by Thinus Ferreira
As kykNET's 12th Silwerskermfees film festival kicks off today in Cape Town with a glitzy raft of film premieres, deal-making, panel discussions and ending with an awards show on Saturday, thousands of film biz cognoscenti are once again set to descend on The Bay Hotel in Camps Bay for what the programme manager promises will be "a full, vibrant and expansive festival".
Over the next few days attendees and panellists - some flying in from as far as Dubai and London - will listen to panel sessions, attend master classes in the Rotunda and Theatre on the Bay, and have a glass of wine on the deck before Saturday night's Afrikaans film and TV awards show at the Cape Town International Conference Centre (CTICC) that will seat 1 300 people.
With over 60 litres of sunflower oil, 40kg of flavouring salts and 2 500 boxes that will be used, attendees will munch their way through over 275kg of popcorn as they watch an array of TV pilot episodes, short films, features and a slate of new documentaries.
"Like all other film festivals internationally, we need to continue to be very agile within this space, to continue doing what the Silwerskermfees set out to do in the first place which is to incubate projects and to give new voices an opportunity," Tina Kruger, the festival's programme manager tells me.
"The Silwerskermfees is doing an impeccable job when it comes to fostering a documentary film slate. Last year was the first time we included screening TV pilots and this year we are expanding on that with full-feature documentaries screening at this year's festival."
"The Silwerskermfees keeps expanding in what it offers. We're not just reaching traditional festival goers but we're also open to the public who can come and see and experience the content so that it goes wider than just the immediate film industry".
"Likewise, filmmakers and executives get the chance to rub shoulders with the people who they are making the content for - viewers - and not just getting together for themselves. I think that's a very important shift for the festival as a whole."
Tina Kruger says she's looking to the 2024 Silwerskermfees "which will be a full and vibrant and expansive festival".
Unique Afrikaans focus
Waldimar Pelser, channel director for premium channels at M-Net, tells TVwithThinus that the Silwerskermfees film festival continues to provide a unique Afrikaans focus with a wide umbrella for South Africa's film and TV industry.
"The Silwerskermfees, firstly, has a unique
Afrikaans focus. So when we look for film projects to support, we try to find
those stories in the Afrikaans community, mostly but not limited to the Western
Cape. This Afrikaans community has had uneven access to platforms for
storytelling on the big screen. Our efforts aim to address this."
He says those who make kykNET films for Silwerskerm are
seasoned filmmakers "but increasingly new voices who often enter the industry
for the first time by making a short film for Silwerskermfees" are included as well.
"This, then, is
our second unique focus: Silwerskerm is fundamentally a developmental festival
where new filmmakers are guided by recognised mentors to make their big screen
début."
"There is a great need for mentorship and capital directed
at new voices," Waldimar Pelser explains.
"In this vein, Silwerskerm has yielded hundreds of short films
and dozens of new film- and TV makers who started their careers with
Silwerskerm. We want to sustain this festival as an incubator for talent in the
Afrikaans space, even though many of our filmmakers also produce content in
other languages."
Asked whether Afrikaans film specifically is under pressure, Waldimar Pelser says "One could argue Afrikaans film is under less pressure
than English language or vernac films in South Africa because Afrikaans films
benefit from a dedicated channel which needs a certain volume of films and TV
shows every year to fill a linear schedule and satisfy paying subscribers".
"This
level of reliable demand has been a game changer for the industry because the
volumes of Afrikaans content required always remains above a certain critical
level, enabling a small industry to plan and thrive around it."
"At the same time
it is true that the entire film industry is under pressure. Afrikaans films are
not immune."
"Cinemas are emptier than before Covid and have not recovered. Films
premiering on subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services means they often skip theatrical release and pay-TV, which further diminishes the opportunities to recoup costs."
"We are
therefore always developing new models to try and fund local films in a way
that squares with our mandate, recognises our budgetary constraints, but also
allows filmmakers to seek additional external funding."
