SA FILMMAKERS KNUCKLE DOWN TO BUSINESS IN TORONTO

SA FILMMAKERS KNUCKLE DOWN TO BUSINESS IN TORONTO

A group of South African filmmakers who are in Canada to attend the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) knuckled down to serious business yesterday on the first day of the 40th edition of the annual film extravaganza that will run until 20 September 2015. Members of the group, which is supported by the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) through the Association of Transformation in Film and Television (ATFT), kicked off their exacting programme with business-to-business meetings, industry workshops and information sessions.

The Director of International Relations at ATFT, Mr Mayenzeke Baza says the filmmakers are determined to make the best of the opportunity that they have been presented with to attend the festival.

“The filmmakers understand that they have to grab this opportunity with both hands and use it maximally to learn as much as possible during their stay here and hold as many meetings as their schedule could accommodate in order to market their projects.  This festival, which is the biggest in North America, offers unlimited networking opportunities that can impact positively in the filmmakers’ initiatives to sell their projects on an international market,” said Baza.

He added that the co-production breakfast, pitching forum and the information session that the filmmakers attended yesterday were all meant to make their day beneficial and productive.

“We arranged an interactive information session with the festival’s programmer, Ms Rasha Salti who is responsible for selecting films from Africa and the Middle East for screening at TIFF. The information she shared with our filmmakers was really crucial as they learnt a lot about which types of films will make the cut for screening at the festival. This information will go a long way in assisting them produce films that can increase the number of South African films screened at the festival next year,” said Baza.

Budding Eastern Cape-based filmmaker Ms Nokulunga Jimana-Mntwapi said the pitching workshop that she attended was extremely valuable.

“It is for the first time that I attend an international film festival and the information I have gained from the session I have attended, particularly the pitching workshop is incredible.  I feel so empowered as a filmmaker and I will return home really equipped with valuable information and experience. I have not even started with meetings to market my project but I have already benefitted so much from being here,” said Jimana-Mntwapi.

 Jimana-Mntwapi’s major goal for attending TIFF is to pitch the first movie she is working on, Ndon’e bani’phi? (Who have I wronged where?), which tells the story of a girl who is a product of incest, to potential international film buyers.

From today, the filmmakers will attend a series of industry conferences focusing on a wide range of topics ranging from the creative process, financing and co-production, to marketing, sales and distribution and the future of content.