By Andile Mbesa
Get your popcorn ready! This year’s Festival offers a rich tapestry of visual storytelling from the industry-focused Eastern Cape Film Expo to the experimental and deeply personal narratives of the VFringe lineup.
At the centre of the NAF Film Festival programme is the third iteration of the annual Eastern Cape Film Expo, running from 2 to 4 July. Serving as an integral mechanism for the growth of the provincial film industry, where EC filmmakers get to make career-changing connections it showcases the region as a prime filmmaking destination. As a result of the collaboration between the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) and the Eastern Cape Provincial Arts and Culture Council (ECPACC), the programme includes screenings and a series of masterclasses.
The Film Expo runs at the Joza Youth Hub on 2 July. It will involve industry engagement and networking sessions with industry experts; masterclasses; screenings and is intended also to involve local communities in the film industry through outreach programmes and initiatives, as well as funding opportunities and skills development.
Among the highly anticipated films under vFringe is Thembitshe. The title is an isiZulu proverb, short for “Themba Itshe kunokuthi uthembe umuntu” which means “Rather trust a rock than trust a person, because a rock will always be where you left it”. This film promises a tale of betrayal and acceptance of the brutal fact that you can’t trust anyone in a world with self-serving beings.
Seek Body Contour is a movement-based performance infused with poetry that tells the story of trauma and healing through the lens of women of colour. Through memories stored in the body, the piece is a visual meditation on navigating surveillance and societal standards.
Described as an afro-contemporary dance film, Digital Shaman appears on vFringe. This film infuses Afroism and modern-day technology, asking questions about the place of Afroism in modern society. Do we combine the two to achieve Afrofuturism, or do we just pick one?
This year’s movie line-up celebrates South African storytelling, offering a window into the diverse and evolving landscape of contemporary filmmaking here.
