The only piece of criticism would be that the Moja Love 2019 Content Showcase started late and after the stipulated time on the invitation, which forced me to get up and leave during the actual presentation to race to the airport to catch a flight.
It wasn't possible to hear and see everything about the Moja Love presentation until the end; I didn't get a USB with the programming material and images, couldn't grab even the slightest bite to eat, and it was impossible to do individual interviews or ask more questions than the one I managed to ask during the presentation.
Besides this single negative, the Moja Love 2019 Content Showcase set-up and execution was exactly correct, precisely how it should be done, and incorporated and had everything it should have.
It perfectly contained, by-the-book, all of the elements that a TV channel's upfront and showcase event for the media should have.
There were banners outside and inside the lounge area of the venue, as well as inside the auditorium, there were snacks and drinks and flowers, a step-and-repeat backdrop banner for on-air talent photo opportunities, and the media got press material on a USB (although I didn't get one due to being forced to leave before the end because of time).
Moja Love found and used a perfect theatre venue with a stage (the Yamaha World of Yamaha Theatre in Sandton, Johannesburg), and worked hard and put in a proper effort to get the relevant media covering television from Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban to the showcase event.
Moja Love used one of its current shows' talents (Penny Lebyane) as the moderator, had Moja Love executives in attendance and on-stage to talk, had someone from MultiChoice on-stage to talk, and showed a sizzle reel played in two parts.
Moja Love had the assembled group of its on-screen talent from its various shows all beautifully dressed up and walking out on-stage to sit and answer questions. The presentation also had a break with a live performance.
Moja Love had the assembled group of its on-screen talent from its various shows all beautifully dressed up and walking out on-stage to sit and answer questions. The presentation also had a break with a live performance.
While I wish that Moja Love and MultiChoice did just this and exactly this and in this way in the weeks before it launched in February 2018 - something which would have helped the media tremendously and have ensured that the press could do a lot more about Moja Love's programming line-up as it launched on DStv - I'm hugely appreciative that Moja Love did do a content showcase eventually, and did do it now.
Two things surprised me about the Moja Love 2019 Content Showcase, and both are extremely positive. It bodes well for Moja Love, as well as in general for the "future" of South Africa's TV industry and TV channels, and the development of the process of interaction with the press covering them.
Firstly: I'm wondering who knows, who knew, or who at Moja Love either themselves have attended physically an upfront or content showcase in America of a TV channel or of a studio's shows before - or who had studied up about and researched it in detail.
Moja Love, that has been broadcasting for only 14 months, got it too impossibly absolutely right.
If you haven't physically and personally experienced an upfront or showcase event of one of the American TV studios or TV channels - or a set visit - it's very difficult to understand and practically recreate so exactly what it is and what it should be.
What Moja Love did with its 2019 Content Showcase is like going to the Olympics for your first time and winning a gold medal.
It's extremely difficult if not almost impossible to focus, shut out the noise and end in first place the first time - when its a new experience and a new learning experience and where adjusting to everything around you and mastering it, has an impact on the quality of the performance.
It's really great that Siyaya TV has within it the human capital in South Africa to know how to do something like a basic content showcase for the Moja Love TV channel and to do it properly, correctly and exactly like how America's TV biz has perfected doing it, as part of its external communication system.
By saying "America" I also don't mean that Moja Love or anything in South Africa needs to be, or is "American".
What it refers to is a qualitative measure - a benchmark of "best practice" regarding something, with the American TV industry that established long ago how and what the standard for the execution of an upfront or content showcase for a TV channel or a TV studio's content slate is.
Secondly, and somewhat linking to the first, but on a different layer, is that it's surprising (a great, positive surprise!) that this is a black company and a TV channel targeting a predominantly black viewing audience, that is doing something like a content showcase and getting it right - in a much better way than a VIA or a Viu or a kykNET, Openview, TRACE or MYtv.
Many established and/or so-called "white" and/or so-called "old-school" and/or long-running companies and TV channels within the South African TV industry have never even bothered - places that think they're better or best with nothing to learn or to improve on.
By merely doing a content showcase (and then in addition in exactly the right mould), Moja Love - irrespective of audience size, its look, and what you might think of the content, or the quality of programming - is better than channels and services like Newzroom Afrika, CNBC Africa, Netflix South Africa, StarSat, Showmax, Cell C black and several others who couldn't be bothered putting its stars and shows in front of the media at a basic content showcase despite some being in operation for years.
Well done to Moja Love for doing a content showcase for the media and in a proper way.
While there wasn't one when the channel launched, it's hopefully something Moja Love sees or will see as being just as valuable as what the media regards it to be, and something that it hopefully, maybe, feels that it wants to do once a year.
Slowly other South African broadcasters, channels and operators might just awake from their slumber and start to follow in aspects like these where younger black players in South African television are showing them how, and starting to lead the way.
ALSO READ: IN IMAGES. 24 photos of Moja Love's 2019 Content Showcase.
ALSO READ: The Moja Love 2019 Content showcase sizzle reel.
ALSO READ: Big revamp for second season of Show Me Love starting 3 June on Moja Love; local talk show to broadcast live, add politics, with new location, new studio, new panellists and more daring content.
ALSO READ: With daring, boundary-pushing reality shows, the Moja Love channel on DStv says it's aspiring "to innovate, to change and challenge the South African TV landscape".
ALSO READ: New Moja Love conflict reality show exposing cheating lovers, Uyajola 9/9, is "not for the faint-hearted" warns presenter Jub Jub.
ALSO READ: After delays, the reality show, Zodwa Wabantu Uncensored, is starting on Moja Love on Saturday 25 May as the Vosho Queen gives viewers a glimpse of her surreal life with a "16-ish" age restriction.
ALSO READ: TV CRITIC's NOTEBOOK. For a channel with 'love' in its name, Moja Love's content is built on a collection of conflict. For how long will its viewers thirst to watch the fight?
Two things surprised me about the Moja Love 2019 Content Showcase, and both are extremely positive. It bodes well for Moja Love, as well as in general for the "future" of South Africa's TV industry and TV channels, and the development of the process of interaction with the press covering them.
Firstly: I'm wondering who knows, who knew, or who at Moja Love either themselves have attended physically an upfront or content showcase in America of a TV channel or of a studio's shows before - or who had studied up about and researched it in detail.
Moja Love, that has been broadcasting for only 14 months, got it too impossibly absolutely right.
If you haven't physically and personally experienced an upfront or showcase event of one of the American TV studios or TV channels - or a set visit - it's very difficult to understand and practically recreate so exactly what it is and what it should be.
What Moja Love did with its 2019 Content Showcase is like going to the Olympics for your first time and winning a gold medal.
It's extremely difficult if not almost impossible to focus, shut out the noise and end in first place the first time - when its a new experience and a new learning experience and where adjusting to everything around you and mastering it, has an impact on the quality of the performance.
It's really great that Siyaya TV has within it the human capital in South Africa to know how to do something like a basic content showcase for the Moja Love TV channel and to do it properly, correctly and exactly like how America's TV biz has perfected doing it, as part of its external communication system.
By saying "America" I also don't mean that Moja Love or anything in South Africa needs to be, or is "American".
What it refers to is a qualitative measure - a benchmark of "best practice" regarding something, with the American TV industry that established long ago how and what the standard for the execution of an upfront or content showcase for a TV channel or a TV studio's content slate is.
Secondly, and somewhat linking to the first, but on a different layer, is that it's surprising (a great, positive surprise!) that this is a black company and a TV channel targeting a predominantly black viewing audience, that is doing something like a content showcase and getting it right - in a much better way than a VIA or a Viu or a kykNET, Openview, TRACE or MYtv.
Many established and/or so-called "white" and/or so-called "old-school" and/or long-running companies and TV channels within the South African TV industry have never even bothered - places that think they're better or best with nothing to learn or to improve on.
By merely doing a content showcase (and then in addition in exactly the right mould), Moja Love - irrespective of audience size, its look, and what you might think of the content, or the quality of programming - is better than channels and services like Newzroom Afrika, CNBC Africa, Netflix South Africa, StarSat, Showmax, Cell C black and several others who couldn't be bothered putting its stars and shows in front of the media at a basic content showcase despite some being in operation for years.
Well done to Moja Love for doing a content showcase for the media and in a proper way.
While there wasn't one when the channel launched, it's hopefully something Moja Love sees or will see as being just as valuable as what the media regards it to be, and something that it hopefully, maybe, feels that it wants to do once a year.
Slowly other South African broadcasters, channels and operators might just awake from their slumber and start to follow in aspects like these where younger black players in South African television are showing them how, and starting to lead the way.
ALSO READ: IN IMAGES. 24 photos of Moja Love's 2019 Content Showcase.
ALSO READ: The Moja Love 2019 Content showcase sizzle reel.
ALSO READ: Big revamp for second season of Show Me Love starting 3 June on Moja Love; local talk show to broadcast live, add politics, with new location, new studio, new panellists and more daring content.
ALSO READ: With daring, boundary-pushing reality shows, the Moja Love channel on DStv says it's aspiring "to innovate, to change and challenge the South African TV landscape".
ALSO READ: New Moja Love conflict reality show exposing cheating lovers, Uyajola 9/9, is "not for the faint-hearted" warns presenter Jub Jub.
ALSO READ: After delays, the reality show, Zodwa Wabantu Uncensored, is starting on Moja Love on Saturday 25 May as the Vosho Queen gives viewers a glimpse of her surreal life with a "16-ish" age restriction.
ALSO READ: TV CRITIC's NOTEBOOK. For a channel with 'love' in its name, Moja Love's content is built on a collection of conflict. For how long will its viewers thirst to watch the fight?
