All articles by Andrew Worsdale
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South Africa names Tsotsi as Oscar submission
GavinHood's gritty gangster-drama Tsotsi, a double winner at the EdinburghInternational Film Festival over the weekend, has been named as South Africa'sofficial entry into the foreign language category of the 78thAcademy Awards.The South African selection committee wasconvened by the National Film and Video Foundation and the country'sIndependent Producer's Organisation. It was ...
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South African 'City Of God' lobbies for Oscar nod
The race to become the film submitted by South Africa to the2006 Academy Awards kicked off this week with a high profile function for GavinHood's film Tsotsi.The makers of the film lobbied senior government and filmindustry executives at a function at Johannesburg's upmarket Melrose Arch Hotel.Hood's film, which is in ...
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South African film incentives in disarray say producers
SouthAfrican producers have accused the country's Department of Trade and Industry(DTI) of reneging on a pledge of $38m (R250m) to support the South African filmindustry. The country's Independent ProducersOrganisation (IPO) has written to the DTI's acting director general TsidisoMatona complaining that the motion picture rebate scheme "launched with muchfanfare" last ...
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Cinema ticket price war erupts in South Africa
A full blown cinema ticket price warhas broken out in South Africa.Nu Metro, one of the country'sleading exhibitors, has slashed its tickets to just $2 (R12) from $5.75 (R35).Themove follows last week's decision by South Africa's biggestexhibitor, Ster Kinekor, to cut its prices to $2.3(R14) at the majority of its ...
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S. Africa admissions to surge as exhibitor slashes prices
South Africa's largest exhibitor Ster-Kinekorhas slashed the price of its cinema tickets in a move that is expected to leadto a surge in admissions in the country.Ster Kinekor said that movie tickets will cost just$2.3 (R14) at the majority of its cinemas nationwide from this Friday - downfrom $5.75m (R35). ...
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South Africa, US address piracy threat
The question oframpant DVD piracy was brought up in South Africa's parliament on Monday. TradeMinister Mandisi Mpahlwa reported that police and customs officials betweenJanuary and July this year seized over 286,000 pirated DVDs - double the numberseized throughout the whole of 2003.Mpahlwa said thataccording to research done by Ster Kinekor ...
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Oh Schuks, The Passion create S.A. BO bonanza
South African cinemagoers were out in force this past weekend to check out two major icons - and the result was a combined box-office bonanza.Mel Gibson's The Passion Of The Christ had an opening weekend of $600,000 (R3,758,025) (including premieres), on 35 prints representing a print average of $16,000 (R102,229), ...
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Ster-Kinekor targets black audiences for South African growth
South African broadcasting and cinema group Primedia, owners of distributor/exhibitor Ster-Kinekor has announced improved figures with revenue up 15.1% to $135m (R898.6m) and pre-tax profit growing 39% to $20m.The film division lifted revenue 5.6% to $13.6m thanks to a higher contribution from Ster-Kinekor Home Entertainment.But overall operating profits were down ...
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...as Cape Town studio drafts in Hollywood designer
Scott Carter, whodesigned the Disney sound stages in the US, has been chosen to designDreamworld, Cape Town's film studio complex."We went toHollywood and got the best man we could find," says Mike MacCarthy, oneof the directors of the DreamWorld consortium along with producer Anant Singhwho is chairman of the group.Carter ...
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Ster-Kinekor embraces digital future
South Africa's Ster-Kinekor has revealed that it is to roll out digital high definition (HD) film servers at five cinemas nationwide over the next few months. This is the first time in South African film history that full-length mainstream features will be screened in digital HD format.Three cinemas in Johannesburg ...
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... while Nelson Mandela is invited to open Cannes
South Africa's Department of Arts and Culture and National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is preparing for a very special Cannes Film Festival this year - after enjoying successful profiles at both Rotterdam and Berlin.This year's Cannes will feature a special focus on South Africa, celebrating its ten years of ...
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South Africa launches anti-piracy campaign
South Africa's major entertainment company, Johnnic communications unveiled a multi-million rand public education campaign to combat piracy over the festive season which is beginning to see results.In this past week alone a consignment of over 13,300 pirated DVDS was intercepted at customs at Johannesburg International Airport. Advertisements in the campaign ...
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Hotel Rwanda checks in for South African shoot
United Artists' thriller Hotel Rwanda, directed by Terry George, began shooting in Johannesburg on Monday (Jan 12).Based on true events, the film is set in Kigali during Rwanda's genocidal civil war and tells the story of hotelier Paul Rusesabagina who saved the lives of thousands of helpless Rwandans.Don Cheadle plays ...
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Cape Town hosts Long Supper
The streets of London's South Kensington are being recreated in South Africa's Cape Town, which is hosting the shoot of the $2m The Long Supper. The dark comedy stars South African born Henry Goodman, the acclaimed British stage star who has just completed a run of Richard III for the ...
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Ster-Kinekor embarks on African exhibition push
Ster-Kinekor Theatres, South Africa's largest cinema exhibitor, will open an 800 seat, 5-cinema complex in Zambia on Dec 12 - part of drive to expand its presence throughout Africa.Located at the recently opened Arcades Entertainment and Leisure complex in Lusaka, it is the first world-class multiplex in the country. All ...
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South Africa unveils US, European alliances at Sithengi
A string of international alliances between Southern Africa, Europe and Hollywood were unveiled at this year's Sithengi in Cape Town (13-16 Nov).The major event of the TV and film market was the signing of a co-production treaty between Italy and South Africa. It is the country's second treaty with a ...
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Cosmic Africa scoops top South African award
Feature length documentary Cosmic Africa won the best film prize at South Africa's National Television and Video Association (NTVA) annual Stone Awards this week.Aland Pictures' documentary - which is currently on theatrical release - also won seven other awards at the ceremony, including best direction, cinematography and art direction.The film ...
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Cosmic Africa wins top South African award
Feature length documentary Cosmic Africa won the best film prize at South Africa's National Television and Video Association (NTVA) annual Stone Awards this week.Aland Pictures' documentary - which is currently on theatrical release - also won seven other awards at the ceremony, including best direction, cinematography and art direction.The film ...
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Stander's South African debut disappoints
Bronwen Hughes's Stander had a disappointing world premiere in South Africa over the weekend for distributor Nu Metro. The $15m film, starring Thomas Jane and Deborah Unger, is one of the first South African-content films that is neither driven by politics nor candid-camera type farce. It is based on the ...
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Grant mucks in on African Farm
Richard E. Grant, who was born in Swaziland and spent his early years in South Africa, has finally returned home to star in the $2m production of The Story Of An African Farm.The film is currently shooting for six weeks in South Africa's dry and barren semi-desert Karoo 300kms north ...