--
Urucu Media and DIFF bring Cannes Critics Week to South Africa --
Fri, 24 Jul 2015 11:26
--
SCREEN AFRICA EXCLUSIVE: Urucu Media, with the support of the French institute of South Africa and Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), presents a travelling programme of the Cannes Critics Week section of Cannes Film Festival in South Africa. The programme started at DIFF in Durban on 21 July and runs until 25 July, thereafter it will be moving to Cape Town and Johannesburg thanks to a partnership with Cinema Nouveau from 28 July to 2 August.
Cannes Critics Week in South Africa provides a platform for alternative voices in cinema and involves the screening of five fiction films from first and second time feature directors, a masterclass presented by filmmaker Boris Lojkine, who s film Hope opened the programme at DIFF, as well as filmmaker round tables in Cape Town and Johannesburg.
Elias Ribeiro, filmmaker and founder of Urucu Media, says that Cannes Critics Week began 54 years ago as a response to the mainstream nature of the Cannes Film Festival: There wasn t enough room for emerging talent in the main Cannes Festival selection so the critics in France decided to curate this programme made for first and second time directors.
It s become a platform for new voices to emerge, says Ribeiro, because the eyes of the industry are all at Cannes.
In 2014, Ribeiro and his business partner John Trengrove, while in France, met with the programme director of Cannes Critics Week and agreed to facilitate the traveling programme in South Africa, I wanted to be a part of this firstly because I love the work that s exhibited and secondly because I produce work from first and second time directors.
The Critics Week selection at Cannes features seven films, however the travelling programme in South Africa showcases only five. Selected by Urucu Media, the French Institute of South Africa and curated by the Cannes Critics Week leaders, the five films were chosen with South African audience demographics in mind. What we decided to do on the first edition in order to engage more with our audiences we went back over the last two to three years of Cannes Critics Week and we selected the best of those years according to what we thought would be more relevant to cinemagoers in our region, Ribeiro explains.
The five films screening in the South African travelling programme of Cannes Critics Week are Hope by Boris Lojkine (France); Salvo by Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza (France/Italy); The Kindergarten Teacher by Nadav Lapid (Israel); Suzanne by Katell Quill v r (France); and You and the Night by Yann Gonzalez (France).
Ribeiro explains that Urucu Media facilitating Cannes Critics Week in South Africa is part of a broader initiative by the company supported by the French Institute of South Africa to give a platform to unique cinematic voices not only in terms of audiences but also with regards to fostering innovation in the local filmmaking community. The broader initiative designed by Urucu Media includes a three-month screenwriters residency called REALNESS, for first and second time feature directors.
It s a three-month incubation period involving nine African directors, which we will select through a search using the help of film schools, festivals and cultural institutions. It s pan-African, so we are looking for the top talent across the continent, comments Ribeiro.
The call for submission for REALNESS will go out in September 2015, in December the final directors will be announced and from 15 April to 15 July 2016 the residency will take place focusing on developing the first draft of nine new feature films.
Urucu has partnered with the Durban FilmMart (DFM), making it possible for those nine projects to thereafter be presented to an audience of independent producers and an international jury who will appoint the two most promising projects. These projects will then be optioned into Urucu Media s development slate while the others will be available to the other producers.
What we are fighting for is bold, brave, ground-breaking cinema, concludes Ribeiro.
Related Articles
Urucu to host Semaine De La Critique screenings at DIFFSouth African feature film production house Urucu Media have partnered with Cannes s La Semaine de la Critique...
Read more...
-- --
-- --
-- Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. comments powered by Disqus
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
19/08/2026
As the cost of IP nears price parity with traditional SDI, Reynolds argues that ...
19/08/2026
A private 5G bubble was chosen instead of traditional broadcast RF for the race ...
19/08/2026
(L-R) Rafael Manuel and Isabel Sicat attend the Filipi ana premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at The Ray Theatre on January 23, 2026, in Park Cit...
19/08/2026
Studio owners invited to have their say on rates cuts
The Music Producers Guild (MPG) are inviting UK-based studios to take part in an in-depth survey that ...
19/08/2026
Vintage-inspired desktop interface revealed
Harrison's latest hardware offering sees them head into the world of audio interfaces, delivering a 10-in/12...
19/08/2026
Granular effect remains locked to scale and tempo
Described as your dream granular effect , Minimal Audio's latest creation is capable of turning any s...
19/08/2026
First polyphonic SWAM instrument incoming
Audio Modeling's latest physical-modelling orchestral instrument is just around the corner, and is now availab...
19/08/2026
World Cup Games Generate 84 Billion Minutes Across FOX, Fox Sports 1 and NBCU...
19/08/2026
July brought typical peak-holiday drops in viewership, driven primarily by viewers stepping away from screens and a visible decline in reach across both traditi...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Henry joins BCE as the company accelerates its commercial strategy and expands its international presence across the media, broadcast and technology markets. He...
19/08/2026
iWedia, a leading provider of software solutions for connected TV devices, today announced a major milestone in Android platform optimization with the successfu...
19/08/2026
NTP Technology announces that ST 2110-30 audio-over-IP connectivity with AES67 and RAVENNA capabilities is now available for the brand's world-class audio i...
19/08/2026
Net Insight has been selected to provide its Nimbra platform by the service provider Big Blue Marble, formerly ORS Group, as the core media transport solution f...
19/08/2026
LiveU has supported Coventry City FC and several other top-flight UK football clubs through one of their most demanding live production challenges of the year, ...
19/08/2026
Nature Seekers Documentary Shot with Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF
Brie Clayton August 18, 2026
0 Comments
Filming endangered turtles required camera...
19/08/2026
Neyrinck Brings D-Control Consoles Back to Life on Apple Silicon with D-Control ...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Riedel Communications today announced that Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Perth, Australia, implemented a comprehensive communications infrastructure that brin...
19/08/2026
QuickLink, a leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest contribution solutions, will spotlight a major leap forward in remote guest con...
19/08/2026
Integrated platform melds media asset management, playout automation and newsroom workflows
EMAM, PlayBox Neo and SNEWS have officially launched Nuvex, a conne...
19/08/2026
Screen Australia releases the Private Investment Toolkit to strengthen screen in...
19/08/2026
Do Aussies truly value local content? Unpacking Screen Currency 2026 with Deirdr...
19/08/2026
There's an early Christmas gift for Bookish fans, as UKTV confirms the re-commission of the hit U&alibi drama, created by and starring Mark Gatiss. Viewers ...
19/08/2026
Wednesday 19 August 2026
Sky gives sports fans the chance to watch multiple liv...
19/08/2026
On Saturday September 5 Katie Taylor will step into the ring for the fight of her life against Flora Pili in front of 80,000 fans in Croke Park. A legendary fig...
18/08/2026
SportStream 2026, a free three-day virtual event, will take place September 15-17. One registration provides access to all three days of live programming and on...
18/08/2026
BeckTV will introduce BeckFlow to the European market at IBC2026, demonstrated on the Providius stand (10.F53).
BeckFlow is a web-based schematic documentation...
18/08/2026
Boland Communications will introduce a SMPTE ST 2110 input option for its 4K monitors at IBC2026, along with a new 55-inch super-narrow bezel display for video ...
18/08/2026
Dolby Laboratories and the Seattle Seahawks have announced a partnership integrating Dolby OptiView into the Seahawks' live streaming coverage, making the S...
18/08/2026
For BMG Executive Producer of Sports Production, Graham Taylor, producing live s...
18/08/2026
TMRW Sports has appointed Rufus Hack as President of Golf, a newly created role in which he will lead the company's golf businesses including TGL presented ...
18/08/2026
SMT will provide race technology for FOX Sports' coverage of the Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C. on August 23, when the NTT INDYCAR SERIES races ...
18/08/2026
The live, YouTube-native roundtables combine fan voices, credentialed reporters,...
18/08/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
18/08/2026
The industry legend sounds off on replacing the Heat's iconic Medusa score...
18/08/2026
William F. Rasmussen, the sports fan-turned broadcaster and entrepreneur whose out-of-the-box idea of a 24-hour cable sports network, ESPN, changed forever the ...
18/08/2026
DAZN Group has completed its acquisition of ViewLift, a provider of streaming and digital solutions for sports content owners. The acquisition was first announc...
18/08/2026
The American Association of Professional Baseball (AAPB) has added SI TV, Sports Illustrated's 24/7 streaming channel, as a broadcast partner for the remain...
18/08/2026
The Esports Foundation has announced that the inaugural Esports Nations Cup (ENC), originally scheduled for November 2026 in Riyadh, will be postponed to Novemb...
18/08/2026
Diversified has announced a new Global Managed Services Practice, consolidating the company's managed services capabilities into one organization. Rob Mello...
18/08/2026
Appear has completed a proof of concept with Thoroughbred Racing Productions (TRP), demonstrating multi-camera remote live production over bonded 5G cellular an...
-- 
