Durban Film Festival Celebrates Personal Freedoms, Cinema’s Power, 30 Years Democracy

The 45th Durban Intl. Film Festival kicked off Thursday, coinciding with the birthday of South Africa’s freedom fighter and first Black president, Nelson Mandela. The festival emphasized the importance of hard-won personal liberties and the enduring relevance of cinema.

“As we celebrate 30 years of democracy and open the 45th Durban Intl. Film Festival on Nelson Mandela Day, we reflect on the role of cinema in depicting society and envisioning a better world,” stated festival manager Andrea Voges during the opening ceremony.

Voges stressed the significance of freedom and artistic expression, recognizing that many filmmakers worldwide face extraordinary pressures and dangers. She cited cinema’s ongoing role in challenging, enlightening, and entertaining audiences as vital as ever.

The festival, founded during the apartheid era, began in a time of stringent censorship that barred many subversive films from South African audiences. It has consistently mirrored the social climate, with early mixed-race audiences risking arrest due to enforced segregation laws. This year’s selection highlights the country’s complex journey, 30 years into its democratic rule. Voges noted, “South Africans are resilient, and many films in our program depict that resilience, addressing societal challenges while also showing an optimistic path forward.”

The festival’s opening film, “Legacy: The De-Colonized History of South Africa,” directed by South African-born, U.S.-based Tara Moore, examines apartheid’s legacy and enduring inequality. The closing film, “The Showerhead,” by Craig Tanner and produced by Anant Singh, profiles renowned political cartoonist Jonathan Shapiro (Zapiro), whose work champions post-liberation South Africa’s struggle for justice.

Voges, who returned last year to her current post after serving as a programmer from 2010-14, spoke about the festival’s mission to present films that reflect local realities and urgent global stories. Notable highlights include Payal Kapadia’s Cannes Grand Prix winner “All We Imagine as Light,” Mati Diop’s Berlin Golden Bear winner “Dahomey,” Sandhya Suri’s “Santosh,” and Mohammad Rasoulof’s multi-award-winning “The Seed of the Sacred Fig.”

This year’s selection emphasizes emerging filmmakers, particularly from underrepresented African countries such as Kenya, Mozambique, Madagascar, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Eight feature films and documentaries from South Africa also make up the selection, most of which are world premieres.

Like many international festivals, DIFF is grappling with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which accelerated changing audience habits and the rise of global streaming services. South African cinemas have struggled to recover, with Ster-Kinekor, the country’s largest theater chain, recently emerging from a local form of bankruptcy protection. To lure audiences back, the festival is offering a range of discounted ticket packages.

This year, DIFF is also partnering with independent cinemas in Johannesburg and Cape Town for post-festival screenings. “It’s important that we support each other,” said Voges, referring to the closure of numerous cinemas across South Africa. “While we partner with big chains, we also support independent cinemas.”

Durban will also place a stronger emphasis on Isiphetu, the festival’s industry program for emerging filmmakers, described by Voges as a “stepping stone” to the more established Durban FilmMart. Through free workshops, Isiphetu offers training not readily available to many aspiring filmmakers, integrated more closely this year into the main festival program. “We don’t want them to feel like outsiders,” Voges asserted.

These initiatives, alongside a series of screenings throughout Durban, especially in poorer townships, underline the festival’s commitment to the local community. Amid uncertain times in South Africa, where the ruling African National Congress recently failed to secure a majority in general elections, the festival continues its mission, established over 40 years ago. “It’s important that Durban, this 45-year-old institution, continues to exist, despite all challenges,” Voges concluded.

The Durban Intl. Film Festival runs from July 18 – 28.

Source: Variety