More than just a film festival
More than just a film festival

More than just a film festival

Jeanette Diergaardt
Jeanette Diergaardt



The European Union (EU) will be hosting the European Film Festival for the first time in Namibia, under the theme ‘life is about laughter’, celebrating award-winning Namibian and European stories.

The festival started on 6 October and will run until 1 December at the Opera House at The Village. Lovers of film and storytelling can view the films every Wednesday at no cost.

“We should be able to tell our own stories from our own perspectives and our own narrative to transform, evolve and inspire,” Twaku Kayofa, the communications officer of the Delegation of the EU to Namibia, said.

The film festival will be serving more than entertainment and will be providing know-how on film-making to participants. Scriptwriting will be a part of the masterclasses that will take place as well as training on directing and producing, from 11 to 14 October. For upcoming and aspiring actors, there will be an acting workshop taking place from 16 to 18 November.

The training will be provided by a high calibre of experts. Simona Nobile, who has been in the industry for 16 years and worked in various countries in Europe as well as Los Angeles, is a member of the 100 Autori Association (key Italian directors’/screenwriters association). Her fluency in various languages has opened up doors for her, directing and producing films in Italian, French, German, Italian - her mother tongue - and Spanish.

Award-winning producer Ama Ampadu, the producer and founder of Monday Films in Ghana, will also be sharing her expertise in filmography. She uses her skills and expertise to empower Africans and to teach them the value of the production of films. She is a part of the Hot Docs-Blue Ice Fund 2021 Selection Committee, a grant that enables Africans to tell their stories through documentaries.

Vincent Riotta, hailing from London, will be teaching participants the art of acting. He has appeared in notable TV series and films in the United States and the United Kingdom. He also won best actor at the Barcelona Film Festival in 1995.

The courses are tailor-made to the needs of Namibians as the EU has been working closely with the Namibian Film Commission to find out what is needed to push Namibian films in the right direction.

“The opportunities are limitless,” Kayofa said about the opportunities for Namibian film production outside of the African continent.

Comments

Namibian Sun 2024-05-03

No comments have been left on this article

Please login to leave a comment

Premier League: Chelsea 2 vs 0 Tottenham Hotspur European Championships Qualifying: Coventry City 1 vs 2 Ipswich Town English Championship: Coventry City 1 vs 2 Ipswich Town Katima Mulilo: 12° | 32° Rundu: 13° | 32° Eenhana: 13° | 32° Oshakati: 15° | 32° Ruacana: 15° | 33° Tsumeb: 16° | 30° Otjiwarongo: 13° | 29° Omaruru: 13° | 31° Windhoek: 12° | 27° Gobabis: 15° | 28° Henties Bay: 14° | 21° Wind speed: 20km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 05:43, High tide: 12:02, Low Tide: 17:54, High tide: 00:23 Swakopmund: 16° | 19° Wind speed: 19km/h, Wind direction: W, Low tide: 05:41, High tide: 12:00, Low Tide: 17:52, High tide: 00:21 Walvis Bay: 16° | 25° Wind speed: 28km/h, Wind direction: W, Low tide: 05:41, High tide: 11:59, Low Tide: 17:52, High tide: 00:20 Rehoboth: 14° | 29° Mariental: 17° | 31° Keetmanshoop: 19° | 31° Aranos: 16° | 31° Lüderitz: 15° | 25° Ariamsvlei: 18° | 33° Oranjemund: 14° | 22° Luanda: 25° | 28° Gaborone: 14° | 27° Lubumbashi: 12° | 26° Mbabane: 12° | 26° Maseru: 11° | 25° Antananarivo: 13° | 24° Lilongwe: 13° | 27° Maputo: 19° | 28° Windhoek: 12° | 27° Cape Town: 15° | 19° Durban: 17° | 28° Johannesburg: 16° | 25° Dar es Salaam: 24° | 28° Lusaka: 15° | 27° Harare: 13° | 28° Currency: GBP to NAD 23.17 | EUR to NAD 19.89 | CNY to NAD 2.55 | USD to NAD 18.44 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.31 | EGP to NAD 0.38 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.68 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.62 | RUB to NAD 0.2 | INR to NAD 0.22 | USD to DZD 134.09 | USD to AOA 834.06 | USD to BWP 13.64 | USD to EGP 47.9 | USD to KES 133.98 | USD to NGN 1379 | USD to ZAR 18.45 | USD to ZMW 27.05 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 76046.88 Down -0.04% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1692.54 Up +0.10% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 13322.85 Up +0.03% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 26113.71 Up +6.81% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI 9146.09 Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 301.92/OZ DOWN -0.0094 | Copper US$ 4.51/lb DOWN -0.0038 | Zinc US$ 2 930.50/T UP 0.64% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 84.42/BBP UP +0.15% | Platinum US$ 960.83/OZ UP +0.56% Sport results: Premier League: Chelsea 2 vs 0 Tottenham Hotspur European Championships Qualifying: Coventry City 1 vs 2 Ipswich Town English Championship: Coventry City 1 vs 2 Ipswich Town Weather: Katima Mulilo: 12° | 32° Rundu: 13° | 32° Eenhana: 13° | 32° Oshakati: 15° | 32° Ruacana: 15° | 33° Tsumeb: 16° | 30° Otjiwarongo: 13° | 29° Omaruru: 13° | 31° Windhoek: 12° | 27° Gobabis: 15° | 28° Henties Bay: 14° | 21° Wind speed: 20km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 05:43, High tide: 12:02, Low Tide: 17:54, High tide: 00:23 Swakopmund: 16° | 19° Wind speed: 19km/h, Wind direction: W, Low tide: 05:41, High tide: 12:00, Low Tide: 17:52, High tide: 00:21 Walvis Bay: 16° | 25° Wind speed: 28km/h, Wind direction: W, Low tide: 05:41, High tide: 11:59, Low Tide: 17:52, High tide: 00:20 Rehoboth: 14° | 29° Mariental: 17° | 31° Keetmanshoop: 19° | 31° Aranos: 16° | 31° Lüderitz: 15° | 25° Ariamsvlei: 18° | 33° Oranjemund: 14° | 22° Luanda: 25° | 28° Gaborone: 14° | 27° Lubumbashi: 12° | 26° Mbabane: 12° | 26° Maseru: 11° | 25° Antananarivo: 13° | 24° Lilongwe: 13° | 27° Maputo: 19° | 28° Windhoek: 12° | 27° Cape Town: 15° | 19° Durban: 17° | 28° Johannesburg: 16° | 25° Dar es Salaam: 24° | 28° Lusaka: 15° | 27° Harare: 13° | 28° Economic Indicators: Currency: GBP to NAD 23.17 | EUR to NAD 19.89 | CNY to NAD 2.55 | USD to NAD 18.44 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.31 | EGP to NAD 0.38 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.68 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.62 | RUB to NAD 0.2 | INR to NAD 0.22 | USD to DZD 134.09 | USD to AOA 834.06 | USD to BWP 13.64 | USD to EGP 47.9 | USD to KES 133.98 | USD to NGN 1379 | USD to ZAR 18.45 | USD to ZMW 27.05 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 76046.88 Down -0.04% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1692.54 Up +0.10% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 13322.85 Up +0.03% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 26113.71 Up +6.81% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI 9146.09 Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 301.92/OZ DOWN -0.0094 | Copper US$ 4.51/lb DOWN -0.0038 | Zinc US$ 2 930.50/T UP 0.64% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 84.42/BBP UP +0.15% | Platinum US$ 960.83/OZ UP +0.56%