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I heart market makes welcome return to Moses Mabhida Stadium 27 Nov 2021

I heart market makes a welcome return to Moses Mabhida Stadium on 27 November

 

Finally, as the world begins to slowly open up, the much-loved I heart Market makes a welcome return to the lawns outside the Moses Mabhida Stadium to begin trading on Saturday 27 November.

 

“After 20 months of pandemic realness, we are so happy to announce that the I heart Market, which provides trading opportunities for 80 small businesses, is returning for festive season,” says Anna Savage, owner of the market. ”And we are delighted to be back on the lawns of the Stadium, a popular and convenient central spot for all.”

 

“I heart Market is all about supporting small local businesses and so you will never find any imports or mass manufactured products,” enthuses Anna. “We pride ourselves in finding interesting and exciting products produced by our local creative community. So expect to find old favourites – from homemade pastries, local cheeses and olives, locally designed and produced clothing, home furnishings, accessories,  unique silver jewellery, and some exciting new additions, with loads of Festive Season inspirations,  and so much more. All made with love. We are so looking forward to welcoming our loyal traders and customers back.”

 

The festive markets begin on 27 November and take place on 4 and 11 December, and 8 January from 08:30 to 14:00. Entrance if free and dogs (on leashes) are welcome. There is secure underground parking at the Stadium.  COVID protocols will be observed.

 

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Action in Autism Market Day – Saturday 20 November 2021

 

Media release

Action in Autism Market Day – Saturday 20 November 2021

                   

Action in Autism will host a Summer Market at the Action in Autism Centre in Park Hill, Durban North on Saturday, 20 November from 9am – 2pm.  

 

The students of Action in Autism’s skills transfer and business hub, have been hard at work preparing for the market.   This project not only provides a focus for their learning and studies in the areas of administration, consumer and business studies, gardening, food production and craft, but also serve as a fundraiser for the organisation.  “Market Day means to show other people outside the Action in Autism Centre what we can accomplish when we work together as a team, and not just as individuals,” says Michelle Edmonds, a 22 year old autistic student. Her fellow student, Bruce Baloyi, interjects to ensure those attending know that the Market runs from 9am to 2pm.

 

The Market Day is a bi-annual event at which the Shahumna students showcase their work and products created in the Business Hub and is the practical component of their Business Studies curriculum. In addition, the Market serves as an event for networking and connection not only for Autistic people and their families, but also for the neighbourhood and surrounding community, as well as local business. “Market Day highlights the capabilities, talents and is a culmination of our students’ accomplishments throughout the year,” says Ashvir Dalu, manager of the Shahumna Centre. “It is also a time that we all get to relax and have fun in an embracing environment.” The intention for the Market is to create a day of family togetherness that is inclusive and welcoming of autistic people and the broader community, that will bring in much-needed funds and resources for Action in Autism, says Centre Director, Kirsten Miller. 

The Shahumna skills and business hub is just one of Action in Autism’s many projects. The organisation’s other flagship projects are its Early Intervention Centre that provides early intervention and therapy to those children whose families cannot afford the high cost of private services, and the Assessment and Therapy Wing, that provides assessment and therapy services. Emma Hunt, a Park Hill resident and a student at the Shahumna Centre, speaks of the Market as a wonderful opportunity for autistic people to interact with people both on the spectrum and outside of the spectrum. “We can all have fun together in one space instead of separating ourselves from each other,” says Emma.

Emma Hunt and Thabiso Ndlovu.j

 

Visitors to the market can expect to find baked goods and teas prepared by the students of the Business Skills Centre, a range of quality gelato flavours from The Italian Corner, pre-loved clothing, plants, a jumping castle, games and kiddies’ treats. Action in Autism extends a welcome to the surrounding communities to enjoy a day out with Autistic people, and to browse, have a cup of coffee and purchase one or two Christmas presents.   The organisation is using this as an opportunity to showcase its services and to create partnerships with individuals and organisations who would support the organisation and the programmes offered. 

 

Action in Autism welcomes any sponsorship/donation for the Market Day.  Action in Autism is a registered Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) with an 18A Tax Exemption status. This means that a donation to Action in Autism is tax deductible (Tax Act 58 of 1962). If you would like to attend the Market, or to make a donation, to book a table to trade, support a child at the centre, or for more information about the services offered by the organisation, please call 031 563 3039, email info@actioninautism.org.za, or visit the website at www.actioninautism.org.za

 

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Cover photo Kaveer Lutchman, Malita Mandlate and Bruce Baloyi



Action in Autism Fundraiser - award-winning film The Reason I Jump

 

Action in Autism:

Fundraiser Film: The Reason I Jump - Cinema 3, Gateway, Umhlanga

Sunday 21 November, 16h45

 

Action in Autism will host a special screening of the award-winning film The Reason I Jump based on the book by Japanese Naoki Higashida, who is Autistic, and was thirteen at the time of writing. This will be a fundraiser for the organisation which supports Autistic people and their families through the provision of services and resources, on Sunday 21 November at 16h45 Cinema 3, Gateway, Umhlanga.

 

Through his writing Higashida maps the experiences of being Autistic and translates these experiences for a neurotypical readership – the hyper-focus, the destabilisation, the social difficulties as well as the unique joys and benefits of thinking in a way that is neurologically a-typical. The internationally celebrated book was first published in Japanese in 2007 and later translated into English, the process supported and publically endorsed by the renowned novelist David Mitchell, who has an Autistic son.

 

The cinematic version of The Reason I Jump, created by film-maker Jerry Rothwell, won  the Audience Award: World Cinema Documentary at Sundance in 2020.  It is brought to Durban through an exciting partnership between Videovision Entertainment and Action in Autism. The screening of this powerful documentary aims to raise much-needed funds for Action in Autism’s two flagship projects, the Early Intervention and Therapy Centre, and the Shahumna Centre, a skills transference and business hub for adults with Autism and related neurological conditions. “The intention of The Reason I Jump, as both a book and a film,” writes Adrian Horton in The Guardian in a review from 9 January, “is explicitly didactic, a missive to explain one person’s neuro-divergent experience and broader call to expand one’s imagination of human cognition.”

 

Action in Autism’s vision is for Autistic people and all people with disabilities to be accepted, respected and valued as members of the community. “This fundraiser speaks to who we are,” says Liza Aziz, Action in Autism’s Chairperson and the parent of an adult Autistic son. “It empowers and teaches people about a world of which they know very little.” Videovision Entertainment has supported the organisation since its inception in 2005, and continues to work as one of the partners that ensures opportunity for Autistic people through events such as this screening.”

 

“In the film Rothwell examines the lives of five young people who live with Autism spectrum disorder, and is a perfect tool to educate people on Autism, so we are delighted to continue our association with Action in Autism since its founding, and to support the exemplary work done by Liza Aziz and the Action in Autism team,” said Sanjeev Singh, Videovision Entertainment’s Director of Distribution and Acquisition.

 

Tickets are  R120 and can be booked by calling 031 563 3039 or emailing info@actioninautism.org.za.

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Snakes in the City Team Encounters Intriguing World of Snake Mating and Fighting Rituals

Snakes in the City Team Encounters Intriguing World of Snake Mating and Fighting Rituals 

Simon Keys and Siouxsie Gillett - stars of Snakes in the City - the internationally acclaimed National Geographic Wild series, are feeling “lucky”. Not the same way an average person would feel lucky. But lucky nevertheless. And the reason? They arrived a month earlier than usual in Durban to film the next season, which means they are here for snake mating season, and along with that, the intriguing rituals and fighting associated with it. 

Snakes in the City TV star Siouxsie Gillett at a recent capture, with 3 entwined male Spotted Bush Snakes that were fighting to mate with a female that escaped.

“Usually we begin in October/November when the weather has warmed up and snakes are more active, which is post-mating season. Now, because we are here earlier, we are coming across some rather amazing sights,” explains Siouxsie Gillett, a qualified herpetologist. “This is a time of the year that you are likely to see more than one snake together – as they are usually solitary creatures. Often people see two or more snakes together and think it may be snakes mating – but it is more than likely two males fighting for dominance.”

“The world of snake mating and reproduction is quite a fascinating one,” says Simon Keys. “For example, female snakes produce a strong scent to attract males, leaving a scent trail so males can find her. And during the mating season could attract a whole mass of snakes who have followed her scent, who all end up fighting for her. Quite a scary sight for an untrained eye!”

“Intriguing too, is that the male snake has spent the winter in hibernation not eating, and is hungry, but would rather mate at this point than find food!” says Siouxsie. “Surprisingly, some species like our famous Black Mamba will combat in a non-violent way for the female, by attempting to dominate the other male by almost entwining around, and laying on top of the other male, often misunderstood as two snakes mating.”

“Most female snakes lay their eggs and leave them. Some snakes (pythons - including the Rock Python - and King Cobras) incubate their eggs, and King Cobras even build a nest for them! Some even give birth to live young like Adders.

“So now’s the time to watch out for the fighting and mating, and soon for the babies to be out and about. And we are happy to come help out to remove them and place them in a safe natural environment.”

Simon and Siouxsie are available to capture and relocate snakes free of charge whilst filming the series. All filming is done using strict SA Government CoViD-19 guidelines and regulations. The caller, with permission and depending on the conditions of the call-out, may end up in the TV series

The Snakes in the City hotline for snake removals is 063 234 6932.

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New Transcontinental Expedition for Kingsley Holgate Team

New Transcontinental Expedition for Kingsley Holgate Team

With international travel restrictions easing after 20 months of Covid-19 lockdown, South Africa’s renowned Kingsley Holgate exploration team have revealed the launch date for their new, year-long transcontinental expedition.

 

Called the Defender Transcontinental Expedition and departing on 27 October from Cape Agulhas, it promises to be one of their most challenging geographic and humanitarian journeys to date: a 30,000-kilometre expedition through 30 countries from the southern tip of the African continent to the most northern point of Europe and then on to the mystical Isle of Anglesey in Wales.

 

“All adventurers will agree, it’s time to move again,” said well-known explorer and author Kingsley Holgate, who, with his experienced team, has already completed 39 gruelling expeditions to every country on the African continent and beyond, many of them world-firsts.

 

“This expedition has been almost two years in the making and significantly, it will be our 40th since 1992. In April last year, after months of preparation, we were about to set off on a humanitarian ‘journey of purpose’ from the UK to South Africa as part of the global launch of Land Rover’s new Defender. But then, along came Covid-19 and put all those plans on hold. 

 

“So, optimistically, we decided to turn things around and add even more adventure to the route. This expedition will be the first Hot Cape to Cold Cape journey in recent years from South Africa’s Cape Agulhas to Norway’s Nordkapp in the Arctic Circle, which is the most northern point of Europe that can be reached by vehicle. It will certainly be a world-first for the new Land Rover Defender. 

 

“That’s just one goal. All our expeditions have the principle of ‘saving and improving lives through adventure’, so we’re keeping the journey-of-purpose theme and right from the start, will conduct humanitarian work to assist 300,000 people in sub-Saharan Africa. To offset the expedition’s carbon footprint and help combat climate change, the journey will also be linked to the establishment of spekboom thickets and tree planting along the route.”

 

From Egypt, the expedition will cross the Mediterranean to Greece and tackle demanding terrain on its northerly journey through Eastern Europe, Russia, Finland and Norway to reach Nordkapp. 

 

The route then turns south through Sweden, Denmark and Western Europe, before finally crossing the Channel into the UK and ending on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales, where human occupation dates to the time of the Druids, and where the first Land Rover design was sketched in the sands of Red Wharf Bay by engineer Maurice Wilks in 1947.

 

The core Holgate team will be using two expedition-kitted P400 Defenders for the entire journey, with other crew members joining along the way in their own vehicles. The two Defenders are already well-travelled, having completed the Holgate’s 80-day, 16,000-kilometre Mzansi Edge Expedition last year that tracked the entire outline of South Africa, delivering humanitarian aid to remote communities during the height of South Africa’s lockdown.

 

“We’re not setting out to break speed records on the Hot Cape to Cold Cape section of the journey, so it’s not going to be a straight-line dash,” explained expedition leader Ross Holgate. “We’re going to seek out demanding driving conditions and tough 4x4 routes to reach iconic geographic points of interest and really put the 21st century technical capabilities of the new Defenders through their paces. 

 

“There are going to be some extreme challenges. The route through central and east Africa will be at the height of the ‘big rains’, so we’re expecting very wet and muddy conditions for days on end. Crossing the dry and hot Sahel and Nubian Desert through the Sudan and into Egypt will also be very testing for both man and machine. There are also geopolitical issues to face, especially in Ethiopia and the Sudan. And then, there is the route through eastern Europe to Norway; that’s going to be an all new, incredibly diverse and stimulating experience for our Africa-based expedition team, whose last transcontinental journey was from Cape Town to Kathmandu in 2018.

 

“Yes, it’s not an ideal time to travel across the globe but with the entire expedition team now fully vaccinated, we have to do it to get out from under the Covid-19 cloud. So many people in Africa are in desperate need of humanitarian relief and many others are craving a good, old-fashioned Land Rover adventure story after so many months of travel restrictions.”

 

African symbolism remains a key focus of this latest Holgate expedition. As always, their well-travelled traditional Zulu calabash has prime spot in the Defenders and will collect seawater from where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet at Cape Agulhas, the expedition’s mid-point at Alexandria in Egypt on the Mediterranean, and the Norwegian and Barents Seas at Nordkapp. It will be symbolically emptied into the Irish Sea at the expedition’s endpoint at Red Wharf Bay in Anglesey, Wales.

Four iconic ‘isivivanes’ (stone cairns) will be built at key points along the expedition route: Cape Agulhas, Alexandria, Nordkapp and Anglesey. 

The expedition will also be carrying a new Scroll of Peace and Goodwill from the southern point of Africa to the northern point of Europe and on to the United Kingdom, which will collect hundreds of messages of support from citizens of 30 countries for a new and more hope-filled post-Covid world.

Follow the expedition on Facebook : KingsleyHolgateFoundation

  

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Durban Link for European Film Festival - Fernando Pessoa, celebrated Portuguese Poet

Local Durban link to Portuguese film at European Film Festiva

One of the films showing at the 8th European Film Festival,  which is online and free between 14 and 24 October, is the Portuguese film The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis – which has an interesting connection to Durban

It’s a beautifully shot black and white film, based on the novel by Jose Saramago, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1998. The character - Ricardo Reis -  is a persona created by Fernando Pessoa, and Pessoa's ghost is a central part of the film.  Fernando Pessoa was one of the greatest of Portuguese poets and is, not everybody knows, an alumni of Durban High School – there is a bust of Pessoa in the Durban CBD.

Film Synopsis for The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis

Fernando Pessoa, one of the greatest writers of the Portuguese language, established a gigantic parallel universe creating a series of heteronyms to survive his loneliness of genius. Nobel laureate of literature José Saramago wrote this novel about one of these heteronymous characters, Ricardo Reis, a fictitious author, with unique personality and style, who returns to Portugal, after 16 years of exile in Brazil. 1936 is the year of all danger, Mussolini's fascism, Hitler's Nazism, the terrible Spanish civil war and Salazar's Estado Novo in Portugal, but this is all a delicate backcloth to Ricardo's dalliances with women and his mysterious encounters with the ghost of Fernando Pessoa.

"The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis is a unique and magnificent work by José Saramago, but if there is another way of telling this novel, equally unique and magnificent, it is this film unravelling by veteran director João Botelho.Botelho's screenplay and direction is crucially supported by João Ribeiro's beautiful black and white cinematography, fostering a unique aesthetic-narrative construction for the telling of this story.’ . Carolina Alves, C7nema

Reviews

In a perfect filmology of sensations, the small gestures, looks, intimate close shots, tell us of memories, thoughts, and secrets in a visually poetic manner that is transcendent of text or dialogue. Carolina Alves, C7nema

Botelho films exquisitely between light and shadow, with a visual richness reminiscent of the best of French impressionism and a tempo that sways the senses.  Seville Festival

This film adaptation treats characters and circumstances with a solemnity reverent to the Nobel prize-winners book, enveloping the celebration of the word with a framework that is close to meta-language. Marcello Muller, Papo de Cinema

Visit www.eurofilmfest.co.za for more on the free online festival of 18 new films and to access the screenings.

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National Geographic Wild’s Snakes in the City starts filming next season in Durban

It’s heating up and the rains are here... which means snakes are waking up from their winter slumber and are hungrily heading out to forage for food. No need to panic though. Snakes in the City stars, Simon Keys and Siouxsie Gillett are back in Durban and all set to respond to calls to rescue, remove and relocate snakes as they film the next season of National Geographic Wild’s internationally acclaimed reality series.

 

After ten months back in the UK, where the couple are based, Simon and Siouxsie are ready to get cracking on this season’s filming. “We love being in South Africa, and with our passion for snakes and reptiles, it is always a delight to be out and about helping to rescue and relocate them. Every day presents us with new adventures and challenges as we go about doing what we love and landing up in some unbelievably strange positions and in unlikely places to find our slithery friends. Most of all we love educating people and changing their attitudes about snakes, showing that they play an important role in the environment. We hope we are saving the reptile population one snake at a time,” they say.

Siouxsie Gillett loves being in SA to film Snakes in the City

Siouxsie Gillett loves being in SA to film Snakes in the City

 

Snakes in the City continues to grow in popularity and we are thrilled that it has such a wide global reach. The diversity of the snake population, harmless, venomous and everything in between, along with the wide variety of locations in Durban, and  Simon and Siouxsie’s quirky, passionate and dedicated approach makes for compelling viewing,” says Graeme Duane, Creative Director: Earth Touch, the Umhlanga-based production house that produces the series. 

Simon Keyes ready for action and back in Durban to film the next season of Snakes in the City

Simon Keyes ready for action and back in Durban to film the next season of Snakes in the City

 

The dynamic team is available to capture and remove snakes from properties in and around the greater Durban area, north to Tongaat, south to Illovo Beach, and inland to Botha’s Hill, subject to availability. The season will be filmed within strict South African government specified Covid-19 guidelines and regulations. There is no charge for a call-out, and the caller, with permission and depending on the conditions of the call-out, may end up on the television series.

 

If you spot a snake in your home, workplace or neighbourhood, call the Snakes in the City hotline on 063 234 6932.

 

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EbonyLife and Sony Pictures Television announce ÀLÓ, a brand-new African writers initiative

EBONYLIFE AND SONY PICTURES TELEVISION ANNOUNCE ÀLÓ – A NEW AFRICAN WRITERS INITIATIVE

EbonyLife and Sony Pictures Television (“SPT”) have announced ÀLÓ, a brand-new writers initiative offering a unique platform for writers of African heritage.

The word “ÀLÓ” is from the Yoruba language and translates as ‘once upon a time’. Just like with those words which have opened countless stories for hundreds of years, this is the beginning of an exciting journey to discover the best authentic African story ideas which will inspire and resonate with viewers across the globe.

The ÀLÓ Initiative website will open for fixed periods beginning this Friday (24th) when writers can submit their television scripts and story documents, which will then be reviewed and shortlisted by the ÀLÓ team which is comprised of creative executives from both EbonyLife and SPT. 

Entrants can reside outside Africa but must be of African heritage, born in any of the continent’s fifty-four countries or have proven citizenship as a native of the country, or be first generation children. The initiative is open to professionals, freelancers as well as up-and-coming writers, and there are no limitations to the story ideas or scripts. Any theme or story is welcome, but submissions must pay homage to Africa’s unique cultures, diversity, heritage and people.

Successful candidates will have the opportunity to enter into a series pilot development agreement with SPT and EbonyLife under the ÀLÓ Initiative to create and write a pilot script. Once completed, the projects will be pitched to major international broadcasters for their consideration. 

Mo Abudu, Chief Executive Officer, EbonyLife Media, says, "I am really excited about our growing partnership with Sony Pictures Television; from our deal for three scripted series, to our first-look agreement, and now the ÀLÓ Writers’ Initiative. The name of this initiative inspires me, as we chose a word which holds so much personal meaning for me. I am particularly thrilled about the Writers’ Initiative because it is in line with our continent-wide vision to harness and grow our creative economy. It is focused on global storytelling that is authentically African and that gives African writers access to the biggest international broadcasters in the world.  It is a dream come true for me.”

Nina Lederman, EVP Global Scripted Development for Sony Pictures Television, says “The ÀLÓ initiative is born out of SPT and EbonyLife’s shared passion for great storytelling. We know from our many, many conversations developing this initiative with Mo and her team at EbonyLife that there are countless stories from across the African continent yet to be told. We hope that this provides a unique platform to writers of African heritage with a story they want to bring to the world."

The ÀLÓ Initiative will first open for submissions between September 24th and November 5th 2021, with a further six-week period to be confirmed at a later date. Internationally, the initiative it is open to submissions from the US, Canada, the UK and EU, Australia and New Zealand, and Africa. It hopes to expand to include further regions for future submission periods. 

Full terms and conditions and eligibility criteria can be found on the ÀLÓ Initiative website here https://www.alowritersinitiative.com

 

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About EbonyLife Media

EbonyLife Media, headed by CEO Mo Abudu, is Nigeria’s premium media conglomerate comprising EbonyLife TV, EbonyLife Films, EbonyLife Studios, EbonyLife Creative Academy and EbonyLife Place (a luxury entertainment resort). EbonyLife Media believes in creating original and inspiring content that showcases a pioneering and progressive Africa. The content is strongly rooted in Africa and connected to a global audience, through a shared identity and common values. EbonyLife Media’s vision is to be the most influential storyteller of a new Africa.

 

About Sony Pictures Television

Sony Pictures Television (SPT) is one of the television industry’s leading content providers, producing, distributing and carrying programming worldwide in every genre and for every platform. In addition to managing one of the industry’s largest libraries of award-winning feature films, television shows and formats, SPT is home to a thriving global content business, operating a robust portfolio of wholly-owned and joint-venture production companies across the U.S., Europe, Latin America, and Asia Pacific, as well as linear and digital channels around the world. SPT is a Sony Pictures Entertainment Company, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Group Corporation.

 

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European Film Festival 2021: virtual and free of charge


Media Release

European Film Festival 2021: virtual and free of charge

Following the success of last year’s virtual European Film Festival, the 2021 edition will take place predominantly online from 14 to 24 October. 

A selection of 18 films from Europe, 13 of which have been directed by women, will be screened free of charge, providing a window onto what is fresh and new in the film industries of the respective countries. Four new participants – the Czech Republic, Denmark, Switzerland and Ukraine – will complement those from last year: Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, along with the return of Portugal.

 This is reflected in the theme of this year’s festival, Healing Journeys.  Healing – be it mental, physical, spiritual or societal – is vital to the human condition, to our humanity, to our existence.  This applies in both South Africa and in Europe, where despite our different contexts and histories, there exists common experience and a mutual need for healing.

 The films on show will present, through the lenses of European filmmakers, a snapshot of experiences of re-establishing oneself after sometimes traumatic and possibly cathartic experiences. They deal with journeys that include organic growth, transition, and processes of self-discovery.  Many include a healthy dose of humour, bringing some possibly much-needed laughter into our lives. Much of the humour is of a more cerebral nature … films that make you smile and think at the same time. 

Essentially, these films present stories of hope, humanity and thought-provoking intrigue, show-casing new work by some of Europe’s most accomplished filmmakers alongside exciting new talent. 

We are deep into our second year of confronting the threat of Covid-19, both in terms of our lives and our livelihoods. It has been difficult … everyone is affected. This year’s European Film Festival has been inspired by overcoming difficulty and challenge. Its theme, Healing Journeys, seems rather appropriate for our times. I take this opportunity to invite you – irrespective of whether you are a repeat or a first-time viewer –to join us on this year’s exciting cinematic, and healing, journey,” says   EU Ambassador Riina Kionka.

 

The Films:

Here is a brief look at the 2021 line-up of films, nearly all of which have won awards, with the newer films also certain to do so. 

Austria

A woman needs a new kidney, but is her husband ready to donate?   Michael Kreihsl’s Risks and Side Events is a lively comedy about marriage, hypochondria, friends, architects, secrets, and taking risks.  

Belgium

Jan Verheyen and Lien Willaert’s film Save Sandra is based on the true and highly topical story of a girl diagnosed with a rare muscular disease, and her father’s fierce battle with the pharmaceutical industry to gain access to medical treatment, raising ethical and societal questions in the process.

Czech Republic

Agnieszka Holland’s politically charged drama Charlatan takes us inside the conflicted life of a non-conformist herbalist, exploring his unshakeable commitment to his calling, the illicit relationship with his assistant, as he perseveres first under Nazi then Communist regimes in Czechoslovakia.

Denmark

The 2021 Oscar for Best International Feature Film went to Thomas Vinterberg’s Another Round, in which four jaded high school teachers embark on a risky experiment to maintain a constant level of intoxication throughout the workday. Mads Mikkelsen is at his scintillating best in this mature blend of comedy, tragedy, and human behaviour. 

France

Starring Gérard Depardieu and Déborah Lukumuena, Robust is an outstanding feature debut by Constance Meyer about an aging film star and a young security guard responsible for watching over him.  Despite their differences, life has shaped them in ways more similar than they thought, and their unlikely friendship becomes a search for authenticity, laden with intrigue and humour. 

Germany

In Mr Bachmann and His Class the ever-patient teacher uses unconventional methods to inspire his young citizens-in-the-making with a sense of curiosity and appreciation of the complex social and cultural realities of their worlds.  Maria Speth’s life-affirming documentary beautifully highlights what a quietly spectacular process education can be.  

Ireland

Ruth Meehan’s The Bright Side is a moving and uplifting story about a stand-up comedian diagnosed with breast cancer.  Armed with cynicism and blackly comic jokes, her exit strategies are upended when she encounters four powerful women whose unsolicited friendships challenge her, soften her and ultimately blow open her shut-down heart.

Italy

On the face of it, the brightly paced comedy Parents vs Influencers, directed by Michela Andreozzi, seems to focus on the world of social media and influencers, but the heart of it is about change and resistance to change. And father-daughter relationships!  And family!

Lithuania

A high-seas jump from a Soviet ship to a US vessel in an attempt for political asylum goes horribly wrong.  About an ordinary man who became a symbol for freedom-seeking refugees everywhere, director Giedrė Žickytė’s The Jump takes us on a stranger-than-fiction journey that reaches all the way up to the White House.  

The Netherlands

Antoinette Beumer’s My Father is an Airplane is about a woman’s poignant search for the puzzle pieces of her past, a journey that raises questions about parental boundaries, the risks and dangers of childhood as well its joys, and of what it means to be loved and understood.  

Poland

Never Gonna Snow Again is writer/ director Malgorzata Szumowska’s exquisitely off-beat story about how a masseur and hypnotist gains acceptance and stature in a wealthy gated community, touching on class, immigration, and global warming. 

Portugal

With magnificent black and white cinematography, João Botelho’s The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis brings to screen José Saramago’s novel about a fictitious author’s homecoming, his romantic dalliances, and his mysterious encounters with the ghost of Fernando Pessoa.  

Spain

Icíar Bollaín’s gem of a romantic comedy Rosa’s Wedding concerns a woman making radical changes in her life, and this includes a surprise wedding, much to the dismay of her family. A film about self-empowerment and gaining independence.

Sweden

Run Uje Run is an biographical music dramedy about the way life takes turns you could never have imagined.  Henrik Schyffert’s directorial debut features musician and actor Uje Brandelius playing himself in this unusual and darkly witty indie drama about appreciating what you have.

Switzerland

Writer-director duo Stéphanie Chuat and Véronique Reymond’s, My Little Sister is an intimate, personal tale about sibling love in which a sister gives her all to support her ailing twin brother, and inspires herself at the same time. A powerful look at the bonds both breakable and unbreakable in family. 

Ukraine

Kateryna Gornostai’s Stop-Zemlia anchors its open-ended narrative around an introverted schoolgirl and her classmates in this sympathetic portrait of the tidal forces of teenage-hood. A deeply personal story about self-discovery and the patience it requires.  

United Kingdom

In Aleem Khan’s ground-breaking feature debut After Love, Joanna Scanlan puts in a phenomenal performance as a white, English Muslim convert uncovering secrets after the death of her husband, while exploring complex themes of loss, cultural identity and reconciliation. 

Special Co-Production Presentation 

Oscar nominee Jasmila Žbanić’s  Quo Vadis Aida? is an extraordinary co-production between nine European countriesin which a UN translator is caught between doing her job and trying to help local inhabitants and her own family when the Serbian army takes over the small town of Srebrenica.  

Please note that the films are geo-blocked for viewing in South Africa only.  For film synopses, trailers and how to watch, please visit www.eurofilmfest.co.za

The European Film Festival 2021 is a partnership project of the Delegation of the European Union to South Africa and 17 European embassies and cultural agencies in South Africa:  the Embassies of Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, and the British Council, Camoes Institute of Portugal, Diplomatic Representation of Flanders, French Institute in South Africa, Goethe-Institut, and Italian Cultural Institut. The festival is organised in cooperation with Cineuropa and coordinated by Creative WorkZone.

 

India-based Dance Company for JOMBA!

Media Release

JOMBA! Collaborates with India-based The Pickle Dance Foundation

Calcutta-based dance organisation, the Pickle Factory Dance Foundation, will showcase eight especially curated short dance films at this year’s online JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience, which takes place online from 24 August to 5 September.

The Pickle Factory makes up the Indian Crossings Platform of the programme and come to JOMBA! thanks to support from the Durban Indian Consulate’s Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre. These films, express an evocative interpretation of the festival’s theme ‘border crossings’, and speak to the zeitgeist of contemporary Indian dance making and its relationship to film and screen.

Their programme titled I m / Material curated, especially for JOMBA! 2021 presents a series of dialogues between the mediums of dance and cinema created by artists from / in India. The dancers and filmmakers negotiate various material and embodied spaces through movement, opening up tensions and textures between natural and man-made environments, elements and expectations. The relationships between the dancing body, the camera and the surrounding contexts are diverse, fluid, and complex - reflective of a country, like India, where socio-cultural borders are never static, and traditional and contemporary sensibilities often occupy the same time/space.

The work has been co-curated for JOMBA! by Vikram Iyengar and Kunal Chakraborty. Iyengar is the Founder and Director of Pickle Factory Dance Foundation and is an arts leader and connector based in Calcutta, India and working internationally. He is a dancer-choreographer-director, curator-presenter, and arts researcher-writer. Chakraborty is a filmmaker who is closely associated with People’s Film Collective, a cultural and socio-political group in Calcutta in various capacities ranging from organizing international film festivals to screening films for children amongst other organisational activities. He is currently the Project Manager for Pickle Factory Dance Foundation.

Dance films include works and collaborations from Lubdhak Chatterjee, Dr Pompi Paul, Hediyeh Azma, Sumedha Bhattacharyya, Preethi Athreya, Sharan Devkar Shankar, Gia Singh Arora and Mukta Nagpal, Bimbavati Devi, Kankana Singh, Suman Sarkar, Souvik Banerjee, Thiyam Maurice, Niharika Senapati, Pippa Samaya, Nikita Maheshwary, Frédéric Lombard and Surjit Nongmeikapam.

Subscribe to the JOMBA! Youtube channel and watch The Pickle Factory films free and online on 4 September at 7pm: https://www.youtube.com/Jomba_Dance

 

For more information and for the full programme go to: https://jomba.ukzn.ac.za/

 

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23rd JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience - online, free and available globally

Media Release

The Centre for Creative Arts, University of KwaZulu-Natal presents, 

23rd JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience

24 August to 5 September 2021

Access to on-line viewing is free.

Subscribe to the JOMBA Youtube channel here:

https://www.youtube.com/Jomba_Dance

 

The Centre for Creative Arts (UKZN) presents its landmark 23rd JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience in its second digital edition from 24 August to 5 September.

 

“The festival takes Border Crossings as its theme which looks at dance-makers, dance companies and performance-based artists who, in some articulated way resonate with the ideas of Border Crossings; be these geographical, emotional, physical, spiritual and performative” explains Artistic Director Dr Lliane Loots. “We are proud to host a digital space that nurtures and supports a serious artistic engagement with South African, African and international contemporary dance and dance makers.”

 

There are 11 platforms at this year’s festival:

 

Associate Professor and director of the Institute for Creative Arts at the University of Cape Town Jay Pather features as the 2021 JOMBA! Legacy Artist and will open this year’s festival on 24 August.

 

To complement this, Durban photographer Val Adamson offers a digital photographic retrospective exhibition of his work with Siwela Sonke featuring over 100 photos.

 

The South African Crossings platform features two key South African dance makers/companies -The Garage Dance Ensemble present Gat innie Grond, Wond in My Siel (Hole in the Ground, Wound in my Soul) choreographed by the remarkable young dance maker Byron Klassen. Cape Town’s Yaseen Manuel is the UKZN’s School of the Arts/Mellon Foundation’s Artist in Residence who will work in conjunction with JOMBA! (and the Drama and Performance Studies Programme) and create two screen dance films with Durban’s much loved Flatfoot Dance Company. JOMBA! is also collaborating with the Vrystaat Arts Festival, Georgina Thomson and New Dance Festival and presents two films by Sylvester Thamsanqa Majela (NEVERLAND) and Sizakele Mdi (Dust to Dust). 

“One of JOMBA!’s key mandates has been, and continues to be, connecting with our continent in offering partnerships and collaborations with some of Africa’s most prominent, cutting edge and inspiring dance makers. In this edition we are delighted to have commissioned four screen dance films in our African Crossings platform from Marcel Gbeffa (Benin), Gaby Saranouffi (Madagascar), Robert Ssempijja (Uganda), and Bernardo Guiamba (aka Pak Ndjamena) from Mozambique.”

The European and American Crossings features the historic New York based Limón Dance Company and from UK the Birmingham based ACE music and dance with their essence of Flamenco, Kathak, Martial Arts and ACE's inimitable Afro-fusion style. From Germany Hannah Ma (hannahmadance), presents ONDA - into the unknown a magnificent research type performance and art space production.


Sweden’s Cullberg presents a remarkable screen dance film from On Earth I’m Done - Mountains, Part 1 of an archaic-futuristic diptych in which the audience is transported to a place torn out of the conventional space-time continuum. She Poems created by Spanish dancer/choreographer Aïda Colemenero Dïaz is a series of beautiful short screen dance films made during her on-going travels in Africa, and thesewill close the festival.

In the Indian Crossings platform in partnership support from the Durban Indian Consulate’s Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre, the Calcutta based, the Pickle Factory Dance Foundation, will  showcase 8 specially curated short dance films that speak to the zeitgeist of contemporary Indian dance making.

The Durban Digital Edge 2021 Commissions feature six Durban based dance makers who are beginning to make waves on the local dance scene - Sabelo Cele, Thobile Maphanga, Nqubeko ‘Cue’ Ngema, Cameron S. Govender, Aphelele Nyawoso, and Snethemba Khuzwayo. 

The JOMBA! Open Horizons platform provides an opportunity for dance makers to present their digital/dance film work. Adjudicators David April, Tracey Saunders, Clare Craighead and Shanelle Jewnarain have assessed the 30 submissions from across Africa, for the festival a selection of these  will be screened.

JOMBA! Talks Dance: Conversations that Cross Borders features 4 live conversations with Jay Pather, Alfred Hinkel from the Garage Dance Ensemble from South Africa, Hannah Ma (Germany), and Vikram Iyengar and Kunal Chakraborty from Calcutta (India) of the Pickle Factory Dance Foundation. 

JOMBA! Forging Alliances is an industry support programme curated by Thobile Maphanga, aimed to provide dance makers with industry specific information and includes a panel on social media and publicity, technical tips on production and music copyright.

The ever-popular daily JOMBA! Khuluma Blog and Digital Newspaper facilitated by Clare Craighead, will involve a two-week residency of dance writing and dance criticism through a series of closed webinars/seminars for graduate dance students.

The CCA’s JOMBA! 2021 runs from 24 August to 5 September and can be navigated free of charge via the website, www.jomba.ukzn.ac.za or subscribe to the JOMBA Youtube channel here: https://www.YouTube.com/Jomba_Dance

All platforms for 2021 are free of charge and a full programme is available via the website. 

 

-ends

 

Award-winning Cape Town Choreographer  Yaseen Manuel to create work for CCA’S JOMBA!

Award-winning Cape Town Choreographer  Yaseen Manuel to create work for CCA’S JOMBA!

 

The University of KwaZulu-Natal’s School of the Arts, in partnership with the Mellon Foundation’s Artist in Residence programme, is delighted to welcome Cape Town dancer and choreographer Yaseen Manuel who will be spending 3 months working in conjunction with the Centre for Creative Arts’ 23rd JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience, and the Drama and Performance Studies Programme. 

 

Yaseen Manuel with Flatfoot Dance Company’s Sifiso Khumalo rehearsing for the 2019 JOMBA fest.

Yaseen Manuel with Flatfoot Dance Company’s Sifiso Khumalo rehearsing for the 2019 JOMBA fest.

In a really difficult time for any embodied practice, with the need for social distancing and safe ways of working, Manuel will be using the Mellon residency to create two screen dance films that will premiere at JOMBA!’s second digital iteration of its festival in late August. For this, he will be working with Durban’s much-loved FLATFOOT DANCE COMPANY – and in an interesting interplay of digital on-line engagements. He will also be hosting workshops and discussion sessions/seminars via zoom with UKZN’s dance students over his three-month residency. 

 

Manuel’’ own Cape Town history and personal Muslim spirituality and legacy features prominently in his work. The South African dance community sat up and took notice of his work when he began a series of solos in 2016/17 that connected race, religion and ideas of masculinity in choreographed evocations of deeply neglected stories and identities in the South African landscape. His recent 2019 dance work “ASLAMA”, linked the Syrian massacre to a more internal battle for self and identity that was both terrifying and beautiful!

 

He is a skilled dancer and teacher and while he works as an independent artist, he is also a member of the ground-breaking integrated dance company UNMUTE DANCE COMPANY. Dr Lliane Loots, artistic director and curator of the CCA’s JOMBA! festival says that she is “delighted – at this very difficult time for dance – to open space to feature one of South Africa’s most original dance-making voices and the reminder he offers, of yet still untold and underrepresented stories in our country”.

 

Catch the premiere of Yaseen Manuel’s screen dance films at JOMBA! which will take place on-line from 24 August to 5 September. Access to on-line viewing is free. Subscribe to the JOMBA Youtube channel here : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN9cM0WFw5j2QnYSbk1Zu6Q


Another Generation Africa Film – The Last Shelter wins at Encounters and Heads for DIFF

Another Generation Africa Film – The Last Shelter wins at Encounters and Heads for Durban International Film Fest

 

A second film in the Generation Africa slate of 25 films on migration, being produced by STEPS, the Cape Town-based documentary production powerhouse, has won an award at the 2021 Encounters South Africa International Documentary Film Festival.

The Last Shelter directed by Ousmane Samassékou (France/ Mali/ South Africa) won the Best South African / African feature at the festival with a citation by the jury:  “We were moved by The Last Shelter, which gave us full access to the House of Migrants, in the Malian City of Gao, a haven for African travellers. Ousmane Samassékou’s great access to the  two young protagonists, the intimacy of the observational style filming against the vast melancholy landscape of the dessert made this a favourite with the programming team. Last Shelter was successful in achieving the purpose of documentary; to cast a lens on world issues through the experiences of its subjects. “

“For me this award is doubly important,” says director Ousmane Samassékou. “Firstly, because South Africa has been a great source of help in the development and production of this film through STEP’s Generation Africa programme. It was through a workshop organized by STEPS in Burkina Faso that I learned about the migrant's home and decided to make it the subject of my film. Secondly, this is the first award that the film has received in Africa and I am very happy that it happened in South Africa.”

Produced by Point du Jour - Les films du balibari (France) in co-production with DS Productions (Mali) and STEPS (South Africa) with broadcaster, Arte GEIE, South African audiences will have a chance to watch the film at the Durban International Film Festival, online from 22 July to 1 August.

The other film which was screened at Encounters and will also screen at DIFF is Zinder directed by Aicha Macky, which earlier won the Ladima Foundation’s  Adiaha Award for Best Documentary Film by an African woman.

 

“It is a huge honour to have two films recognised at Encounters for their excellence in telling these truly compelling and necessary stories from Mali and Niger,” says Don Edkins, producer at STEPS and Generation Africa. “Both films hold up mirrors to our uniquely African stories, which are important to the global narrative of migration and futures of youth on the continent, and enable us to begin authentic and vital conversations around this.”

 

Generation Africa is the latest collection being produced by STEPS with 25 films in co-production with 16 countries across Africa. Generation Africa brings together stories reflecting the lived experiences of Africa’s youth through the topic of migration.

ends

 

Fun Outdoor (Social Distancing) Activities at Mnini Dam for the Holidays - south of Durban

Fun Outdoor (Social Distancing) Activities at Mnini Dam for the Holidays 

Just 30 minutes south of Durban’s CBD, in the heart of quiet rural uMgababa area alongside the Mnini Dam there are a number of fun outdoor leisure activities hosted all-year-round by Green Corridors and its partners.

With the COVID-19 pandemic expected to reach its peak during the July holidays, and with citizens being urged not to travel unnecessarily for leisure, there are many healthy and safe outdoor options close to home which allow families to have some good old-fashioned fun.

Calm and quiet at Mnini Dam

Calm and quiet at Mnini Dam

 Activities on offer include fishing, canoeing, boating, hiking and birding. There is also a network of trails that allow for exploring, birding, mountain biking and hiking - all enabling safe social distancing for groups in their own “bubbles.”  There are accommodation choices too for overnight and mini-break stays.

The dam itself boasts largemouth bass, tilapia and an abundance of bird life.

Thulas' Adventures, with host Thulas Luthuli, an accredited guide, gives insightful and engaging guided walks and cycling tours around the area including a visit to the local Sangoma. For bird-lovers, there is also great birding, and for the more adventurous canoeing, and a spectacular walk up the Nsingizane River to a waterfall and pool, where, in hotter months, you can enjoy a leisurely swim.  Join him as he expands on the cultural history of the area, as well as allowing you to just enjoy being outdoors and in nature. Thulas, together with partners Green Corridors, also offers accommodation in the form of the pop-up camps – with up to eight two-man tents, a communal catering area (fully catered or self-catered), ablutions, and security. All these are booked via Green Corridors.

Thulas Luthuli - your tour guide is ready to welcome you.

Thulas Luthuli - your tour guide is ready to welcome you.

Pop up camps - should you want to stay over night.

Pop up camps - should you want to stay over night.

Spectacular walk up the Nsingizane River

Spectacular walk up the Nsingizane River

 Mnini Dam Tourist Resort, hosts, Mlu and Sphiwe Shezi-Mqadi welcome guests all week, offering catch and release bass fishing, canoeing, picnicking and trail options. Permanent gazebos with braai facilities, a jungle gym, and grassy lawns overlooking the dam, make it a safe and fun space to relax.

Canoes for hire

Canoes for hire

Gazebos, braai facilities, lawns and a jungle gym at Mnini Dam Tourist Resort

Gazebos, braai facilities, lawns and a jungle gym at Mnini Dam Tourist Resort

Your hosts Mlu and Sphiwe Shezi-Mqadi are ready to welcome you to their Mnini Dam Tourist Resort

Your hosts Mlu and Sphiwe Shezi-Mqadi are ready to welcome you to their Mnini Dam Tourist Resort

 Mlu and Sphiwe offer boat hire and launch facilities, a bar and grill, frozen braai packs, and bait, and overnight camping. When lockdown regulations allow, they also cater regularly for special events such as weddings and birthday parties.

They have recently built four warmly appointed rooms with en-suites, which they offer at a BnB rate with a full English breakfast, for those wanting a more comfortable overnight stay away from the city.

Mnini Dam Tourist Resort offers 4 double rooms with ensuite bathrooms as well as camping options should you want to stay overnight.

Mnini Dam Tourist Resort offers 4 double rooms with ensuite bathrooms as well as camping options should you want to stay overnight.

 

Mnini Dam Tourist Resort offers BnB with a full English Breakfast

Mnini Dam Tourist Resort offers BnB with a full English Breakfast

Both sites enjoy committed involvement from their communities and the well-being  and security of guests is important to them. Take time to stop and chat to people on the roads,  and expect yells of delight and joyous laughter from children, as you are welcomed with open arms to this small slice of paradise.

 

Bookings for Thulas' Adventures activities and pop-up camp can be done via reservations@durbangreencorridor.co.za or call 031 322 6026/7.

 

Bookings for overnight accommodation at Mini Resort can be done via +27 83 514 1685 or piyoyomi@gmail.com

 

 

Triggerfish Launches Netflix-Sponsored Pan-African Story Artist Lab

TRIGGERFISH LAUNCHES NETFLIX-SPONSORED PAN-AFRICAN STORY ARTIST LAB

• Three months of paid skills development 

• Mentored by a story artist from Oscar-winning animated feature films

• Open to African citizens; deadline 23 July 2021

 

Cape Town, South Africa - June 22 2021 - Triggerfish today announced their call for entries for a pan-African Story Artist Lab sponsored by Netflix. 

 

Shortlisted applicants will have three months of paid skills development with international industry experts. Nathan Stanton, a story artist on Oscar-winning features like Brave, Finding Nemo and Monsters Inc, will lead the training program. 

 

StickMan_Magic Light_Pictures_2.png

Sponsored by Netflix and produced by Triggerfish, The Story Artist Lab builds on the success of their Mama K’s Team 4 all-female writers lab, which saw nine African women placed in the writing room for the first animated Netflix series from Africa. 

 

“Story artists translate screenplays into animatics, the loose first version of the movie that then shapes every step of animation that follows,” says Tendayi Nyeke, Triggerfish’s Zimbabwean-born development executive. “So having skilled story artists from the continent in control of how their stories are told is a gamechanger, not only in grooming the next African directors but also in giving pre-production artists the opportunity to establish their own voice as they bring African stories to life.”  

 

African citizens with concept art and/or storyboarding portfolios can apply from Tuesday, 22 June until Friday, 23 July 2021 at https://www.triggerfish.com/storyartistlab/. They must be available full-time for three months from August 2021; remote working is encouraged. 

 

Triggerfish featured prominently at Annecy International Animation Film Festival last week, winning the 2021 Mifa Animation Industry Award for the “pioneering role that the company has played in animation in South Africa, and Africa most widely.” 

 

Recent initiatives to develop the African animation industry include the Triggerfish Story Lab, a pan-African talent search that has already seen two series greenlit for the world stage: Mama K’s Team 4 for Netflix and Kiya for eOne, Disney Junior and Disney+, as well as the free Triggerfish Academy online training course. 

 

ABOUT TRIGGERFISH
Triggerfish is a premium content animation studio based in Cape Town and Galway, home to crew with a love for animation and a drive to keep improving. 

 

The 25-year-old studio is currently producing three Africa-set TV series: Mama K’s Team 4 for Netflix; Kiya for eOne, Disney Junior and Disney+; and the anthology Kizazi Moto, for Disney+. 

 

Triggerfish’s first two films, Adventures in Zambezia and Khumba, sold nine million cinema tickets globally. Triggerfish also produced the upcoming feature Seal Team, starring Oscar winner J.K. Simmons and Emmy winner Matthew Rhys; and animated the Academy Award®-nominated Roald Dahl adaptation Revolting Rhymes as well as much-loved Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler adaptations such as the 2021 Annie Award winner The Snail and the Whale, 2020 International Emmy-winning Zog, the BAFTA-nominated and Annecy-winning Stick Man, and the Rose d’Or-winning The Highway Rat, all produced by Magic Light Pictures. 

 

Triggerfish also services AAA-rated and mobile games for the likes of Electronic Arts, Unity and Disney Interactive, and is also developing a diverse slate of film and television projects for most of the world’s biggest studios. 

 

ABOUT NETFLIX

Netflix is the world's leading streaming entertainment service with 208 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, documentaries and feature films across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on any internet-connected screen. Members can play, pause and resume watching, all without commercials or commitments.

 

 MEDIA QUERIES TO:

Joy Sapieka

Publicist
Triggerfish Animation 

https://www.triggerfish.com/

Molotsane the Epitome of How to Live Limitless

Kesa Molotsane will continue her proud association with the SPAR Women’s Challenge, from leading in the front during race day to shining in the virtual space. 

 

The 2017 SPAR Grand Prix winner may miss the excitement of live racing on spectator-lined streets but refuses to allow pandemic restrictions to limit her love for the road. 

 

Molotsane, who has represented South Africa on the international stage in track and cross country, has been named SPAR Women’s Virtual Challenge ambassador.

 

The 29-year-old does not only excel on the road, the track, and off-road but is ploughing her experience back into the sport as the recently appointed vice-chairperson of the Athletics SA Athletes’ commission.

 

Molotsane is an example of what it is to #LiveLimitless, having overcome school bullying to become one of South Africa’s top distance athletes and strong female role models. 

 

“My biggest limit was having the whole class turn their backs on me in Grade 7. I believe that it was bullying on a different level,” said Molotsane.

“I overcame that by understanding that not everyone will be as considerate as you are. I was open to learning and treating experiences as learning curves and not as failures.”

 

Molotsane is also a strong advocate of menstrual hygiene education and providing young girls with sanitary products at school. 

 

“I believe with all my heart that girls deserve to be in school as much as boys. Young kids often cannot go to school because they are on their periods, and free sanitary towels allow these girls to stay in school and live limitless.”

 

Molotsane does not only talk the talk but will once again be leading from the front when she lines up for the SPAR Women’s Virtual Challenge, which will be held on 4 September 2021.

Entries will close on 15 August 2021, and are limited to 75 000 participants.

 

This year you will again be able to not only create your own race number online, but you can also create your own certificate of completion – check out sparvirtualchallenge.co.za and follow the few easy steps.  

Entrants residing outside South Africa will unfortunately not be able to receive a virtual challenge pack due to postal restrictions and courier fees. Your entry fee will still contribute to the donation of a pack of sanitary products for a schoolgirl in need.  

 

For more information on the SPAR Women’s Virtual Challenge, please see our FAQ section here: https://sparvirtualchallenge.co.za/faq/

 

Announcement video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I691zBf1Mag

 

– ENDS –  

 

EVENT DIARY DETAILS: 

Date: 04 September 2021 

Time: 06h00 – 18h00 (subject to current lockdown restrictions) 

Location: Virtual Event (participants can select own route and distance) 

Website+Entries: https://sparvirtualchallenge.co.za/  

 

 

Ailey - film review @Encounters by Tammy Ballantyne

AILEY film review

Encounters Film Festival 2021

(AILEY is featured on the 23rd edition of Encounters South African International Documentary Festival 10 - 20 June 2021)

Blood memory the anchor in AILEY – a documentary on Alvin Ailey, Encounters Film Festival 2021

Review by Tammy Ballantyne

Etched in the deep tissues of my mind is the tour of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (AAADT) to SA in 2015. Seated in the Teatro at Montecasino, the performance washed over me, as I revelled in Rennie Harris’s “Exodus”; Robert Battle’s “Takademe”; “Polish Pieces” by Hans van Manen; “After the Rain” by Christopher Wheeldon and the final rousing iconic signature Ailey work, “Revelations”.

Ailey-dancing-scaled-900x506.jpeg

It wasn’t just the virtuosity or the acclaimed technical prowess of this company which struck me; it was the proclamation of pride in identity, of the dancers’ realisation of their own (his/her)stories, of that deep well of Ailey’s gifted vision to tell black American stories of hope, joy and tribute.

This was the second visit of AAADT to SA, the first having been in 1998, when Mandela was in the audience. Ailey himself is an essential connection to the history of SA contemporary dance; his work has inspired and encouraged many of our own dancemakers to find unique and different ways of telling our stories and holding a light up to the past. Two of our own gifted dancer/choreographers, David Matamela and Mamela Nyamza, received scholarships to train with the Ailey School in New York.

AILEY, a moving visual journey through Ailey’s life and process of creating was explained by director Jamila Wignot in a panel discussion on the documentary: “ We started with his voice; the poetry, the personal and the witness testimony. I wanted to use a visual language; there are no static frames, it is always moving…strip away the talking and let the movement do the talking.”

The documentary takes us on a journey from the studio where Rennie Harris is creating a new work to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the company to black and white archival shots of Ailey’s childhood in rural cotton-picking Texas and his mother, to old footage of Ailey’s choreographic works interspersed with brief interactions with seminal company members over the years and their poignant and vivid memories and observations of this man who gave them all a voice.

George Faison, previously an Ailey dancer, speaking in the film and also on the panel, talked of first seeing Ailey’s work and how “he entertained my thoughts and dreams that a black boy could actually dance, could escape…The history, our story was there.” Judith Jamison, who became Ailey’s muse for many works, danced with the company for 15 years, became the artistic director and is now Artistic Director Emerita shares how Ailey validated her “African-American-ness; her church…prowess and fluidity.”

Harris emotionally speaks of “the dancer as physical historian who holds the past, present and future information stored in the body.” This is ultimately the anchoring of the documentary – in Ailey’s own complex and lonely history as an only child moving constantly with his mother in search of work; of his discovery of the Ballets Russe de Monte Carlo at age 14; of seeing the great Katherine Dunham and black male dancers on stage who elevated Afro-Caribbean rhythms, blues and spiritual music to the forefront; of his focus on the black American identity having to navigate spaces and shifting geographies.

“We speak on behalf of those who cannot; give voice so we can be recorded and archived. We can take the power and control who gives access,” said Gregory Vuyani Maqoma in the panel discussion. For too long, black histories have been told by white historians and Ailey found a way to change this. However, the struggle of the lonely artist and the violence of silence around this loneliness and Ailey’s solo battle with HIV AIDS and eventual death in 1989, hangs solemnly over the film; all the things that were unsaid, the shame and stigma of living with AIDS in that era, is unpacked beautifully and textually by the critical voice of Bill T. Jones (never an Ailey dancer but a sometime collaborator): “There was this shame of your ‘dirty life’, you had to edit out that history. He was alone but he participated in the editing.”

Wignot’s desire to make “a love letter” to Ailey is realised in this breath-taking documentary that takes us into the lived experience of this extraordinary man who insisted on declaring “I am”. This remains deeply significant today as Harris reminds us that “we are still feeling the same way today; as a culture we are unwanted.” The shots of the work being created in the studio, remind us of the grim reality of black Americans every day, but through this, we remain connected to Ailey’s insistence of not focussing on the oppressed voice, of acknowledging struggles but looking always for the beauty in what Wignot calls ‘the intact human community”.

 To book click here

Credits:

World premiere Sundance 2021

A film by Insignia Films, Just Films Ford Foundation, +ImpactPartners

Jamila Wignot (director)

Jamila Wignot and Lauren De Filippo

Annukka Lilja (editor)

Daniel Bernard Roumain (original score)


#virtuallyeverywhere

SPAR Believes SA Youth Should be able to #livelimitless

SPAR BELIEVES THE SA YOUTH SHOULD BE ABLE TO #LIVELIMITLESS

 

The global pandemic has locked down our youth during a time of their lives where they are desperately looking to spread their wings.


The past 18 months have tested the country’s resolve and demonstrated the incredible resilience of all sections of the South African society. 

 

While the South African youth’s wings have been clipped temporary, they have shown that they may be locked down, but they will not be held back. 

As part of the 2021 SPAR Women’s Virtual Challenge’s campaign, we encourage South African women to #LiveLimitless and break down the barriers in their lives and redefine the limits that may exist. 

 

“What seemed impossible to us before has now become daily life—working from home and caring for our children at the same time? Impossible before, and now an average day,” said Alison Zweers, Managing Director of SPAR Western Cape.

 

“Making deals and holding meetings online? A strange and unknown concept that we now take in our stride. What further proof could you need to show that limitations are purely mental and how living without limits is truly possible.”

 

This year's theme has a strong focus on the youth, and we will be supporting the Petals Projects, which advocates for a shame-free education for all young women. 

There is a stigma and shame attached to their menstrual cycle for many young girls in South Africa. Due to the lack of access to simple hygiene products, they must make the difficult decision between embarrassment or education.

 

Entry fees for this year’s Virtual Challenge will support SPAR’s Petals Project, which aims to donate packs of sanitary pads to underprivileged girls removing one of the limitations to their education. 

 

SPAR is also proud to partner with three young South African women who embody what it means to #LiveLimitless. 

 

Chantel Struwig, Zizipho Soldati and Shirnell Swartz are three exceptional young women that refused to allow the challenges and limitations they had to deal with from an early age to define them. Instead, they have broken these shackles turning their challenges into opportunities. 

 

Struwig, born with a purplish-red mark covering most of her face, has become a vocal and virtual birthmark awareness advocate. Embracing her birthmark, the BCom Fashion student has overcome a negative self-image and encourages others to do the same using her social media platforms. 

 

The 26-year-old Soldati is an award-winning filmmaker, content creator, social media influencer and aspiring model. Soldati has not allowed a rare condition that causes very short limbs, called Phocomelia of the lower limbs, to put a limit on her dreams and ambitions. 

 

Swartz has excelled as a short speed skater representing South Africa at the Special Olympics, which has helped her discover her superb talent. She first got involved with Special Olympics South Africa when she was 13 years old at Casa De Sol School, where she found short speed skating.

 

This year you will again be able to not only create your own race number online, but you can also create your own certificate of completion – check out sparvirtualchallenge.co.za and follow the few easy steps.  

 

Entrants residing outside South Africa will unfortunately not receive a virtual challenge pack due to postal restrictions and courier fees. Your entry fee will still contribute by donating a pack of sanitary products for a schoolgirl in need. 

 

For more information on the SPAR Women’s Virtual Challenge, please see our FAQ section here: https://sparvirtualchallenge.co.za/faq/

 

Announcement video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I691zBf1Mag

 

Image attached: 

From left to right: Shirnell Swartz, Zizipho Soldati, and Chantel Struwig.

 

– ENDS – 

 

EVENT DIARY DETAILS: 

Date: 04 September 2021 

Time: 06h00 – 18h00 (subject to current lockdown restrictions) 

Location: Virtual Event (participants can select own route and distance) 

Website+Entries: https://sparvirtualchallenge.co.za/