Pretoria - The Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) will use the 38th Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) to market its South African Emerging Black Filmmakers Incentive and target relevant producers who qualify for the incentive.
“The incentive objective is to create an environment that takes advantage of the country’s diverse and unique locations, as well as low production costs and favourable exchange rates, which makes it significantly more cost-effective to produce a movie in South Africa than in Europe, the United States or Australia,” Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said on Thursday.
Minister Davies said the sector has enormous potential in bringing the necessary currency into the economy and can act as an important vehicle through which technology is transferred and South African skills base is upgraded.
The dti will participate at the 38th DIFF which will start on Thursday and run till 23 July.
The DIFF is an annual film festival that takes place in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. It is one of the oldest and largest film festival in Southern Africa and presents over 200 screenings celebrating the best in South Africa, African and international cinema.
Minister Davies said the dti participation at DIFF is one of the best platforms to promote and showcase the country’s creative skills.
The department spent R468 million with projected investment of R3.4 billion in 2015/2016 financial year supporting the sector.
Productions supported by the dti which will be screened are: The Wound, Hard To Get, Double Echo, Hope, The Killing Floor, The Whale Caller, Winnie, Vaya, The Most Beautiful Day, Catching Feelings, Mhlola and Asinamali as the closing night Film. – SAnews.gov.za
