Cape Town - An organisation that has successfully brought cinema to the township for years has transcended to being a positive light for upcoming filmmakers and the community.
The Isivivana Centre, founded in 2016/17, began as a haven that brought cinema to Khayelitsha and surrounding townships. It is now gearing up to call on up-and-coming filmmakers to participate in what promises to be an insightful film festival.
Centre coordinator Ayanda Msebenzi said the festival was dedicated to raw filmmakers who aim to make their mark in the film industry. It’s set to run from April 27 to 29.
“The film submissions can be documentaries or short films. The time can range from five to fifteen minutes long. The call for these submissions will be announced soon on all our social media platforms,” he said.
Msebenzi said the festival would cater for ages from 18, and each day would be dedicated to a particular film discipline.
“Each day of the festival will have workshops for different film departments. For example, on a certain day, it will be for directors, the next for cinematographers and so on. It will be a workshop set up and will be free of charge,” he said.
Msebenzi said they invite successful filmmakers to come and give interested community members talks about the industry.
“We also facilitate discussions about a film after every film screening. It is usually facilitated by facilitators of the centre. The centre is not only bringing cinema to the community, but is now working with organisations and strengthening relations in the community,” he said.
Nonceba Siganga, from the Grace of God Organisation, said they have partnered with the centre in their weekly children movie programme, and said their support as a centre has enriched and bettered the lives of the children and organisation.
“Many of our children were getting into trouble and were slowly gravitating towards menace behaviour. Since our collaborations with Isivivana centre, our children have a purpose and structure. The centre also assists us with transport for screenings, and we salute them for their assistance, even outside of the entertainment they give our children,” she said.
Mfundo Hashe, who works at the Isivivana Centre, said that it is not everyday that a cinema allows people to enter for free and give an educational discussion after a screening. He said these unique strides have been able to draw the community closer to the centre.
“Over and above that, the centre aims at enriching the skills of upcoming filmmakers and those interested in pursuing a career in the film industry,” he said.
Isivivana Centre is at the heart of Khayelitsha and has screenings every week for children at 6pm. The centre also has a restaurant and safe parking. Msebenzi said that transport is available for those who do not have a reliable mode of transport for anyone living in and around Khayelitsha.
