Durban International Film Festival Press

Supported by Telefilm Canada and the High Commission of Canada in South Africa, Canada’s film scene will present itself from a variety of perspectives at the 2019 Durban International Film Festival (18-28 July) and Durban FilmMart (19 – 22 July).

This “Country in Focus” initiative during the DIFF and DFM gives Canada’s film industry and filmmakers the opportunity to introduce themselves in greater depth and highlight certain aspects to their peers within the African and South African context.

A delegation of Canadian producers and other film professionals will be present in Durban to represent films in the festival and to participate in the industry programme. The aim of this initiative is to foster exchange between the Canadian and African FilmMakers and help grow South to North networks. Canada’s participation in the Durban FilmMart industry programme includes the CineFam Africa Incubator, the inaugural Durban Does Docs one-day conference with HotDocs Canada, and meetings with official projects in the Finance Forum.

Collaborations between South African and Canadian producers, unpacking the successes of the official co-production treaty between the two countries, and exploring future opportunities to enhance these collaborations, will be the special focus of this delegation.

Now in its third year the CineFAM-South Africa Co-Production Accelerator at the DFM  aims to develop films and television content  by African women and women of colour from the global Diaspora. The Programme takes the form of a series of workshops, in Canada and South Africa, that aims to kickstart original co-productions led by experienced and seasoned female producers, writers and directors from both countries.

The programme is co-led by Frances-Anne Solomon, Founder and Executive Director of CineFAM, and CEO of the CaribbeanTales Media Group, and South African Producer Zikethiwe Ngcobo of Johannesburg-based Fuzebox Entertainment. Solomon also has the African Premiere of her film Hero, in the DIFF programme, and will be in attendance at the festival and mart.

“We are honoured to have the spotlight on Canada this year. This provides a vital opportunity for filmmakers to cultivate and develop international relationships, and lead to co-productions between Canada and South Africa,” said Christa Dickenson, Executive Director at Telefilm Canada. “Partnerships like this allow us both to reach audiences on a greater international scale and help to ensure the sustainability of our creative industries. We are very proud of the diversity and talent represented by the films selected in the ‘Country in Focus’ programme as well.”

“The High Commission of Canada in South Africa is proud to support DIFF for its 40th edition and DFM on its 10^th anniversary. DIFF and DFM are important events for both Canadians and South Africans today because South Africa and Canada’s relationship is based on the common shared values of equality, democracy, peace, security and prosperity. The union between South Africa and Canada continues to grow and form new partnerships while cementing and enhancing old ones.” – High Commission of Canada in South Africa.

“One of the primary objectives of the DFM and DIFF is to create business and creative opportunities for South African and African filmmakers to develop their own continental and global networks, and to review their own business and film-making processes,” says Toni Monty Head of the Durban Film Office and Durban FilmMart. “So we are particularly pleased that Telefilm Canada, the High Commission of Canada in SA, CineFAM and HotDocs are partnering with us in facilitating this coming together of industry peers to collaborate, connect and reflect.”

Manager of the DIFF Chipo Zhou says, “Canadian films are globally renowned for having strong scripts and unique narratives with high production values, and so we are delighted that we are able to present these diverse and powerful films to complement the overall Canadian presence at the DIFF this year.”

The Canadian films at the DIFF include:

Hero directed by Frances-Anne Solomon: 20 July 18:30 Musgrave, 24 July 10:00 Suncoast, 24 July 16:00 Gateway (Director will be in attendance).

Shot in Trinidad, Ghana, the UK, and Canada, Hero tells the story of Ulric Cross, who left his small island home in 1941 to seek his fortune, and became the RAF’s most decorated West Indian member. However, his life took a dramatically different course when he followed the call of history and joined the independence movements sweeping the world in the 1950s and ’60s. In the process, Cross became part of the fabric of history, his long life spanning key moments in the 20th century, including independence in Africa and the Caribbean.

Honey Bee directed by Rama Rau: 21 July 14:30 Suncoast & 25 July 20:00 Gateway

In Honey Bee, a teenage sex worker has to adjust to life with a new foster family. Natalie is a slightly built but forceful young woman who works as a truck stop prostitute for her boyfriend/pimp Ryan, who has given her the nickname Honey Bee and who clearly views her as a piece of property. When Natalie is arrested by an undercover detective, she is sent to live in foster care on a farm. Sensitively directed, Honey Bee is a nuanced and insightful character study of a young woman at the crossroads of her life.

Diane directed by Kent Jones: 20 July 16:30 Gateway &  23 July 20:30 Gateway

For Diane, everyone else comes first. Generous but with little patience for self-pity, she spends her days checking in on sick friends, volunteering at her local soup kitchen, and trying valiantly to save her troubled, drug-addicted adult son from himself. But beneath her relentless routine of self-sacrifice, Diane is fighting a desperate internal battle, haunted by a past she can’t forget. Built around an extraordinary, fearless performance by Mary Kay Place, this narrative debut from Kent Jones is a profound, beautifully human portrait of a woman rifling through the wreckage of her life in search of redemption.

Everything Outside directed by David Findlay: 20 July 12:00 Gateway & 24 July 19:15 Suncoast

Every autumn, Louise, an established Quebec painter in her sixties, moves into her friend Charlotte’s remote lake house to work in the peace and quiet and temporarily enjoy the life of a recluse. This year, however, unbeknown to her, one of Charlotte’s grandchildren has offered the house to his friend Ahmed, an aspiring Lebanese actor from Toronto, to rehearse for his first major role in a film. In a space belonging to neither party, the two strangers, initially startled by each other’s presence, develop an odd yet sincere bond that becomes highly vulnerable when exposed to exterior forces.

nîpawistamâsowin: We Will Stand Up directed by Tasha Hubbard: 22 July 20:30 Musgrave  &  25 July 18:15 Suncoast

In 2016 Colten Boushie, a young indigenous Canadian, died from a gunshot wound after entering Gerald Stanley’s rural property with his friends. The jury’s subsequent acquittal of Stanley captured international attention, raising questions about the racism embedded within Canada’s legal system and propelling Colten’s family to national and international stages in their pursuit of justice. Sensitively directed by Tasha Hubbard, nîpawistamâsowin: We Will Stand Up weaves a profound narrative encompassing the filmmaker’s own adoption, the stark history of colonialism on the prairies, and a vision of a future where Indigenous children can live safely on their homelands.

The Grizzlies directed by Miranda de Pencier: 22 July 16:00 Gateway & 26 July 18:00 Gateway

The Grizzlies is based on a true story about a group of Inuit students in the small Arctic town of Kugluktuk. When Russ Sheppard, yet another ignorant and unprepared white rookie teacher, arrives, the students are naturally sceptical.  With much to learn, Russ introduces his class to the sport of lacrosse in an effort to help lift the dangerous fog of trauma and apathy. Driven by remarkable performances and unassailable authenticity, this is an inspiring and deeply felt film about rising above adversity in Africa and the Caribbean.

The Body Remembers When The World Broke Open directed by Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers & Kathleen Hepburn: 20 July 14:00 Gateway & 28 July 17:15 Suncoast 7

When Áila encounters a young Indigenous woman, barefoot and crying in the rain, she soon discovers that the young woman, Rosie, has just escaped a violent assault at the hands of her boyfriend. Áila, who is also of Indigenous descent but lives a more privileged life, decides to bring Rosie home with her. Over the course of the evening, the two navigate the aftermath of this traumatic event. Inspired by a transformative moment in the life of co-director Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers, The Body Remembers is not content to provide simple answers but acknowledges the complexity of abuse.

We Have Forever directed by Paul Barbeau:  21 July 19:00  Musgrave & 27 July 16:30 Musgrave

At the start of adulthood, Antoine has many options: to work in his mom’s restaurant or attend one of the top culinary arts school in the world, to join his friends in Montreal or stay and chill in a small rural village and work as a welder. Choices, detours, and at times setbacks – but there is no need to worry when you’re 20. We Have Forever is a film about time, a film that seems to slow down its narrative tempo in order to illustrate the fact that when you’re 18, eternity seems to lie ahead of you.

Quantification directed by Jeremy Shaw : 9 July 19:00 Gateway & 24 July 18:30 Gateway

Jeremy Shaw’s three recent films, Quickeners (2014), Liminals (2017), and I Can See Forever (2018), explore the potential of catharsis to simultaneously represent and effect states of mind, perception, ecstasy, belief, religious fervour, and extremes of subjective experience. Each individual film evokes a familiar context from a not-so-distant past: Quickeners feels like 1950s small-town America, Liminals like any western city of the 1970s, and I Can See Forever appears to be set in 1990s Berlin or an American metropolis. Seen as a trilogy, the short films present a remarkably visceral and complete cinematic experience.

The 10th Durban FilmMart, during the Durban International Film Festival, presents Creative Corner, which is a free public programme taking place at the Tsogo Sun Maharani Hotel, Panini Room from 19 to 22 July.

The programme focuses on creative sectors vital to the film motion picture industry and features panel discussions on costume, set, sound and make-up design as well as script-writing. It also provides informal opportunities for the public and emerging filmmakers to network and collaborate and delve into the fascinating world behind-the-scenes of television and film.

The experts at the Creative Corner include professional and experienced crew of some of South Africa’s biggest television shows including Uzalo and Imbweu – which are both filmed in Durban.

The Durban FilmMart has partnered with the Writers’ Guild of South Africa and South African Guild of Actors in this innovative new programme that also aims to support scriptwriting in development.

During the Creative Corner programme, pre-selected in-development and production-ready feature film projects from South African writers will be given an opportunity to present excerpts of their screenplays to industry delegates in hour-long sessions incorporating an introduction by the writer, a script excerpt of 15 minutes performed by local professional actors, and an Q&A and feedback session with the audience.

The programme:

Friday, 19 July: Two WGSA Script to Live Read sessions will take place with a demonstration in the morning and the kicking off the programme in the afternoon. A costume-design panel which will unpack the fabric of this industry. The panel led by Noky Ngobeni, Head of Costume Design from Uzalo, will pick the minds behind some of South African Television industry’s best dressers.

Saturday, 20 July: The WGSA and SAGA will present two Script to Live sessions. A set design panel led by set designers Matthew Tikoane (Uzalo) and Nerina Du Plessis (Imbewu) “world-builders” of some of South Africa’s biggest shows. The panel will include SAFTA-nominated and award-winning set builders and designers from the film, television and fashion industry.

Sunday, 21 July: Again two Script to Live readings will take place, as well as a Sound Design and Scoring for Film and TV  ession with Oscar Mhlangeni (Rhythmn World & Imbewu) a composer and music producer who has worked prolifically on projects across the entertainment space.

Monday 22 July: A final Script to Live session will take place, as well as a TV and Film editing session with Prof Itumeleng Nkabinde (Imbewu) and film and TV make-up experts Stella Johnson (Uzalo) and  Khethile Chilli (formerly with Uzalo) will present a discussion on make-up and special effects.

To attend these free events, and for general security purposes, the members of the public are required to present ID’s and register at the relevant reception areas at the venues.

Five registered attendees at the Creative Corner stand a stand to win a DIFF festival pass at the end of on the first day of the event. The pass gives access to the commercial screenings of the film (subject to availability and on a first-come-first-served basis).

The Isiphethu Hub at the 40^th Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) and the 10^th Durban FilmMart (DFM), a joint programme of the DIFF and the eThekwini Municipality’s Durban Film Office that aims to develop the film industry, offers a range of free events, workshops and screenings of films at numerous venues around the City.

The DIFF, hosted by the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Creative Arts, opens on Thursday, 18 July, and runs for 10 days screening over 150 feature films, documentaries and short films, as well as offering free screenings, workshops and seminars in the Isiphethu Hub around the making, and the business of film.

The venues for the free screenings include the Maharani Hotel, Southern Sun Elangeni Hotel, Marine Parade Garden Court Hotel, Albert Luthuli Museum in Groutville, Ushaka Marine World, K-Cap and Artizen Lounge in KwaMashu, Max’s Lifestyle in Umlazi, Tate’s Kasi Grill in Clermont, Bay Of Plenty Lower Marine Parade, Ohlange Library in Inanda, and Denis Hurley Centre in Durban CBD.

The free industry programme takes place at the Marine Parade Garden Court from 19-22 July and then at the KZNSA Gallery in Bulwer Road, Glenwood from 23-27 July. Experts in their fields include the agencies such as the Department of Trade and Industry, the Independent Development Corporation, the Film and Publications Board, The Independent Black Filmmakers’ Collective, KZN Film Commission and professionals such as Mahoro Semege, Sir Roelof Twijnstra, Edmund Mhlongo, Njabulo Biyela and Dr Janet van Eeden amongst others. The session topics include funding and entrepreneurship, documentary filmmaking, production, guidelines for film ratings, acting tools, screen writing, music and copyright, stop motion and 3D animation and editing.

A special gathering to exchange ideas and network will take place at KCAP in KwaMashu on 21 July from 13h00 where the KZN Film Commission, KCAP and DIFF will introduce international experts from Kenya, Nigeria and the UK to filmmakers from across the province.

An African Perspectives programme features six curated films by African directors: The Coffin Salesman (Nigeria) directed by Imoh Umoren, The Delivery Boy (Nigeria) directed by Adekunle Adejuyigbe, Return of the Don (UK) by Daniel Oriahi, Sembene! (Senegal/USA) directed by Samba Gadjigo and Jason Silverman, Sylvia (Nigeria) by Daniel Oriahi, and Youngun (UK) by Alex Melhuish.

Twenty-five years of Democracy in South Africa is celebrated in William Kentridge and Angus Gibson’s Freedom Square and Back of the Moon (Gibson’s 2019 feature Back of the Moon also premieres at DIFF this year in the competition section). One Humanity directed by Mickey Madodo Dube, Junaid Ahmed’s More Than Just a Game, and Sarafina! directed by Darrell Roodt.

A Decade Throwback at DIFF treats film-lovers to four films previously screened at the fest: Ayanda directed by Sarah Blecher, Akin Omotoso’s Man On Ground, Madoda Ncayiyana’s Izulu Lami (My Secret Sky) and Of Good Report by Jahmil XT Qubeka (Qubeka’s 2019 film Knuckle City will open the DIFF on 18 July).

A variety of shorts packages featuring creative inspirations and innovations in story-telling in under 40 minutes, provide a quick-bite, instant-satisfaction viewing for lovers of film. The packages are all available on the DIFF programme on the website.

The 15th Wavescape Surf Film Festival within the DIFF opens with a free public screening at the Bay of Plenty on the beachfront on 21 July at 19h00. Following this there are free screenings of worldwide surf adventure with epic visuals and amazing stories at Ushaka Marine World from 18h30 on 22 and 23 July. Attendees can bring picnic baskets, chairs and dress up warmly to enjoy this social event at both venues.

A selection of Durban Film Office commissioned micro-budget films will be screened at the Marine Parade Garden Court: Jersey Number 10 directed by Brian Khawula, Struck Blind by Lwazi Duma, Inyumba directed by Phumzile Lukhozi, Drive directed by Thabo Nyawuza and Unqobile by Sibusiso Masinga and Fanele Nxumalo.

Complementing the Isiphethu Hub is the Creative Corner at the Panini Room in the Maharani Hotel, Durban from 09h00 to 17h00 from 19-22 July. This free programme, focusing on the creative sector’s vital role to the motion picture industry, hosts discussions and exhibitions, providing networking, collaboration opportunities and entertainment for the public. Members of Durban’s growing television industry experts and organisations, such as the Writers Guild of South Africa and South African Guild of Actors will present sessions on acting, editing, costume, set, sound and make-up design. The programme sees DFM partner with the WGSA and SAGA for a daily Script-to-Live programme of live script-reading sessions of completed, and in-development scripts.

To attend these free events, and for general security purposes, members of the public are required to present ID’s and register at the relevant reception areas at the venues.

Click here for free screening and workshop programme – Isiphethu Hub.

Click here for the full programme for DIFF 2019.

Click here for the free DFM industry programme.

Buddha in Africa, directed by KwaZulu-Natal-based filmmaker, Nicole Schafer, has been selected in the International Documentary Competition at the 40th Durban International Film Festival (18 to 28 July) for the second leg of its South African premiere.

This delicately observed documentary about a Malawian teenager caught between his African roots and Chinese upbringing; was chosen as the Opening Night feature for the Encounters Documentary Festival in Cape Town and Johannesburg where it also received a Backsberg Encounters Audience Award. The film had its World Premiere at the prestigious Hot Docs Canadian International Festival in April and the Sydney International Film Festival in June with several more local and international festivals lined up for this year.

The film follows the intimate story of Enock Alu, a Malawian teenager growing up in a Chinese Buddhist orphanage in Africa. Once the star performer with dreams of becoming a martial arts hero like Jet Li, Enock, in his final year of school, has to make some tough decisions about his future. Will he return to his relatives in his home village or study abroad in Taiwan? Set against China’s expanding influence on the continent, Buddha in Africa provides a unique insight into the impact of cultural soft power on the identity and imagination of a young boy and his community.

“Most of the focus of Chinese involvement in Africa has been on the economic impact, whereas this story shows the influence of Chinese culture,” says writer and director Nicole Schafer. “For so long Africa has been influenced by Western culture and economic systems. I was struck by how this orphanage is strangely reminiscent of the Christian missions during the colonial era, only here African children have Chinese names and instead of learning about the West, they are learning about Chinese culture and history. I feel that the orphanage is the perfect metaphor to explore not only the impact of Chinese involvement in Africa, but also as a mirror for the legacy of Western colonialism on the African continent.”

Enock Alu (16) is one of three hundred orphans from rural Malawi growing up in a charity-based NGO founded by a Buddhist monk from Taiwan. It is one of several similar institutions around Southern Africa aimed at using Chinese culture and Buddhism to uplift the lives of orphans in Africa.

Filmed over five years, this essential film provides a valuable insight into some of the challenges affecting vulnerable children in Sub-Saharan Africa and poses complex questions around culture, identity, imperialism and the impact of foreign development aid.

“I feel Enock’s internal conflict of trying to hold onto his own culture and then the sacrifices that come with embracing the opportunities afforded by Chinese engagement in many ways reflects the dilemma around the future development of the African continent. How does Africa move forward and participate within an increasingly globalised world without becoming victim to yet another system of economic and cultural domination?”

Schafer goes on to say, “There are big differences between Western and Eastern perspectives and we worked hard to balance the African and Chinese points of view in the film. I have been interested in how different audiences have responded to the film. International audiences seem to be more interested in the political context, while locally, in South Africa, audiences have been deeply moved by Enock’s personal story.  As a filmmaker, I have chosen to document his story, and am pleased it is providing a diverse global audience the opportunity to examine the complex and layered world in which we Africans find ourselves.”

The film is an international co-production between Thinking Strings Media based in the KZN Midlands in South Africa, and Momento Film in Sweden. Renowned Paris-based company CAT & Docs will be representing the film internationally. AfriDocs is the African broadcast partner.

The project received the IDFA Most Promising Documentary Award when it was first pitched at the Durban FilmMart in 2011 and has since been awarded funding from several international funds including the IDFA Bertha Europe Fund in the Netherlands, Hot Docs-Blue Ice Group Doc Fund and the Alter Cine Foundation in Canada, Chicken & Egg Pictures in New York, the South African National Film and Video Foundation and the KwaZulu-Natal Film Commission.

The film premieres at DIFF on Saturday, July 20 at 16h00 at Musgrave Ster-kinekor, and has a second screening at Suncoast Cine Centre on Thursday, July 25 at 18h30.

The Wavescape Surf and Ocean Festival, presented by VANS, has announced a bumper line-up of 19 films at the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), with the addition of a unique evening of talks dedicated to the ocean.

In keeping with an increasingly urgent mandate to conserve our oceans and our planet, Wavecape brings Slide Night, featuring talks by ocean thought leaders on a wide range of topics – including science, sustainability, adventure and activism – to its programme of films to be screened at DIFF from 21 to 26 July.

Slide Night, which is attended by sellout crowds in Cape Town every December, will be hosted by PETCO and Wavescape at the South African Association for Marine Biological Research at uShaka Marine World on Thursday, 25 July. Well known ocean advocate, free diver and Durban surfer Olivia Symcox will MC the evening, with talks ranging from how to recycle your trash to a Sea Shepherd skipper speaking about the activist group’s work in South Africa.

Wavescape also announced several blockbuster documentaries for DIFF, including Andy Irons: Kissed by God and Trouble: The Lisa Andersen Story that will be screened at Musgrave Ster Kinekor.

The award-winning Cape Town big wave movie Satori, as well as the Mikey February classic Can’t Steal Our Vibe, and two other short films will be screened on opening night at the Bay of Plenty in Durban on Sunday, 21 July at 7pm. This screening is free, and the members of the public are invited to wrap up warmly and bring picnics as well as chairs or blankets to sit on.

The festival then moves on to two days of free screenings at uShaka Marine World and three nights at Musgrave Ster Kinekor. Several African premieres will be screened, including How to Learn How to Surf, a hilarious spoof of surf culture fresh off its world premiere in the US. Thank You Mother features South Africa and Australia, and is narrated by Australian filmmaker Albert Falzon, who made the seminal 1970 surf film Morning of the Earth.

What is a surf film festival without huge waves? Wavescape will present the African premiere of White Rhino, featuring gigantic waves in Hawaii, Tahiti, and Fiji. Nordurland, the other premiere, is shot in the Arctic Circle, and will no doubt have Durban surfers running for their wetsuits, which they do when water temperatures drop below 28 degrees Celsius.

Other films include the ode to the ocean, Emocean, filmed in Australia, California and Hawaii and featuring conservationist Sacha Guggenheimer, Pipeline surfing legend Jamie O’Brien, big wave pioneer Jeff Clark, iconic surf filmmaker Paul Witzig, and Hawaiian photographer Brent Bielmann.

Transcending Waves, directed by the Gauchos del Mar brothers Julian and Joaquin Azulay, who will be in attendance, features a sweeping epic shot in the Falkland Islands, where they try to use surfing to help heal the scars created by the 1982 War between Britain and Argentina.

Andy Irons: Kissed by God is the untold and tragic story of Andy Irons’ bipolar disorder and opioid addiction.

The South Africa-meets-Bollywood Bhai’s Cafe, directed by Maynard Kraak, and described as a “poignant little gem of a film about family, love and urban gentrification” will officially close this year’s 40^th Durban International Film Festival on Saturday, 27 July at 7pm at Ster Kinekor, Gateway in Durban.

Produced by Razia Rawoot and Maynard Kraak of Razia Bawa Productions and West Five Films, with a screenplay by Darron Meyer and Aaron Naidoo, based on a story by Rawoot and Executive Producer / Actor, Mehboob Bawa, Bhai’s Cafe centres on the Patel Family and their cafe, the cornerstone of the Wynberg community in Cape Town. The cafe comes under threat from a ruthless property developer, as Bhai’s daughter, Rashmi, is swept off her feet, in true Bollywood fashion, by Patrick, the son of the property magnate. At the same time, Bhai and his family rally the community to square off with the property developer to stave off the bulldozers and save the Cafe.

“We are thrilled to be closing our fest with Bhai’s Cafe,” says Chipo Zhou, Manager of DIFF. “Using a light-hearted family film genre, the filmmakers have created a deliciously delightful film that ultimately shows us that we are more similar than we are different, and that quite possibly we, as humans, are more tolerant and embracing that we are led to believe.”

“It was an honour to accept Mehboob and Razia’s invitation to direct this film,” says Director Maynard Kraak whose films include Vrou Soek Boer, Finders Keepers and The Last Victims.  “It was also a personal challenge to do a film with dance and singing, something I’d never done in my twenty-year career.”

“The film is a life-long ambition of Mehboob’s and  a very personal story having grown up in a family that had a similar cafe in Claremont. With the advent of retail giants replacing family-owned general dealers, these bastions of the community are heading for extinction. I also grew up with these family businesses andits isa great shame to see them disappearing. In addition, Cape Town is subject to a worldwide gentrification trend that is robbing areas of their nuance and character.  I believe this universal theme can be enjoyed by audiences throughout South Africa and abroad.”

Actor /Comedian, SivNgesi plays Patrick, the love interest, who is incidentally a fan of Bollywood movies and music, and participates in multiple dance sequences and even sings in Hindi.(Ngesi also stars in DIFF’s opening film Knuckle City). Rashmi is played byrising talent Suraya Rose Santos. MehboobBawa (a 30 year veteran of film, television and radio) and Rehane Abrahams (who recently won a Best Performance Fleur Du Cap for her role inWomb of Fire)play Rashmi’s parents Magan Bhai and Mary, and Patrick’s father by Thabo Bopape. Others in the cast include Fahruq Valley-Omar, Elodie Venece, Rameez Nordien, Stavros Cassapis, Khalil Kathrada and Carishma Basday.

“We have introduced a romantic subplot with a Bollywood-inspired touch leading to heartbreak, emotion and drama,” explains Razia Rawoot and Mehboob Bawa. “There are Bollywood-styled song sequences with songs composed by Rajive Mohan from Durban, one of South Africa’s top musicians. The lyrics were written by poet Jamal Mukaddam and singer and songwriter Yusuf Bassa. Ultimately it’s a feel-good film, so everything is resolved in the end. But the journey for the characters and the audience is an exciting one filled with lots of humour as well”.

The film will have only one screening at DIFF before it goes on to a national South African big screen release on Valentine’s Day 2020.

The 40^th Durban International Film Festival is presented by the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Creative Arts and runs from 18 to 28 July.

The Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), presented by the Centre for Creative Arts (University of KwaZulu-Natal) has announced Jahmil X. T. Qubeka’s Knuckle City as its opening film for its 40^th edition.

The film, produced and edited by award-winning Layla Swart of Yellowbone Entertainment, together with Mzansi Magic, is the acclaimed Qubeka’s much-anticipated fourth feature film. Dissecting notions of inherited toxic masculinity and the underbelly of the fighting world, Knuckle City is a riveting exploration of the psychology of a fighter from the Mdantsane township known as the boxing mecca of South Africa.

A slice of street life, Knuckle City follows the journey of Dudu Nyakama, a down and out ageing boxer as he struggles to attain the one fight that he believes will uplift his fractured family. Contending that the underbelly of the boxing world is rife with criminality, Dudu unwittingly enlists the help of his reckless but resourceful, gangster brother who’s coming out of jail. Haunted by the ghost of their father, Dudu soon finds that the fight at home is far more challenging than any opponent he can possibly face in the ring.

The film stars Bongile Mantsai as Dudu Nyakama, Thembekile Komani as Duke Nyakama, and the cast includes, amongst others, Faniswa Yisa, Patrick Ndlovu, Siv Ngesi, Owen Sejake, Angela Sithole, Nomhle Nkonyeni and Zolisa Xaluva.

“The film is a gritty and authentic glimpse into the street life of one of South Africa’s largest and oldest townships packaged in an entertaining and accessible feature film,” says producer Layla Swart.  “We believe the film is a tangible manifestation of the evolution of the South African narrative, a slice of life in a largely undocumented corner of the country. Knuckle City is a much-needed addition to the canon of South African cinema, where the less discussed aspects of the residue and repercussions of our collective national past culminate in the immediate issues confronting us in the present day.”

“We are very excited to be opening our 40^th edition with this gritty raw film by Jahmil,” says Chipo Zhou, DIFF Festival Manager. “This is a film which we believe will do very well as a cinema release, with boxing as the means to tell the story, and its multi-layered narrative will resonate with audiences globally.”

Qubeka, who grew up in Mdantsane in the 80’s and 90’s says, “It was an experience that has shaped the entirety of my life. The energy of the landscape and the visceral fight for survival that is palpable on the streets has inspired in me a deep yearning to chronicle the lives of its inhabitants through cinema.”

“It is my intention to capture the essence of life in Mdantsane, and the restless pursuit of being a champion within a society that often dictates you are a failure. I am determined with this film to give audiences a glimpse into a world rarely seen, and a deeper understanding of the multi-faceted individuals inhabiting our land.”

Knuckle City opens the DIFF on Thursday 18 July at Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre, the director, producer and lead talent will be in attendance.

For more information visit the festival website or follow DIFF on Facebook, Instagram (@durbaninternationalfilmfest) or Twitter.

The Durban FilmMart (DFM) has announced a stellar line-up of speakers for its 10th edition which takes place from 19 to 22 July during the 40th Durban International Film Festival  (18-28 July).

The programme for this major four-day film industry event includes a series of masterclasses, workshops and business networking opportunities aimed at developing content and expertise, as well as encouraging collaborations and networks across the continent and internationally.

Speakers this year include Irish screenwriter and producer Gabrielle Kelly, London-based curator, audience development specialist and author Nadia Denton, South African producer and founding manager of the Cape Town chapter of the shnit Worldwide Shortfilmfestival Sean Drummond and prolific Egyptian director Mohamed Siam.

Gabrielle Kelly, who has had an extensive filmmaking career in the USA, is a screenwriter and producer of diverse content for the global marketplace and also teaches in international labs and film programmes, will lead a masterclass entitled Towards Gender Equity in Film and Television. A recipient of two Fullbright awards for film, Gabrielle, sits on the Board of the British Academy of Film and Television, Women In Film and the Irish Film Festival/LA, and is a judge and programmer at numerous film festivals worldwide.  She will share insights on the gains being made by women film professionals, filmmakers and actors in fighting against discrimination, sexual harassment and imbalanced representation on screen. The Masterclass will also highlight why gender equality leads to better productivity, better films and a better society. She will touch on her own experiences supporting the proliferation of women-led cinema and what those already in the industry can do to support the voices of women to be heard.

As the world begins to recognize the excellence of people of colour in the film industry, the world has begun to turn its eyes to Africa. With this in mind, producer Nadia Denton, leads the masterclass: A New Black Cinema: Pan-African, Global and Bankable. A co-producer of the BBC World Service Radio documentary, Shooting it Like a Woman, looking at the fortunes of women behind the camera in the Nigerian film industry, Nadia has also written a book The Nigerian Filmmaker’s Guide to Success: Beyond Nollywood that presents an overview of the Nigerian film industry, looking beyond Nollywood and encompassing genres such as documentary, animation and Nigerian diaspora films. Nadia will use her extensive knowledge and research on the continents unique and exponential growth will mean for the future.

Producer and screenwriter, Sean Drummond whose debut feature film Five Fingers for Marseilles has received critical acclaim, enjoyed numerous cinematic and festival releases will present a masterclass The Working Writer. This session will look at the competitive market of filmmaking drawing from his experience working on scripts on films across genres that has led him to working on Hollywood tech-scripts and represented by William Morris Endeavor and Management 360.

Mohamed Siam, filmmaker, jury member of Karlovy Vary, Göteborg Film Festivals and IDFA Bertha and Hot Docs Funds, as well as a fellow scholar and filmmaker resident in the American University in Paris will present Documenting the Unique Perspective. Telling the African story has always proved to be challenge, with many failing to accurately frame nuances that make the continent what it is. Having made documentary films that have framed the metamorphis of his country in the 21st Century, Mohamed Siam comes with a wealth of insights. Mohamed, whose feature length debut Amal opened IDFA 2017, has actively worked to tell the story of his home country from the perspective of it’s own people. The masterclass will draw on his experience and his knowledge on what it takes to really tell the stories of continent and how to do so that speaks to a global audiences

After working for almost a decade in international film sales, Themba Bhebhe has been in charge of Diversity & Inclusion at the last two editions of the European Film Market (Berlinale). At the DFM he will lead a series of think-tanks and in-depth discussions concerning diversity and decolonial approaches and models to filmmaking under title Engage @ DFM.

For the European Film Market (EFM), Themba curates and programmes a series of events on the market relevance of diversity and inclusion across the EFM’s industry platforms, with the aim to create awareness and visibility for all programmes, actions and promotions of D&I across all the Berlinale’s different entities and liaising with delegations formed by underrepresented groups. He is also one of the founding members of the Programmers of Colour Collective (POC2) that aims at creating a conversation around and working towards a more diverse and inclusive programming pool at international film festivals through research, awareness events, networking, profile raising, mentoring and shadowing.

Other notable strands in the industry programme include the launch of an intensive documentary programme titled Durban Does Docs. The programme features a dynamic local, continental and international mix of funders, filmmakers and professionals. Some of the topics to be touched on include but not limited to areas of aesthetic concerns, funding, distribution and audience development.

The Locations Africa Exhibition and Conference focuses on film locations in an effort to re-ignite efforts to position Africa as a key filming destination which has all the necessary elements for inbound productions and local film projects.

This edition will also see the launch of the Mart’s public programme, Creative Corner. This programme will engage with local film and television industries, such as editing, sound design, make-up and special effects, costume, and set design. Creative Corner will see DFM partnering with the Writers’ Guild of South Africa with the Script To Live session. These exciting live script reading sessions will see actors performing in development scripts to a panel of judges who will feedback on both performances and scripts.

Isiphethu Emerging Filmmakers’ Hub, will return again this year engage emerging local filmmakers. The programme is free to the public and will touch on a range of topics relevant to emerging filmmakers.

“This year’s speakers represent a range of relevant and important voices for African filmmakers, bringing with them a wealth of experience, knowledge and thought-leadership to our 10th edition,” says Toni Monty, Head of the Durban Film Office and the Durban FilmMart. “We are very excited to welcome them to the DFM, and believe that delegates will gain useful and practical insights to enable them to benchmark their work in a global and continental context.”

International partners and guests in attendance include Sundance Film Festival, Hot Docs Blue Ice, Caribbean Tales, Dok Leipzig, Dokfes, Cinemart, BBC Storyville, Doc Society, Aljazeera, Arte TV, Trace TV, Sorfund, European Film Market, Ape & Bjorn, Sudu Films, Rushlake Media, Melia Films, Produire au Sud, Telefilm Canada, Afridocs, Maisha Film Lab and Planet Africa TV.

Registration is still open to those who wish to register for the 10th annual DFM, early bird registration is open until 28 June 2019. Early bird fees are R1300 (ZAR) for the four-day programme, which includes four day’s access to the DFM Industry Programme, access to DFM producers lounge and DFM networking events, 10 tickets to Durban International Film Festival screenings and company information published in the industry manual. After 28 June fees are R1600 for the full programme while daily passes are R450 each (the daily pass does not include tickets to DIFF screenings or access into the opening and closing events).  All tickets exclude meals.

The Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), which takes place from 18 to 28 July 2019 in Durban, South Africa, has announced the documentaries in competition for its 40th anniversary edition.

Ten insightful and impactful documentaries have been selected for competition, and will be eligible for Best Documentary and Best South African Documentary prizes. The winner of the best Documentary at the DIFF, will automatically qualify for consideration for nomination for an Academy Award.

“We are really excited about the calibre of films in our documentary competition this year,” says DIFF manager, Chipo Zhou. “We had over 950 documentary submissions, covering a broad range of themes and topics. This year’s competition selection, interestingly is mostly focussed on individual journeys, many around young people having to navigate intensely disrupted and relentlessly painful spaces, as well as the issues that gender, race and culture present in this ever-changing, and often alien world. We look forward to sharing these films with audiences at DIFF, and providing some stimulating food for thought and discussions with filmmakers who will be in attendance.”

South Africa director Nicole Schafer’s Buddha in Africa, is a delicately observed documentary about a Malawian teenager in a Chinese Buddhist orphanage in Africa, who finds himself torn between his African roots and Chinese upbringing. Another young boy is the focus in the film Anbessa (Italy/USA) directed by Mo Scarpelli. A coming-of-age story that captures a boy taking on modernization on his own terms, as he and his mother defy the newly-built housing estate which is like others springing up all over Ethiopia, as they continue their living within the traditional village community.

The Australian film by director Maya Newell, In My Blood it Runs, features a ten 10-year-old Arrernte (Aboriginal) boy from Mparntwe (Alice Springs) in Australia whose traditional language, hunting and healing skills of no value within the modern education system. This is an emotional journey through the fight to mend an educational schism between traditional culture and colonial ideas and solidify a future for the youth.

Fatma Riahi’s A Haunted Past (Qatar) is a personal portrait of a broken Tunisian-Bosnian family as ex-prisoner and ex-jihadist who is left alone to take care of his three teenage daughters. The impact of displacement on individual and collective lives continues in Hamada (Sweden) by director Eloy Domínguez Serén, a humorous, bittersweet portrait of three uncompromising twenty-somethings cut off from the world in a refugee camp in the Sahara desert. In Edward Watts and Waad al-Kateab’s For Sama (UK/USA/Syria), we are given an intimate look at one young woman’s struggles with love, war and motherhood over the span of five years in Syria.

Mother I am Suffocating. This Is My Last Film About You by Lesotho filmmaker Mosese Lemohang Jeremiah, is an extended, poetic letter to the protagonist’s mother and motherland. This brave and powerful film, is at once both intimate and alienated, and explores issues of colonialism, shame, whiteness, integration, and liminality, while speaking to the Diasporic experience of time and space.

The visually striking film from Cape Town-based director Sara de Gouveia, The Sounds of Masks (SA/Portugal) follows the compelling storyteller and legendary Mozambiquan “Mapiko” (a masked dance) dancer Atanásio Nyusi on his personal journey through the country’s past and present – his dancing skills having given him the opportunity to become a professional dancer and avoid fighting in the civil war that followed independence. The film won the Durban FilmMart 2014 IDFA award for most promising documentary.

My Friend, Fela (Brazil) directed by Joel Zito Araujo, explores the life of legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti from the perspective of his long-time friend Carlos Moore.

From Denmark comes A Girl in Return directed by Katrine W.Kjaer, an intimate character-driven global tale about what happens when an adopted teenage girl decides to reclaim her lost identity.

Buddha in Africa, Mother I am Suffocating, The Sound of Masks, and My Friend, Fela, will also be screened at Encounters South African International Documentary Festival (6 to 16 June) this year in Johannesburg and Cape Town.

The Durban International Film Festival, is hosted by the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Creative Arts in various venues around Durban from 18 to 28 July 2019. The full programme will go online at the end of June 2019.