This year sees yet another exciting addition to the shnit International
Shortfilmfestvial weekend: the inaugural Elements Short Film Lab, taking place
from 8 to 10 October.
An initiative running concurrently to the shnit Expanded Talent Focus programme for
Playground Cape Town in 2015, over the festival weekend filmmakers will
participate in a series of workshops and discussions that will attempt to further their paths in creating quality short films.
The first Elements Film Lab will be hosted at the Cape Town Club on Queen Victoria
Street, a short walk from the festival hub at the Labia Theatre – the oldest
independent theatre house in Cape Town. Tickets are available on a limited basis,
and include a full weekend pass to shnit International Shortfilmfestival, lunch every
day, and networking functions. Events are scheduled to compliment the festival
schedule – expanding skill sets in the day time, celebrating the art of the short
every night.
Tickets available through Webtickets. For prices, tickets and full line up visit the
Elements Film Lab website.
Lab Highlights:
In Conversation with Fly on the Wall
South African actor Anthony Oeseyemi sits down with Bryan Little and Filipa
Domingues to talk about the duo’s film and art making collective, Fly on the Wall.
Bryan, a producer, and Filipa, a director, discuss everything from the creative
process and finding inspiration to what progress means in an ever-evolving industry
and what filmmaking might look like in the future.
Panel Discussion: That Big Bang
There’s an old cliche that reads, “You can make a bad film from a good script but
never a good film from a bad script’. Three of the most “out the box’ filmmakers
working in SA, Jenna Bass, Sibs Shongwe-la Mer and Jahmil XT Qubeka discuss the
inception of stories and the importance of scripts. The discussion will break down
the writing process; explain what makes a good story and how to craft great film
experiences, as well as mastering visual storytelling and highlighting the unique
opportunity short films offer for storytelling.
Panel Discussion: The Science of Shorts
Our panel of experts Bridget Pickering, Thandeka Zwana and Steven Markovitz
focus on the elements needed to bring a great short together and take it to the
world. This panel will discuss the challenges and advantages of short film making;
including financing short films, finding great stories, making festival connections
and marketing short films.
Producer’s Workshop
Producer Elias Ribeiro shares his experiences on making short films and the
importance of showing them to the world. Using real-world examples, Ribeiro
delves into the benefits of making short films, how to budget properly, some tips on
how to get them seen and how to develop a festival strategy for maximum
exposure.
Writers Workshop
Anthony Silverston, head of Development at South African animation studio,
Triggerfish, shares the nuances of crafting good characters and how to place them
in real-world stories in this workshop titles How to Write a Hero. Having spent
years creating internationally acclaimed animations such as Zambezi,
Silverston guides aspiring screenwriting with practical advice on what elements are
required for great storytelling and how they fit together.
Networking Events
Elements Film Lab offers filmmakers the opportunity to network with industry
experts and other filmmakers over the course of the weekend with a welcome
drinks and lunches. With a full weekend pass to the shnit International Short Film
Festival there are plenty of films to watch too.
Round Table Conversations
The best way to meet industry members and form partnerships is to meet people
face to face. The Round Table Conversations provide a platform to do that by
connecting writers, directors, producers and performers. It’s a casual way to meet
like-minded individuals, chat to experienced filmmakers, and open up opportunities.
Drone Workshop
The impact that drones have had on film and cinematography is tremendous and
with drone technology now more affordable than ever it’s a tool that can give
amateur and low-budget filmmakers an extra dimension. In this workshop, Juanne
Whyte from Orms Digital, talks about how to make drone footage work for your
film, gives an update on drone-flying regulations and introduces us to the various
drone options available to take your filmmaking to “new heights’.
Virtual Reality Workshop
How do filmmaking and virtual reality combine? It’s a question for the not-too-
distant future. Tyrone Rubin from Sense Virtual talks about the latest developments
in the world of virtual reality and how interactive technologies will shape
filmmaking and the entertainment industry of the future. There will also be a must-
see demo on the latest in the virtual reality field.
