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Cera-Jane Catton

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Cera-Jane Catton is a writer and journalist with years of experience in community newspapers, blogging and freelance journalism. She has worked in a cache of capacities, often finding herself behind or in front of the cameras, intentionally and less so. She has been a stunt double in two Bollywood movies, has worked in various capacities on a number of natural history documentaries, and other international productions shot in South Africa. Cera is a former Screen Africa journalist.

Iroko launches African multi-platform network

Cera-Jane Catton
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Digital entertainment company, Iroko, announced that it is launching a multi-platform network [MPN] to provide a framework and platform for aspiring African stars of the future. IrokoX, Africa’s only full-service, cross-media MPN, is aiming to become the go-to platform for Africa’s digital content creators, enabling them to produce, distribute and monetise new and original short-form content (three to five minute content).

Using the company’s in-house production, editing and distribution expertise, the IrokoX team will provide a suite of services, including but not limited to; content production and promotion, programming and branded sponsorship campaigns to connect brands with powerful influencers across all entertainment industries, existing media channel management and global content distribution.

Last year alone, Iroko paid out $550 000 to its content partners and has already generated over 5.5 billion minutes viewed and over 1.5 billion views, through its existing distribution deals with platforms including Vimeo, Spotify, Deezer, iTunes, Google Play, Vevo, Pandora, Dailymotion, Eskimi and Vodacom. The company is also YouTube’s largest content partner in Sub Saharan Africa, with a subscriber base of 1.9 million, thanks to its Nollywood channels and partnerships with Afrobeats stars such as Flavour and PSquare. In a bid to become the largest Africa-focused influencer network, IrokoX will continue to be a music and content distribution platform for established producers, as well as become a standalone division of the Lagos-headquartered content distributor, studio and broadcaster,

Oluchi Enuha, general manager of IrokoX says: “Creation, distribution, monetisation; this is what IrokoX is setting out to provide for our continent’s creative pioneers, in order to capture and lead the fast-paced social media and online video market for the continent. Africa is brimming with creative talent, much of which is stifled by poor access to production facilities, or poor understanding of how to monetise content. With IrokoX’s considerable expertise in these areas, we are ideally positioned to support and develop thousands of amazing African and Africa-inspired content creators.”

“We are now on the search for creative and influential personalities across all social media channels, who want to share their passions and talents online and scale their video views to an audience in its millions.’

Increasingly, global consumer brands are looking to connect with Africa’s youth population (which is expected to grow to 321m by 2030), who are part of a mobile-first, consumer savvy generation driving the growth of modern African retail. The new Africa-focussed MPN will be a key gateway for consumer brands to connect with audiences in exciting, innovative ways, via the influencers aggregated as part of the IrokoX network.

Enuha concludes: “Africans are consuming more digital content, predominantly via mobile, than ever before, yet here has been little to no interest in developing niche un-formulaic content from the African market for a global audience. IrokoX is marrying awesome content with professional production techniques, to build out an African MPN that can stand side-to-side with those in the West. We believe that the next Pewdiepie can be from Africa and we are using our resources and networks to make that a reality’.

IrokoX will operate from its offices in Lagos, London and New York. Applications are now currently open, African internet stars of the future can send their social media handle or link to their YouTube page to apply@irokox.com.

Silent film wins Best Film at CT 48 Hour Film Project

Cera-Jane Catton
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A silent film, The First Week, has won Best Film in this year’s 48 Hour Film Project (48HFP) held in Cape Town on the first weekend of September, securing the new production house Mason Brothers Pictures with their first national film award and two tickets to Seattle, where the film will be screened on the world stage.

Of the 42 entrants that took part, the debut short film clinched six of the awards including best film, best actor (Carel Nel), best cinematography (Chris Lotz), best original score (Philip Pells and Dave Knowles), best sound design (Jonathan Cummings, Yan Sanchez, Gaston Roulstone and Stefan ‘Sparky’ Smuts) and best use of genre as well as nominations for best director and best actress.

“When we started viewing the other films, we realised that we were one of the better films, but we didn’t want to count our proverbial chickens before the awards ceremony,’ said Chris Mason. “Hearing our name being called for Best Film was a celebratory moment. We were very happy. Now we go on to the world stage.’

Organised by Bench Films, the 48HFP requires that film teams write, direct and produce a short film in 48 hours. The competition runs in 140 cities around the world with the winners attending a screening in Filmapalooza in Seattle, and the top ten films selected there are then screened at Cannes.

Chris and Luke Mason form the producer-director-writer duo, while the film featured an extraordinary performance by actor Carel Nel as a deaf man.

This is the first production by Mason Brothers Pictures. Chris Mason participated in last year’s 48HFP and thought it was the perfect vehicle through which to make an award-winning film and launch the business – and with a screening in the US, this should certainly do just that.

The First Week is a haunting, elegant film about a man’s sudden deafness. The team used negative aural space to recreate a deaf person’s world. “We wanted to subvert the genre, by using no sound where there should have been sound,’ says Chris.

The 48HFP requires that teams draw a genre. When the team drew silent film, “there was a mixed bag of emotions,’ he says. “We recognised that it was one of the harder genres to do well, but it also provided a sense of freedom, as you could write whatever story you liked as long as you stayed true to the constraints of the genre.’

The brothers capitalised on their close creative relationship. “Having grown up together, we were creatively on the same page. We didn’t want to do something mediocre. Because our energy was high, our team was able to come the party with the same enthusiasm.’

Chris credits an excellent team “who were all committed to striving towards making something special,’ and the brothers look forward to a successful screening under the bright lights of Seattle.

The 48 Hour Film Project comes to Johannesburg on 14 October and Durban on 4 November 2016.

For more information visit the 48 Hour Film Project website.

SA’s The Flying Circus inks distribution deal with Canada’s Breakthrough Entertainment

Cera-Jane Catton
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South Africa’s The Flying Circus has inked a distribution deal with Canada’s Breakthrough Entertainment that will introduce the animated comedy Silly Seasons to North American viewers.

Silly Seasons follows the adventures of four girls—each representing a different season—who live in the fantasy world of Sillyville, which is inhabited by a variety of wacky plants and animals. The 26×24-minute series is meant for children between the ages of eight and 12. It combines traditional key-frame animation with motion capture.

Andre van der Merwe, animation producer at The Flying Circus, remarked: “Silly Seasons is South Africa’s first motion-captured animated series and we are thrilled to work with Breakthrough to take the show to a new audience. The series is fun, energetic and unique, and we are confident it will appeal to kids in North America.’

“Breakthrough is always looking to broaden our frontiers in family entertainment, so when we found The Flying Circus and were impressed by the unique style of Silly Seasons, we were eager to cultivate a relationship with them to help bring this lively new series to North America,’ added Craig McGillivray, the VP of distribution at Breakthrough Entertainment.

Source: World Screen TV Kids

TSL to show world’s first uncompressed Video Over IP Audio Monitor at IBC 2016

Cera-Jane Catton
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TSL Products will demonstrate the world’s first uncompressed video over IP audio monitors at IBC 2016 to be held in Amsterdam between 9 and 13 September 2016. The new PAM-IP range is designed to smooth the transition to an IP based workflow and is ideally suited to meet the needs of any facility involved in the production and transmission of live productions (such as sports, news, and live events).

The PAM-IP range can monitor video, audio and its associated metadata from either a traditional 3G-SDI connection or a S2022-6 IP stream. It is designed to work seamlessly in a hybrid environment where an SDI, AES and analogue based infrastructure can be monitored alongside an IP-based infrastructure. With this array of connectivity options, the PAM-IP range offers more format flexibility than any monitoring device currently available.

Pieter Schillebeeckx, product director at TSL Products, said, “At TSL we recognise that the transition to an all-IP environment will not be immediate. For the foreseeable future at least, infrastructures will be hybrids where existing standards and technologies co-exist and interoperate with the new. With the new PAM-IP range, our customers are able to utilise their existing equipment alongside their IP infrastructure, safe in the knowledge that the PAM-IP is capable of evolving with new Video and Audio over IP standards and protocols as they mature.”

Until now, it was impossible to monitor audio directly from an IP stream without going through some cumbersome format conversion first. With TSL Products’ new PAM-IP range of audio monitors, customers can now painlessly monitor uncompressed video and audio over IP without superfluous format conversion hardware, thereby smoothing their transition to an all IP workflow.

The IP variant of TSL Products’ flagship PAM1 and PAM2 will be available with several options including: Video over IP (S2022-6 with other formats following), Audio over IP (Dante/AES67) and UHD (4K over 12G-SDI or Quad3G-SDI). This makes it ideally suited to meet the needs of any facility making the transition to IP.

DStv Now channels exceed 60

Cera-Jane Catton
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MultiChoice’s TV-on-the-go service DStv Now, the app that gives you sport, movies, and series has added more channels to its line-up of award winning channels.

The following 17 channels have been added, bringing the total number of channels on DStv Now to more than 60: E! Entertainment, VUZU Amp, VUZU, Fox Entertainment, BET, M-Net City, NatGeo, Nat Geo Wild, Mzanzi Wethu, Mzansi Bioscope, kykNET Nou!, SuperSport 7, SuperSport 8, SuperSport 9, M-Net Movies Zone, MTV Base and M-Net Family.

“We’re excited that we’re able to add more channels to DStv Now in such a short period of time – we added 21 channels earlier this year,’ commented Graeme Cumming, general manager of DStv Digital Media. “This time we’re adding incredible local channels such as VUZU Amp, kykNET Nou! and Mzansi Wethu – giving our customers access to the best local and international entertainment and sport while on the go.’

Customers can also use DStv Now to fix error codes, check their account balance and access statements, by logging in to My DStv from the app. This has only recently been added and gives DStv customers a single app to access all things DStv-related while on the move. Customers can also log in to My DStv on DStv.com.

The DStv Now app is free to download and is available to all DStv customers. Customers can use the app to access My DStv, search the TV Guide and set remote recordings on their Exploras. The video content on DStv Now is available exclusively to DStv Premium PVR customers and can be watched via an Android phone/tablet or iOS phone/tablet and web. Relevant data costs will apply when streaming content.

For more information visit the DStv website.

Star Wars cinematographer returns to SA to award aspiring filmmakers

Cera-Jane Catton
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Dan Mindel returned to South Africa for the kykNET Silwerskermfees which recently took place in Cape Town. He was invited to the festival as part of a new M-Net initiative in association with kykNET to facilitate conversations between South African filmmakers and international experts. This event was also held in Johannesburg and facilitated by Marc Baleiza.

Having worked as the cinematographer on Star Trek in 2009 and its 2013 sequel, Star Trek Into Darkness, it was hardly surprising when director J.J. Abrams chose to team up with Dan Mindel on Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Based on the record box office alone, their reunion was a huge success.

What many may find surprising though is that Mindel, who also worked on Thelma and Louise, Mission Impossible III and The Amazing Spiderman 2, was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Part of the initiative included a competition that young filmmakers from South African School of Motion Picture Medium and Live Performance (AFDA), Big Fish and Umuzi Academy were invited to enter, by submitting a short fictional film or mini documentary. The prize included R30 000, a mini master class with kykNET’s content team, as well as the opportunity to showcase their work at the 2017 kykNET Silwerskermfees.

More than 75 film entries were received and reviewed by kykNET. Mindel and a team from the South African Society of Cinematographers (SASC) then selected the winner.

According to Mindel: “South Africa will always hold a special place in my heart. To return, and be able to step into conversation with South African filmmakers has been a privilege,’ says Mindel.

Nondumiso Buthelezi, the director of a short film titled Oswenka, was announced as the winner of the competition. The film looks at a tradition started by Zulu migrant workers in the 1950s where on Saturday nights, they’d compete for the title of best dressed man.

“Oswenka hit a nerve – it’s interesting, genuine and raw. I was most impressed by its contrasting colour palette and its texture,’ said Mindel.

A film titled Isango by Darren Parker, Luke Gordon and Karien van Biljon was placed second and Sea Skeletons by Tamsyn Reynolds was placed third in the competition.

According to Yolisa Phahle, CEO of M-Net: “Based on the entries received it’s clear that this is a progressive and socially responsible industry. It is increasingly diversified, it creates employment, and importantly, the work documents our past, the present and paints a picture of our imagined future.’

Four South African films to be showcased at TIFF

Cera-Jane Catton
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South Africa’s AAA Entertainment is heading to the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) to represent, promote and showcase the best of South African films. The team will be at TIFF from the 12 to 15 September 2016.

Lead by Mayenzeke Baza and Pascal Schmitz, AAA Entertainment offers a unique service which includes packaging of content, marketing services, sales, access to co-production incentives and funds eligible for productions, as well as executive production of international projects looking to do production or post production work in South Africa.

“During the festival we will showcase South African films that have received rave reviews globally, as well as made history at the South African cinema. In addition, two of the films will be enjoying their debut screenings at the festivals market,” says Mayenzeke Baza AAA Entertainment head of sales. Baza adds that they will also be looking for distribution opportunities and buyers in addition to promoting the continent’s film and television offerings.

Directed by Ziggy Hofmeyr Pop Lock n Roll, South Africa’s first ever hip hop and break-dance film and Happiness is a Four Letter Word (directed by Thabang Moleya) which made history at the South African box office becoming the second highest grossing domestic film (2015/16) have been scheduled to have their market screenings on Tuesday 13 September at 9h00 and 12h00 respectively. The market screening of Mrs. Right Guy (directed by Adze Ugah) on Thursday 14 September at 9h00 will be enjoying their market premiere at the festival. The three films will be screened at TIFF Bell Light box Cinema 5.
The fourth film Hatched Hour directed by Judy Naidoo will be seeking distribution and buyers. Hatched Hour is a dark thriller about a case of mistaken identity that leads to murder.

“This trip is critical to our long term plans of positioning both South Africa and Africa’s film and television offerings. We wish to have created more opportunities for the four films and others we represent by the time we leave the festival,” says Pascal Schmitz Head of Acquisition.

For more information visit the AAA Entertainment website.

Axon introduces AZilPix virtual camera system at IBC 2016

Cera-Jane Catton
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At IBC 2016, to be held in Amsterdam between 9 and 13 September, Axon Digital Design will showcase AZilPix Studio.One, a brand new virtual camera system for live video capture and streaming.

Developed by a team of academics in Belgium, Studio.One employs cost-effective, ultra-high resolution cameras with wide angle and/or fish eye lenses to capture every aspect of a live event from multiple angles. The system is designed to integrate into a traditional or IP broadcast environment and blend seamlessly with virtual reality video production, making it ideal for remote internet or broadcast live productions such as music concerts, sports events, church services and conferences.

As a founding partner in AZilPix, Axon has created an interface for Studio.One that allows the system’s cameras to link to its Cerebrum control and monitoring software. Axon is also assisting with sales and marketing for the broadcast market, where it sees significant possibilities for this exciting new technology.

Jan Eveleens, CEO of Axon, said: “We are aware that there is significant demand for technology that gives programme makers, especially those on tight budgets, the ability to efficiently capture and stream broadcast quality content. Studio.One satisfies this demand by combining camera and IT hardware and software in a highly sophisticated and cost effective way and we are very excited to be involved in this project. We are now working closely with AZilPix to develop control and monitoring interfaces for a variety of different applications.’

Studio.One essentially consists of three tightly integrated components: camera, capture server and processing software. The server ingests the raw, wide-angle video data from the cameras and allows recording and live processing of this data into one or more rectilinear views and a view mosaic. Although framing can be conducted live, a key advantage of this system is that framing can be carried out offline at the viewing or post production stage. Using software-based pan-tilt-zoom virtual camera cut-outs, a single operator can capture perfect shots from multiple vantage points – something that would normally require the skills of a small army of cameramen.

“By generating multiple virtual cameras from a single physical camera and by using wide angle lenses that ensure no aspect of a live event is ever missed, Studio.One gives programme makers endless creative possibilities when it comes to deciding how they want their programme to look,’ says Philippe Bekaert, one of the founders and CTO for AZilPix. “The cameras are very small and unobtrusive, which means they can be used in places where you wouldn’t normally put a camera. It’s also possible to automate the system using pre-programmed camera motions or motion tracking, while our server allows cameras to be shuttered precisely and simultaneously and frames to be time stamped with an SMPTE LTC or other timecode.’

“We are very excited to have Axon on-board as a founding partner of AZilPix as this gives us immediately a strong and world-wide reach into the broadcast market’ says Jan Looijmans, CEO of AZilPix. “Next to the broadcast market we also have seen strong interests for applications of the Studio.One technology in the medical domain as well as in security and defense, which we will definitely pursue as well.’

At IBC, Axon will showcase a working Studio.One system on its booth so that visitors can zoom in and mix different camera views in real time. Full resolution pre-recorded material will also be available so that the pan and scan features can be used to define new views in post.

For more information visit the AZilPix website or the Axon website.

The Harley-Davidson story premieres on Discovery

Cera-Jane Catton
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Built from the ground up by founders Walter and Arthur Davidson and their friend Bill Harley, the road to success for Harley-Davidson was not a smooth journey. The brand new Discovery Channel (DStv 121) series Harley and the Davidsons, is a true story that takes you on a journey back to the turn of the 20th century, detailing the innumerable obstacles, ruthless competitors and extraordinary risks faced by the Harley-Davidson founders.

Together these three young men, the sons of blue-collar immigrants, gave everything they had to ensure the survival of the company they founded. But just how far would they go to reach the ultimate American dream and change the motorcycling industry?

Featuring an all-star cast including: Michiel Huisman (Game of Thrones) as Walter Davidson, Robert Aramayo (Game of Thrones) as William (Bill) Harley and Bug Hall (The Little Rascals) as Arthur Davidson, this series looks at how the founders of Harley-Davidson continued to grow their loyal following like no other competitor.

Built in a shed out of Milwaukee, the Harley-Davidson motorcycles were able to survive nearly every condition imaginable, and Walter certainly put them to the test. His ferocious ambition propelled him to become a top motorcycle racer while participating in competitions sweeping the nation. Walter’s daredevil exploits put Harley-Davidson on the map – and while risky – pushed the company to eventually overtake their archrival competitor. Later, fuelled by ingenuity, innovation and design, the founders of Harley-Davidson faced off against much bigger rivals.

Then the Great Depression hit America and the motorcycle industry was decimated but the Harley-Davidson founders continued to defy the odds with their forward-thinking business ideas.
Whether it was securing the American Army contract and teaching riders how to make repairs on the field to embracing boisterous motorcycle clubs across the nation, they would eventually channel all their resources with their biggest risk yet – creating the world’s first superbike, a state-of-the-art racing machine for the masses.

For Walter, the venture was a chance to escape from the confines of society – to ignore the rules and build a bike that could go anywhere and ride hard. For Arthur, it was an opportunity to finally make good on his name. And for Bill Harley, the bike gave him hope to break free from his overbearing parents and apply his talent as an engineer. While the three men all faced very different challenges, it was the motorcycle that united their dreams and ambitions.

This true story premieres tonight, Tuesday, 6 September at 21h00 on Discovery Channel (DStv 121).

Pebble Beach and Tedial join forces to launch Multiverse

Cera-Jane Catton
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Pebble Beach Systems, automation content management and integrated channel specialist, and Tedial, provider of media and content management solutions, announced a new technology partnership. Together, the two companies have developed a new product called Multiverse that is designed to create a seamless workflow between a broadcaster’s Media Asset Management (MAM) and playout systems, efficiently solving distribution challenges for linear and non-linear channels.
Available from both Pebble Beach Systems and Tedial, the new solution will be introduced at IBC 2016, to be held between 9 and 13 September in Amsterdam, and showcased on the Pebble Beach Systems stand.

Multiverse closely integrates the MAM capabilities and linear playout systems to provide a flexible cross-platform media preparation and delivery solution. Because it processes media once for all platforms, Multiverse unifies and speeds up on-demand and linear content workflows, and significantly reduces operational costs by automating everyday tasks.

Multiverse provides a comprehensive integration between MAM and automation that streamlines workflows such as delivery of live events to video-on-demand (VOD) services in the shortest possible time after being aired. For media asset versioning and replacement workflows, different versions of media assets for playout can be created and automatically added to Tedial. This then triggers Marina to delete the old media from its playlist and transfer the new asset to playout, all without human intervention.

“We understand how customers need to adapt their systems to ensure efficient media preparation for both linear and non-linear delivery. By leveraging the proven integration between Pebble and Tedial and defining specific workflows, we believe Multiverse provides broadcasters with a no compromise solution,” says Tom Gittins, CEO Pebble Beach Systems.

“’TV everywhere’ is a reality and has completely altered the viewing landscape. To ensure success in this new multi-platform, multi-format world there are challenges that media companies must overcome,’ explains Esther Mesas, Tedial’s chief sales & marketing officer. “Multiverse answers these challenges, delivering a comprehensive and secure solution for cross-platform media preparation and delivery. We’re very excited to demonstrate Multiverse at IBC 2016, highlighting its unparalleled capabilities and scalability to fully maximise monetisation of content, distributing across all formats and platforms.’

For more information visit the Pebble Beach Systems website.

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