Durban FilmMart Unveils Advisory Committee for Annual Co-Production and Financing Market

Christopher Vourlias
·3 min read

The Durban FilmMart Institute has selected a nine-person advisory committee for its long-running co-production and finance market, which takes place in the coastal South African city every year.

Drawing on a mix of industry veterans from Africa, Europe and North America, the committee is tasked with helping the institute in its efforts to facilitate trade and investment in African content while assisting African filmmakers to access international markets.

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“We are privileged to have been afforded access to a diverse group of industry role players who are committed to taking African content to the global market, thereby ensuring that DFMI remains a key entry point that connects our industry to the world,” said Jacintha de Nobrega, chairperson of the DFMI board of directors.

The advisory committee consists of Cécile Gérardin, head of drama at Canal Plus International; Dana Sims, talent agent at CAA; Jihan El-Tahri, Emmy-nominated filmmaker and general director at Dox Box; Judy Kibinge, documentary filmmaker and CEO of Docubox; Mo Abudu, CEO of the EbonyLife Group; Roger Ross Williams, Oscar- and Emmy-winning filmmaker and founder of production banner One Story Up; Steven Adams, founding partner at Alta Global Media; Tendeka Matatu, Netflix director of film for Sub-Saharan Africa; and Todd Brown, head of international acquisitions at XYZ Films.

“In selecting our advisory panel, we purposefully selected esteemed and influential industry leaders that will support the DFMI in increasing its footprint in the global market,” added de Nobrega. “This is aligned with our overarching strategy and our mission to consolidate DFMI as the leading film market in Africa and the access point for African content.”

Among the highlights of this year’s Durban FilmMart will be the annual pitching and finance forum, which includes 30 fiction and documentary projects that will be presented to potential co-producers, sales agents, broadcasters and film funds; Talents Durban, a training and development program for emerging African filmmakers presented in collaboration with the Berlin Film Festival’s Berlinale Talents; the DFM content shop, a curated digital catalogue of African titles whose international rights are still available; and a wide-ranging forum of talks, panel discussions and masterclasses, including sessions presented by Netflix and TikTok.

The full program can be found here.

This year’s event will be the first physical edition of the Durban FilmMart in two years, due to the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic. According to the organizers: “The 2022 program will focus on the evolution within the industry, the game changers working to bring inclusivity and access and the new spaces driving content creation. With Africa and the African Diaspora at the heart of the industry program, this edition of DFM will take the next step in delivering an in-depth and dynamic program featuring professionals from the mainstream, established independents, emerging and alternative filmmakers who continue to disrupt the status quo with their work.”

The 13th edition of the Durban FilmMart will take place July 22-24, with a parallel online event unspooling from July 22-31.

(Pictured, L-R: Mo Abudu, Judy Kibinge, Roger Ross Williams)

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