CaribbeanTales Media Group (CTMG) and the Durban FilmMart (DFM) have announced the renewal of their partnership to support the development of original, serialised television content and films created by women from Africa and the African Diaspora.
CineFAM is the CaribbeanTales programme that supports bold, original films and television series by women of colour worldwide. In the Haitian-Creole language, “Cinefam” means “films by women”.
A statement Thursday by Sharlene Versfeld and Nolwazi Magwaza for Memeza Communications said the Accelerator Incubator Programme builds capacity and creative leadership among women of colour who are traditionally under-represented in leadership roles in the film and television industry globally.
“We have invited a select group of experienced South African women producers to bring their original television series projects that are currently in development to the second edition of CineFAM – Africa to be held during DFM2018,” says CaribbeanTales CEO Frances-Anne Solomon. “We know they will enjoy CaribbeanTales’ unique two-day intensive Accelerator Program that ensures an excellent overview and close guidance on the nuts and bolts of production within the context of Canada and South Africa. They will learn how best to meet the co-production demands of these two countries with their stories, finance and marketing strategies along with enhancing pitch skills.”
“We are absolutely thrilled to embark on the second edition of our partnership with CaribbeanTales. The 2018 Accelerator Incubator Program will not only provide an exciting platform to support the development of women-led audio-visual content in Africa, it will create a space to interrogate the application of the SA/Canada Co-production Treaty with serialised content. Through this partnership, we hope to build a bridge between the two organisations that will raise the voices of African women filmmakers,” said Toni Monty, Head of Durban Film Office and DFM the co-production and finance market, which is a joint programme of the Durban Film Office (DFO) and the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), South Africa.
“We are incredibly excited to continue to build on this extraordinary initiative with the Durban Film Mart that opens the gateway of co-productions between our organizations and our two countries” says CaribbeanTales CEO Frances-Anne Solomon. “Our goal is to see the program grow from training to production within the next couple of years and to show the world what women from Africa and the African Diaspora can do within the Canada / South Africa co-production treaty.”
CineFAM – Africa, led by CaribbeanTales Vice-President Nicole Brooks, is a two-day programme that will take place during the Durban FilmMart (July 20 – 22, 2018).
This two-day Accelerator will culminate in a private Mini-Pitch to deliver and work with local and international (specifically Canadian) broadcasters and funders for consideration and feedback. The winner will qualify to participate in the renowned CaribbeanTales Incubator (CTI), in Toronto, Canada. CTI is a year-round development and production hub for Caribbean and Caribbean Diaspora Producers that aims to create strong, compelling and sustainable content for the global market. Thus, CTI will increase the pool of world-class indigenous film and television content and build the Region’s audio-visual capacity.
