TWENTY THREE (23) film entries from 11 African countries have been selected to participate in the inaugural edition of the PIFF-Africa 2021 Film Festival.
By Rodney Ruwende _ Communication and Marketing Manager
The festival which is a partnership between the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe (NACZ) and the Piton International Film Festival (PIIF) will run virtually from the 13th to the 23rd of May 2021.
The PIFF-Africa 2021 is a 12-month initiative that focuses on celebrating filmmaking and seeks to work collaboratively with filmmakers who are based in Africa providing a unique opportunity for Filmmakers for education, collaboration, and celebration, instead of competition.
Farai Kupfavira the NACZ Provincial Arts Manager for Midlands Province and the Programme Coordinator says there has been an overwhelming response from the continent to take part in the initiative to promote filmmakers who are based in Africa.
“ At the close of submissions on the 17th of April, we had received 23 films from 11 African Countries which include, South Africa, Morocco, Uganda, Cameroon and 2 films from Zimbabwe were submitted”, she said.
Kupfavira said the themes and storylines for the submitted films were varied and included topical and hot issues that affect the African continent.
“ The issues tackled in the films are wide and they include Gender-Based-Violence and Sexuality which are prevalent in many countries even outside the African continent”, she said.
Ed “Umoja” Herman the President and Founder of PIFF was also ecstatic about the entries to the festival which only opened in January.
“From music videos to full feature projects, PIFF-Africa is proud to see the level of work that has come to us and we will use our global platform to assist the filmmakers in getting their brand to more locations,” he said.
Umoja said PIFF will showcase the films during the festival and work with the filmmakers to monetize their content.
“Because we are based on the collaborative spirit we will be working with the filmmakers who are interested in monetizing work after the festival. Much thanks to all the filmmakers who have submitted to PIFF-Africa 2021 we look forward to building a long working relationship with you”, Umoja said.
earground 