The month of love hit a high note on Valentine’s Day, with the official announcement of the 2020 South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs) nominees proudly brought to you by Brand South Africa. Hosted under the custodianship of the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) the awards seek to honour and celebrate South Africa’s local film and television talent, under the theme #LoveSATalent.

 “The love for SA Talent is certainly in the air and I would like to congratulate all our SAFTAs14 nominees for telling authentic stories that resonate and connect with the people of South Africa. As the NFVF we couldn’t be prouder of the immense contribution that these women and men make to the local film and television industry, not forgetting the broadcasters that provide the platforms for these stories to come alive”, commented Makhosazana Khanyile, NFVF CEO

The NFVF joined forces with 205 industry experts from across the country to form a judging committee that spent over two months deliberating and rounding off the final nominees of the 70 categories, which were all then later audited by Nexia SAB&T.

“A key priority for us this year was to bring credibility back to the SAFTAs judging process. It is no secret that many production companies have voiced their frustration with our appraisal system, some going as far as to boycott the SAFTAs altogether. Having taken this feedback to heart, we’ve taken every measure possible to ensure that the judging process is fair, transparent and without bias. Today I’m proud to announce that as a result of these efforts we’ve received over 300 entries for the SAFTAs,” concluded Khanyile.

The 14th South African Film and Television Awards will be hosted at Johannesburg’s Sandton Convention Centre over two-nights: Craft Awards on Friday, 27 March 2020 and Main Awards on Saturday, 28 March 2020 – with the Saturday show broadcast live on television.

Congratulations to the nominees in the documentary categories:  

 
Documentary Feature
Award TitleDocumentary TitlePractitioner
 
Best Achievement in Directing – Documentary Feature
Buddha in AfricaNicole Schafer
 
Dying for Gold
Catherine Meyburgh & Richard Pakleppa
The Fun’s Not Over –
The James Phillips Story
 
Michael Cross
 
Award TitleDocumentary TitlePractitioner
 
 
Best Achievement in Cinematography
– Documentary
 
 
Buddha in Africa
 
 
Nicole Schafer
Dying for GoldRichard Pakleppa
 
The Sound of Masks
Sara Cristina Ferreira de Gouveia
WomanhoodDeon van Zyl
 
Award TitleDocumentary TitlePractitioner
 
 
Best Achievement in Editing – Documentary
 
Dying for Gold
 
Catherine Meyburgh
The Fun’s Not Over – The James Phillips Story 
Michael Cross
The Sound of MasksKhalid Shamis
WomanhoodDaniel Mitchell
 
Award TitleDocumentary TitlePractitioner
 
 
Best Achievement in Sound – Documentary Feature
20 Years of Loxion KulcaNeo Rathebe
A Fool’s ParadiseSibusiso Zulu
 
 
Dying for Gold
Catherine Meyburgh, Guy Steer & Mapula Lehong
Huisgenoot: Ware LewensdramasMark Saunders
 
Award TitleDocumentary TitlePractitioner
 
 
Best Documentary Feature
 
Buddha in Africa
 
Thinking Strings Media
Dying for GoldBreathe Films
Sound of MasksLionfish Productions
The Fun’s Not Over –
The James Phillips Story
 
Rogue Productions
Best Natural History and Environmental Programme
Award TitleProgramme TitlePractitioner
 
Best Natural History and Environmental Programme
Cave Crocs of GabonEarth Touch
Okavango River of
Dreams Chapter 1 Paradise
 
 
Wildlife Films
STROOP – journey into the rhino horn
war
 
 
Scott & de Bod Films