Project submissions for the 2018 Durban FilmMart (DFM) which takes place during the Durban International Film Festival , South Africa (19-29 July) open on 20 October, 2017.
The Durban FilmMart is a joint project of Durban Film Office, the eThekwini Municipality’s industry development unit, and the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), which strives to support and stimulate the growth of African film and develop connections between African film makers and the rest of the world.
“With two recent Durban FilmMart projects Inxeba (The Wound) (SA) and Train of Salt and Sugar (Mozambique) having been selected as Best Foreign Language Films for the next Academy Awards, we are seeing the impact that the support of projects in development has on the industry on a global level,” enthuses Toni Monty, Head of the Durban Film Office
The Durban FilmMart, now in its 9th year, comprises an exciting four day programme of workshops, seminars, and networking sessions and is attended annually by approximately 600 film-makers, distributors, broadcasters, agents and other film industry representatives.
Over the years the DFM has supported the development of over 170 African co-production projects, many of which have been developed into fully-fledged film products with cinema and festival release.
Ten documentary and ten fiction feature length film projects will be selected from the submissions, and these projects will undergo a two-day packaging and mentoring programme followed by two days of one-on-one meetings with a panel of film financiers, buyers and distributors from across the globe.
The Durban FilmMart is open to full length feature and documentary films projects with Africans in the major creative roles (writers, directors and producers) that are looking for co-producers, financiers, sales agents and funders. All film projects submitted are reviewed by a selection committee for consideration. All projects must have both a producer and director attached to them, and must be submitted by December 12, 2017.
“As we head into our ninth year, it feels like the DFM has really matured,” says Toni Monty. “We are seeing more and more of our alumni projects being completed and doing extremely well on either the festival or cinema circuits. It is really heartening to see that the effort and energy put into this programme continues to bear great fruit for the growth of the industry on the continent. We look forward to seeing some interesting projects submitted for this edition.”
For more about the Durban FilmMart 2018, project submission criteria and how to submit your project, visit www.durbanfilmmart.com.
For further enquires contact: info@durbanfilmmart.com or call +27 31 311 4243