Watch out Hollywood, SA films are catching up

SOUTH Africa, before the dawn of the digital era. I’m referring to a time before 1999. Access to the internet was almost unheard of – you could not speak of it being readily accessible for most people.

You were considered extremely privileged if you even possessed a computer at the time. The dream of wanting to make a film was just that, a dream.

Films during this era could only be shot on 35mm or 16mm film stock. This meant having a camera crew of four, just to assist with the camera, then some more to help with the gear that these types of cameras required.

Nobody was desperately waiting for the next big movie to come out of South Africa. Whatever films got produced locally mainly related to the politics of the country.

And let’s be honest, nobody wants to watch those types of films all the time when you want to be entertained.

Hollywood was the saviour for our cravings as they produced countless blockbusters throughout the year.

Alas, what to think of even considering becoming an actor in this country, when there were hardly any opportunities.

If one were to boast of being an actor in community circles, people would associate you with stage plays and theatre.

Even the television industry was reserved for those select few.

The time did seem bleak for people who wanted to invest in the then film industry that was going nowhere fast.

If you told your friends and family that you were in the film business, it meant that you owned a video rental store, as in the case of my late father.

Enter the digital era. The advent of digital technology, changed the way things were accomplished in the film industry.

Five years after our democracy, not bad timing at all. The country was changing, mindsets were changing.

What is a digital camera? These are cameras that are able to capture images on high quality digital tapes and now even on inexpensive hard drives and memory cards.

The picture quality was incredible – so much so that today it even rivals that of 35mm film, which was once the Motion Picture Academy Standard.

But what did this all mean to us, and how did it affect South Africa specifically?

It was a game changer. As South Africans, we are quick to embrace, and also change to survive.

The first film shot entirely on digital tape, Star Wars Episode 2, brought hope to aspiring filmmakers like myself, to pursue a career in film-making. Where you once needed a huge crew to shoot your film, you could now write your script, shoot the movie, and be the cameraman, direct the movie, take the footage to your computer and edit it yourself as well.

Gone were the days of sending 35mm film negatives for processing and waiting a day or two to run them on a projector to see what you shot.

Buggy

Now you just load it on your computer and press play.

The early 2000s were really exciting times. Of course, we still had obstacles, like trying to afford all of this technology.

Hard drives in 2002 were limited to 20 gig and cost a fortune. You needed a computer that was no less than a 1ghz processor to be able to edit your film. Software was extremely buggy at the time. Technology was always going to improve.

The result of this gamechanging technology? We as

South Africans could finally enjoy our stories told from the perspective of people on the ground.

You could make films on a shoestring budget, and get your story out to the masses. Acting opportunities sprung up, more productions were coming out of our country. Some people became overnight stars just from the first film they starred in. The locals loved the content and demanded more. The South African film industry took off. Today we have initiatives from government organs such as the Department of Trade and Industry and The National Film and Video Foundation that helps fund movies. Cameras are readily available. The skill of our crews are in demand by foreign moviemakers shooting in our country.

Cinemas have a mandate to exhibit local films. We may not yet be a big player like Hollywood, but we are getting there.

We are still a young industry, compared to Hollywood, which has been in business for more than a 100 years.

Recent performances of local films at the box office prove one thing: Mzansi wants more.

Naidoo is an award winning movie director, producer and scriptwriter