The Cape Town International Film Market and Festival (CTIFMF) has selected 61 short films that will screen across 10 programs at select venues at the V & A Waterfront between October 10th and 19th.
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Short films are an integral part of the CTIFMF and Festival Director Leon van der Merwe has always recognized the importance of this genre, “Short films are a necessity to keeping the entire film industry healthy. They fulfill two irrefutable roles, firstly, they allow up and coming talent the chance to get noticed and refine their style, and secondly, they also help to encourage creativity and originality that includes new ways of telling stories.
The time has come for movie lovers everywhere to support short films. To start with, they should go and watch these films at the festival and onther short film festivals. the industry needs to lobby the cinemas to get short films back into movie theatres. Short films could be shown prior to a feature film as it used to be the case years ago. This would not only justify audiences choosing to watch them but would also help justify local cinema’s ticket prices.”
Amongst the films are 17 South African shorts that include award winning director Reabetswe Moeti’s Mma Moeketsi Mma Moeketsi that stars Keketso Semoko known for her role as Ma Agnes on Isidingo. She is a domestic worker from rural Lesotho working for a suburban family in Johannesburg. Her son, Moeketsi, is an illegal miner at the North West mine. In the wake of the wage strike, Moeketsi’s phone is off and he is nowhere to be found.
Fatima is another short from a South African director (Imran Hamduly), that tells the story of a young woman defies her family’s wish to enter into an arranged marriage and suffers a tragic consequence thereof, whilst Masqerading: To Hell and Back is Sofia de Fay’s bittersweet tale of a letter written by a 58 year old Cape Coloured drag queen, Sandra Dee to her best friend, Samantha Fox celebrating their complicated 30-year friendship. The letter takes us on a funny and poignant journey through their shared memories, Sandra Dee reminisces about their struggle to survive the Apartheid regime and the adventures and misfortune that befell them because of their color and their transgender identity.
Another notable film is Cast Iron Can’t Be Welded, a short set in rural South Africa during the 1970’s and directed by Buks Rossouw. A farmer transporting a broken cast iron stove learns something about humanity from a hitchhiking schoolboy – but only after dropping him off
Shorts from Zimbabwe, Spain, Brazil, Austria, Belgium, Australia, the USA, China, Egypte and Denmark amongst other countries will be screened throughout the festival.
Image Courtesy: letsgo.co.za