terms of screenings CTFF will have seven venues in total at its disposal – three in Stellenbosch and four in Cape Town.
American director Peter Werner (Justified, Medium, Army Wives, Unforgettable) will present a master class on directing during CTWFF.
The festival will also host the nine-day Film in Your Pocket workshop for aspirant filmmakers who will be tasked to shoot films on their cellphones. The top three films will be screened on awards night on 10 November.
The International Jury includes Ali Al Jabri (festival director: Abu Dhabi Film Festival), Ally Derks (IDFA), and Chinese-born Los Angeles-based actress Bai Ling (The Crow, Touched by an Angel and Dim Sum Funeral).
Van der Merwe notes that CTWFF has already received a record number of international entries but is still looking for South African films for the competition section and possibly an opening night film.
screen africa magazine – march 2013
