Antoinette is an independent producer who has worked in television since 2009 after a short stint trying her hand as an actress opposite John Malkovich in the screen adaptation of Disgrace, based on Nobel Prize-winning author J.M. Coetzee’s novel by the same name.  In 2011 she researched, wrote and directed her first documentary, an investigative look into South Africa’s meat industry for national broadcast in South Africa, called Swallow This!  From this she took up the role of production manager on a 26-part South African Film and Television Award-winning series. Produced by Plexus Films for the South African Broadcasting Corporation, it centered on the personal stories of women who had overcome immense challenges to live authentic and inspired lives. More recently she has begun to shoot and edit her own work and in 2015 secured development funding for her first feature- length documentary project The Rainbow: Jazz for the Struggle, and the Struggle for Jazz.

Antoinette is currently a board member and the co-Chair of the DFA

She is also

spearheading the docChat sessions

involved in workshops and local festivals

Miki is an award winning documentary filmmaker who believes in the power of film for change. Her recent film, This Land, screened across South Africa as part of a series of dialogues on land rights and structural inequality. She is co-founder of Plexus Films and currently studying towards a Masters in Documentary Arts at UCT with Impact as a focus. She served on the DFA board from 2008-2010, during which time she helped draft the constitution and founded the docLOVE and My Town short film initiative. In 2018 she proposed a reboot of docLOVE which has been the focus of her DFA related work over the last few months. She’s passionate about the power of stories to engage audiences, ignite conversation and inspire action.

Miki is currently a board member and the co-Chair of the DFA

She is also

spearheading docLove cinema

involved with transformation in the DFA

overseeing the Covid19 Short Film Grants

Desmond is a documentary and TV producer committed to producing content that combines innovative ideas with imaginative storytelling, which offers unique perspectives on the issues that affect our lives. He is currently in pre-production on a feature length documentary on World War Two fighter pilot Adolph Malan. He has worked as an executive producer at Urban Brew’s Global Productions division, which focused on creating content for the international market. He joined Urban Brew in 2013, producing magazine and current affairs shows and directing and producing short form documentaries for the Pan African channel ED, which broadcasts on DSTV. He worked at the SABC for 11 years, 6 of those as a senior commissioning editor in the factual division. During his tenure at the SABC, Desmond has made transformation a key part of his agenda, affording young emerging filmmakers opportunities to make films. He is passionate about mentoring and never hesitates to share his expertise and experience with new talent. He enjoys traveling and keeps a keen eye on the latest trends in the world of film and television and loves exploring new frontiers in visual storytelling and technology.

Desmond is currently a board member

He is

•          the DFA representative at SASFED meetings

•          representing the DFA at NFVF meetings

•          involved with transformation in the DFA

Enver has a Bachelor of Arts in Film & TV from Edith Cowan University, Australia. In addition, he has done advanced television training courses in Germany and England. He has 26 years’ experience in the television broadcast industry with a prolific body of work for SABC, MNet and the Corporate Sector. Television training has been a passion of his and he has lectured at the Institute for the Advancement of Journalism and trained TV producers in Zambia and Uganda. Currently he is lecturing part time at the Academy of Television and Sound Engineering. Enver has served on the Film & Publication Board, the National Film & Video Foundation training and bursary panel and has been a SAFTA judge for the past 7 years culminating in him being the co-chair of the documentary panel in 2019. Enver was selected to be a jury member for documentary at the 2020 Durban International Film Festival. He is also a producer’s mentor for the KwaZulu Natal Film Commission. To earn a living Enver also works on big format reality shows. Enver’s recent documentaries Indians Can’t Fly and Someone to Blame – The Ahmed Timol Inquest focuses on social justice issues which he is passionate about. He is in the final stages of completing a documentary on the assassination of Dulcie September.

Enver is currently a board member

He is

•          involved in international festivals

•          liaison with GFC

•          representing the DFA at NFVF meetings

•          involved with transformation in the DFA

Izette is an established documentary & television producer, director and editor.

She successfully produced a self funded film, Saying Goodbye on Sean Davison’s Euthanasia court case in New Zealand. It premiered at Encounters Film festival and screened at various other festivals, like Luxor & institutes dealing with euthanasia & humanitarian issues. She was a director on I am Women, Leap of Faith series and edited for Mark Kaplan, Francois Verster, Herman Binge and worked on Karen Zoid’s talkshow Republiek van Zoid Afrika. She freelance lectures at various tertiary institutions, and runs the documentary short course at Stellenbosch University’s Journalism department.

She has served on the DFA board as treasurer for the past 7 years.

Izette is currently the DFA treasurer and board member

She is

•          involved in workshops

•          local festivals

•          liaison with Wesgro & CFC

•          involved with transformation in the DFA

With a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Psychology and Sociology from the University of Pretoria, Takalani was drawn to the television industry quiet early in her career path and ever since she has been hooked on telling stories. Takalani started as a Production Coordinator/ Manager at Summit TV, a business news channel. She went on to train production management in Lesotho under the Soul City project and had stints at various established productions houses like Bomb Shelter, Ochre, Grounded Media until she moved to Producing at Dzuguda Productions for 5 years, wherein she produced handsful of TV series and corporate productions.

Takalani founded Tshedza Media in 2011. One of Tshedza Media’s TV productions – 100% Youth got nominated and won a SAFTA 2017 for Best Youth Programme. Other TV shows Tshedza Media has produced are Come Again, My Father, My Hero, Freedom is not Free, Mehlomadala (Reunited) and Forging Ahead. Takalani’s company was a South African servicing company for the international film that premiered at IDFA 2017- Walls. Tshedza Media has been awarded the documentary slate funding by the NFVF. Takalani has been moderating the Nature Environment and Wildlife Congress (NEWF) for 3 years. Takalani is driven by the fact that factual content has the power to shift behaviour and have high impact. The industry can only grow if we are willing to develop ourselves and each other. Takalani has been judging the South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTA’s) for the past 3 years and judged Zanzibar International Film Festival (ZIFF) in 2019.

Milly is currently a board member

She is

•          involved in local & international festivals

Mumtaaz has a triple major in Film, Drama and English Literature, from the University of the Witwatersrand as well as working in the trenches of South African television for nine years. At a young age she has directed an award winning short documentary, series directed a youth technology show, created a popular prime time factual format for local television, led a team in channel playout for an Afrikaans lifestyle channel and most recently Executive Produced a docu- reality series for the national broadcaster. In very little time she has applied herself to many different roles and quickly accumulated knowledge in this arena.

She writes well, is adept with media formats, edits, creates stop frame animation and has a wide range of skills useful for the multi-tasking environment that the television industry demands. Coming from a conservative community from which very few women creatives emerge Mumtaaz would like to enrich, promote and in some way or another educate young minds on the possibilities within the local industry. She has a keen interest in empowering young disadvantaged women to follow their passion for the creative realm.

Mumtaaz is currently a board member

She is

•          involved in the docChat sessions

•          involved in workshops

•          local festivals

Rehad runs his own company Uhuru Productions out of Johannesburg. Following his return from political exile Rehad worked as a health and safety/media officer for a chemical workers union and the head of a HIV prevention unit. In 1997 he completed a master’s in social history at the University of the Witwatersrand, he then entered the TV and film industry as a current affairs journalist, and soon after moved on to focus his energy on historical and socio -political documentary film.

In 2002 he completed a post graduate diploma through EVEA, in 2009 in documentary through Eurodoc. He has produced over 20 documentaries, some directed by himself that have been broadcast internationally, accepted into numerous festivals and been received with critical acclaim. His last film Miners Shot Down has won local and international critical acclaim garnering 28 prizes including the Taco Keiper award for investigative journalism and an International Emmy for best documentary. Everything Must Fall is the last film in the trilogy and has also won critical acclaim, winning awards at home and abroad. The prize for Best Documentary at One World in Prague in 2019 is the last and biggest win to date.

Rehad is currently a board member

He is

•          involved in the rebate to fit documentary production

•          training & workshops

Richard is a documentary director and cinematographer, with much of his work focussing on social and environmental issues. Richard holds a degree in literature, attended film school in Barcelona, and has a Masters degree in scriptwriting and film directing. His Masters thesis film, Crumbs: Toppling the Bread Cartel (2013), was selected to open the Tri-Continental Human Rights Film Festival. He is the founder of GOOD WORK, a Cape Town-based documentary production studio that opened its doors in 2012. Their first full-length documentary feature, The Boers at the End of the World, premiered in 2015 and screened at festivals internationally and is still being broadcast. It won (amongst other awards) three SAFTAs, two Medals of Honor from the South African Academy of Sciences and Arts, and a Visual Spectrum Award from the SASC for documentary cinematography. He is a Juror for the SAFTAs, and is a Fellow of the Hot Docs Blue Ice Group for 2019/2020.ncluded studying at the Escuela de Cine de Barcelona. His last feature film, The Boers at the End of the World, was distributed theatrically and won three SAFTAs.

Richard is currently a board member

Richard is

•          involved in workshops

•          local festivals

•          liaison with Wesgro & CFC

•          liaison with lobbying DTIC to get international festivals missions going again

Sandiswa is a filmmaker based in Khayelitsha but hails from Stutterheim in the Eastern Cape.

I was introduced to film in 2012 through Real-Lives a New York based NPO. I did a short course at UCT and graduated in 2013. Since then I’ve worked on international and local fiction films, documentaries, television and TV shows. From last year I’ve been a film trainer at Social Justice Coalition and was a temp lecturer at Cape Peninsula University of Technology. I am one of the mentors for UCT’s Stepping Stone and African Film Fellowship Film Training. I have done almost everything in Film Production, but work mostly as a Video Editor/Assistant.

My passion has always been in Documentary and different ways of shooting it. Films that address injustice and social issues in our communities. I have a documentary I’ve been working on for the last 2-3 years but due to lack of funds have it stuck in post. I wish to finish it and travel the world showing it to people. I would also like to start a film school or academy in Khayelitsha in a few years. So, everything I’ve been doing or working on is to get me to that goal. I strongly believe that films and documentaries have the ability to change people’s way of thinking.

Sandz is currently a board member

She is

•          coordinator for docLove cinema

•          involved in local festivals

•          training & workshops

Double BAFTA and Peabody winner (amongst other awards) Xoliswa is a producer / director making films focusing on human rights. She started as an actress in films like Cry Freedom, then production in Feature Films. She was Producer on ‘Orphans of Inkandla’- she won a BAFTA. She was S.A producer on the ‘Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy’. Producer ‘South Africa’s Lost Girls’ with True Vision, and for BBC Zimbabwe’s Forgotten Children’ shot entirely undercover – Peabody and BAFTA winner. Xoliswa made ‘Child of the Revolution’ exploring what happened to the revolution in Zimbabwe. Some of these documentaries have become impact films. Zimbabwe’s Forgotten Children raised money for the children in the film to go to school and to build a school. Orphans of Inkandla was used to raise money for make poverty history started by Richard Curtis. Elton John used a clip of the film to raise money for his foundation 2 years in a row about 7million pounds used for ARV research in Kenya. Both documentaries were used to raise money on Red Nose Week program on the BBC to raise money for global charities. Xoliswa is a member of BAFTA and has been a juror three times. She is a founding member of filmmakers against racism and the Independent Black Filmmakers Collective.

Xoliswa is currently a board member.  

She is

•          the DFA representative at SASFED meetings

•          representing the DFA at NFVF meetings

•          involved in training & workshops

Emilie is the Editor of Maverick Life, the life and culture section of the Daily Maverick, the leading digital daily – and now print newspaper – in South Africa. She was the Group Brand Director at Associated Media Publishing, and prior to this, the Editor-in- Chief of ELLE & ELLE Decoration South Africa, the managing editor of Marie Claire, fashion editor for the Daily Maverick and a contributor to the Mail & Guardian. Gambade has worked in several media environments, from retail, to television, print – both news, magazine and digital. She was born in Paris, France, and she studied in the United States where she graduated with a Bachelor in Science & Business Administration, majoring in Finance & Investment from Western Carolina University, Magna Cum Laude.

Emilie is interested in

•          International festivals

•          Local festivals

•          DocLove cinema

•          Industry organizations

Liani is a senior lecturer in the Centre for Film and Media Studies at the University of Cape Town and holds a doctoral degree in film studies. She convenes the Master of Documentary Arts degree programme, is the academic director of the Stepping Stone community engagement video training programme and the founder of the ScreenCubator talent developer. She is one of the producers of Strike a Rock, which opened Encounters in 2017. She’s passionate about impact producing and has hosted several panels, workshops and events on the topic at festivals and conferences, including Encounters (2018, 2019, 2020), DIFF (2020), and IDFA (2017, 2018).

Liani is interested in

•          Tertiary Institutions & development, Workshops & Training

•          Local FESTIVALS

•          Transformation

•          docLOVE cinema, docCHAT zoom sessions

Simphiwe has over 27 years’ experience in training, technical design, commissioning, producing and management in the film & TV industry. He has produced and commissioned several productions for broadcast and non-broadcast purposes in radio, animation, cinema and television. These include amongst others: Yizo Yizo 3 (2003), Gaz’lam (2004), Tsha Tsha (2004), Get Real (2003), Take 5 (2003), and Siyayinqoba – Beat It! for SABC. In 2006 he produced Bantfu Embili 26-part series and Kgotla 13-part series for SABC2 under his production company. He has also produced and directed documentaries for etv on heritage (The Cave dwellers and Dr Thomas Chauke), Zabalaza 2 (SABC1), South Africa Undocumented 8-part documentary series, The rise of a fashion Icon, Democratic elections in the DRC and On a Livingstone mission. He has guided more than 140 projects that were destined for cinema and television through development and production processes.

Simphiwe graduated from the Durban University of Technology in Video Technology (TV Production) in 1993. He later studied Education, Communications and English for a B.A. degree at the University of South Africa in 2000. He also holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management from the University of KwaZulu Natal (2005) and finishing his Master of Business Administration degree. He was also trained by Deutsche Welle in Germany on Creative Planning and Production Management in 2003 and attended the International Producing Programme by Angus Finney in 2015.

Simphiwe is interested in:

•          Treasurer and/or other administration

•          Industry organisations (Sasfed, GFC, CFC, Wesgro, Discop, NFVF, DTI)

•          Tertiary Institutions & development, Workshops & Training

•          Transformation

Sivuyisiwe is the co-founder and director of SivuBuhle Media, a documentary and multimedia production company based in the Eastern Cape. Sivu comes with a variety of film experiences from feature film to documentary and her passion is mostly documentary filmmaking, where she had her formal film training from Big Fish School of Digital Filmmaking specialising in producing and directing. She won Best Documentary Class of 2013 at the Cape Winelands International Film Festival. She is also a Film business developer who is passionate about provincial film development and with her Degree of Entrepreneurship and New Venture creation from WITS Business School, she is able to see business opportunities through film tourism, co- productions and development. Sivu is passionate about indigenous stories and that is what she mainly produces and directs especially authentic rural stories where the heart of the community is.

Sivu is interested in:

•          Local & International FESTIVALS

•          Industry organisations (Sasfed, GFC, CFC, Wesgro, Discop, NFVF, DTI)

•          Tertiary Institutions & development, Workshops & Training

•          Transformation

Weaam is a screen-writer, director , actress and poet. She has found her voice as a woman and activist using cinema. She is a multi-disciplinary artist who works with poetry, music and film. Her documentary directorial debut, Hip-Hop Revolution, had its international Premiere at Silverdocs in 2007 where it was the Jury Special Mention for “Best Music Film”. It won the Best Edited Film Award at NYC Reel Sisters Film Festival in 2008,and has been broadcasted in 28 countries. Weaam undertook, “District Six Rising from the Dust” in 2013 after moving into District Six, a six year long journey, with her cinematographer hus- band, Nafia Kocks. This film won an Award of Excellence from the Scandinavian International Film Festival, and was the Spe- cial Mention at CTIFMF for Best SA Documentary.

Her most recent project “Two Hues” is a short narrative film which she wrote, co-directed and stars in and will World Premiere at DIFF. Weaam is passionate about transformation in the film industry.

Weaam is interested in:

•          Transformation

•          Local & International festivals

•          industry organisations