Northern Alliance - BFI

The NZFC review deemed the number of A-list festival invitations as significant,
because it observed a correlation between a director‟s A-list festival success with
a short film, and the likelihood of that director‟s first feature film achieving
festival success and/or international sales, and therefore a return on investment to
the NZFC.
Beyond Europe 2: South Africa‟s national film and video foundation (NFVF)‟s
short film strategy 92
Although short films are not perceived to play a major role in the broader
framework of film and television production activities in South Africa, they are
nonetheless seen by filmmakers to represent an opportunity to showcase
directorial and writing ability for the cinema screen. The NFVF only finances four
or five short films per year. More short films are made in the context of higher
education, and the remainder are largely self-financed by filmmakers. There is no
formal tracking of the number of short films made without NFVF funding; the
perception is that independent short filmmaking is not widespread in South
Africa.
An interesting new initiative in development since 2009 is the NFVF‟s plan to join
forces with Africa First (an initiative of Focus Features) in the search for new
talent across the African continent. Africa First awards five prizes of $10,000
towards the production of short film proposals. The approach is hands-off,
allowing filmmakers to find their voice and giving them an opportunity to
interact with a panel of international advisors. The filmmakers are free to seek
additional funds elsewhere to complete their films at a budget level that makes
sense for the short. The first of these short films is due for completion in autumn
2009, and the NFVF hopes the filmmakers will gain international attention
through their association with Focus Features.
Most of South Africa‟s feature film writers and directors come from a television
drama background, with few individuals emerging via the commercials or
documentary routes. The NFVF views short films as an opportunity to drive the
career of talented commercials, documentary and TV drama directors and writers
into the feature film arena, as good short films can act as their calling cards.
There is currently no indication that internet distribution is significantly changing
the market for short films in South Africa. However, the NFVF anticipates that cell
phones will be a future platform for short film exhibition, due to South African
telecommunications companies‟ hunger for content.
92 This case study is based on an interview conducted by Northern Alliance with Clarence
Hamilton and Ryan Haidarian of the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF).
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