Starting on 13 April, and every Sunday after that at 20h30, SABC1 will
be showcasing films produced in a forgotten era of South Africa’s film history.
Mayibuye means “bringing back what is lost’ in Zulu, and in the month of April
Retro Afrika Bioscope will be bringing audiences the first six of hundreds of lost South African films from the 70s and 80s in the Mayibuye Film Festival on SABC 1.
Not only is this the first time the films will be seen by audiences in over 20 years,
but it will also be their TV debut. For audiences without access to SABC1, at
midnight after their screenings, the films will be available to watch for free on the
dedicated Retro Afrika Bioscope channel on Wabona.com and on Cinemo for Mxit
subscribers.
Retro Afrika Bioscope is Gravel Road Entertainment Group’s speciality release
label for classic retro African content. In 2013 Gravel Road launched an initiative
to locate, digitally restore and re-release films produced for the oppressed
majority (African) audiences in the 70s and 80s under the old South African film
subsidy schemes.
“Very few people are aware that there were literally hundreds of movies
produced for African audiences during the Apartheid era, the majority of these (films) are pure
entertainment and range in genre from comedy to Westerns in local vernacular,’
says group CEO Benjamin Cowley. “This was the beginnings of our industry and
no-one has paid any homage to this. This is our way of honouring those who
contributed to the development of our industry under the most trying of
circumstances, where cast and crew were forced to eat, be transported and
accommodated separately because of the colour of their skin.’
Cowley goes on
to say: “We had Nollywood before there was Nollywood.’
The initiative was launched with Joe Bullet, a filmed originally banned in 1973 by
the Apartheid government, starring Ken Gampu, Abigail Kubeka and Cocky ‘Two
Bull’ Joe.
Bullet will have its official African premier at the Durban International Film Festival
in
July this year, and is being considered by a number of other high profile
international
film festivals.
All films being released by Retro Afrika Bioscope undergo a highly specialised
digital restoration process at Waterfront Film Studios in Cape Town.
