by Weaam Williams
I have worked in the film industry for close on 20 years and received international accolades for my work, as well as worldwide distribution.
The film industry is cut-throat and ruthless. It is a challenging landscape that requires grit, determination, and, most importantly, talent to succeed.
In the South African industry, it also often takes the ability to fraternise with the old boys’ club and pay homage to their “superior” cinema sensibilities to succeed.
Despite their dominant opinions, which steer the Saftas and the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), our last Oscar nomination in the Best International Feature Category was for Gavin Hood’s Tsotsi – 20 years ago.
South African films struggle to secure spots at A-list festivals. They fail to attract audiences at the box office. While we live in the streaming era, the box office remains a major revenue generator, yet we lag behind Hollywood hits, which perform well at our local cinemas.
Endemic problems in the South African film industry urgently require rapid and radical transformation to reach their potential.
Another issue is the captured distribution market. Local distributors favour a select group of allies. As a result, audiences often disregard local content, switching preference to foreign productions. The South African industry has failed to meet audience demand.
As an award-winning film-maker and woman of colour whose films have sold out at festivals, I find it impossible to secure funding for any feature film submissions to the NFVF, despite being an experienced writer and running my own writer’s lab in Cape Town, in collaboration with the US Embassy.
Only a select few film-makers seem empowered by the NFVF to produce feature films. We have also grown too accustomed to seeing black women in positions of power blocking their peers and supporting those who maintain the status quo.
In 2022, I launched the Two Hues film project as an NFT, which led to the creation of The African Film DAO, a community committed to transforming the industry and producing African films. The African Film DAO uses blockchain to empower filmmakers.
Through this tech, we connected with Hollywood and held the inaugural HACC festival in Los Angeles in January 2024, with Hollywood professionals serving as our jury and showcasing African films to an Los Angeles audience.
Our lobbying team have tirelessly appealed to Minister Gayton McKenzie to dissolve the previous NFVF Council and appoint a new one due to widespread internal corruption implicating NFVF staff. It was encouraging to see the announcement for nominations for the new council.
However, the exclusion of our candidates from the new council is as absurd as excluding those who fought for freedom from the new government. This failure to include voices advocating for a more democratic, equitable film industry is bad political practice and undermines the essence of our democracy. The Minister has failed to navigate the film politics effectively.
Regarding the shortlist, we firmly believe it does not reflect the diversity and expertise necessary to guide the future of the South African film industry. Excluding known film professionals is troubling.
While we advocated for the inclusion of finance professionals, journalists with relevant experience, and legal advisors, we did not intend for industry professionals to be excluded from the Council.
We sought diversity on evaluation panels to combat the vested interests of filmmakers and bias toward close associates, which lies at the heart of the problem.
We call for the immediate implementation of the NFVF Act, which mandates that the shortlist of twenty-two candidates be published for public review. It is deeply disappointing that the department overseeing the NFVF does not adhere to the NFVF Act.
We believe the Minister was poorly advised, and the process was rushed to exclude candidates who understand the intricate politics of our national film fund.
We also believe that the interview process was unfair, with significant social media outcry about it. The list of Council nominations included a duplicated name and omitted another; how is it possible for a national government department to allow such errors?
This leads one to believe that vested interests within DSAC are contributing to the collusion damaging our industry.
We have been informed that contracts have already been awarded to new council members, despite these appointments contradicting the NFVF Act’s requirements. These appointments are therefore unlawful. We respectfully request that these contracts be rescinded and that proper legal procedures be followed to ensure Council appointments comply with the Act.
The African Film DAO, in collaboration with various industry stakeholders, is ready to assist in verifying and fact-checking shortlisted candidates to ensure the process’s integrity and inclusivity.
The African Film DAO has long championed fair and transparent governance in South Africa’s film and media sector. Our work provides us with an in-depth understanding of the ongoing challenges and opportunities within the NFVF.
Despite our active lobbying for reforms, our community and the entire industry were denied access to the candidate shortlist, which DSAC had promised to share. This lack of transparency raises serious concerns about the integrity of the process and whether due process was followed.
The African Film DAO believes that at least two of our nominated candidates should be on the council, given our deep industry knowledge and experience with the NFVF's operations.
Excluding our candidates, who offer vital expertise and perspective, not only hampers potential reforms at the NFVF but also diminishes the collective efforts of industry stakeholders addressing long-standing sector issues. We are committed to working with all stakeholders to ensure a bright, equitable, and representative future for South African cinema.
The African Film DAO calls on the Minister to take swift action. We will continue to advocate for fair, inclusive, and transparent governance for South African film and media and remain dedicated to creating an equitable, sustainable future for African filmmakers. We demand the publication of the shortlist of twenty-two candidates, and as the organization that lobbied for the old Council’s dissolution, we believe it fair for some of our nominations to be included.
* Williams is a film-maker, storyteller, human rights activist, and tech visionary.
** The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Independent Media.
Do you have something on your mind; or want to comment on the big stories of the day? We would love to hear from you. Please send your letters to arglet@inl.co.za.
All letters to be considered for publication, must contain full names, addresses and contact details (not for publication)