Khanyi Magubane
Co-Chair
Khanyi Magubane is a Film and TV producer, writer, radio broadcaster, entrepreneur and communications specialist with 23 years working experience. A trained journalist, Khanyi has cut her teeth across all formats of media including Radio/TV/Film and digital media. Armed with a BA (Communications) and BA (Hons) Journalism both from RAU/University of Johannesburg, she started career in 2000 and over the course of 23 years has risen through the ranks of the media, production, and broadcasting industry. She’s worked for radio stations including Talk Radio 702, YFM and SAfm. Describing herself as a thoughtful, politically inspired documentary producer, her breakout work in 2012, was the critically acclaimed six part socio-political documentary series entitled, “Why Are We So Angry.” It was screened on SABC 1 and was later screened at different universities including Wits University as part of Drama for Life Crossing Borders Festival at Wits, University of Johannesburg, Northwestern University, Illinois, US.
Her vast work experience includes working with SONY Japan on a Fifa World Cup Fevacasters series which told South African football stories in all host cities. She runs a media company named Zinokwanda Media and Communications and has produced across genres including documentaries, Talk Shows, Made for Film Movies for channels including Mzansi Magic, SABC 1, 2. She is currently producing and directing a short film entitled, “A Woman of Substance: The Beauty Selela story” part of a 10 film NFVF slate entitled Unsung Heroes.
Karin Slater
Co-Chair
Karin Slater was invited as a lifetime member of the Academy and judge of the Oscars in 2020. She works as a director and cinematographer with her main interest in indigenous wisdom and wildlife. Her documentaries have screened at Sundance, Berlinale, Hot Docs, Museum of Modern Art, New York and she has won numerous awards including the Trailblazer Award for innovative and creative work in the field of documentaries at Mipdoc, Cannes 2008, Best Feature Documentary at the International Innovations Film Festival 2019, Switzerland and she’s been eligible for an Oscar. She’s also a teacher of documentary filmmaking and was head mentor at Big Fish film school for seven years and has been a lecturer at Selkirk College, BC, Canada.
Taryn Joffe
Co-Deputy Chair
Taryn Joffe has honed her skills in film programming, curation, writing and distribution. She holds the positions of Festival Programmer and Industry Coordinator at Encounters South African International Documentary Festival and Distribution Manager at Electric South. Taryn is also a Board Member and Co-Deputy Chair of the Documentary Filmmakers’ Association (DFA) and Advisory Panellist for the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF). She has served as a Juror for the South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs) and International Documentary Association (IDA).
Her past roles include docSHARE Co-Programme Manager for the DFA, Distribution Coordinator at Big World Cinema and Programmer at the Shnit Worldwide Shortfilmfestival. Taryn has curated training and development initiatives such as the inaugural Encounters Internship Programme in Festival Management and Film Curation and the Encounters Community Festivals: Doc Activate Season Programme in Festival Production and Audience Development. Her expertise is enhanced by participation in programmes such as SALIA, in partnership with Realness Institute, Talents Durban Press and Berlinale Talents. Taryn is dedicated to fostering film culture and aspires towards enhancing audience engagement through exposure to exceptional fiction and creative non-fiction cinema.
Odette Geldenhuys
Co-Secretary
Odette Geldenhuys is currently an active human rights attorney and a passive documentary filmmaker. As an active filmmaker, Odette co-produced the award-winning The Shore Break, and directed and produced other well loved documentaries: Here be Dragons, Grietjie van Garies and being pavarotti. Because of these filmic journeys, Odette participated, in different roles, in among others the Durban FilmMart, Hot Docs Film Festival in Toronto and the Berlinale Film Festival in Berlin. Odette also produced television content of different genres, mostly educational and (hopefully) inspirational.
Lauren Groenewald
Board Member
Lauren Groenewald started her career in broadcast journalism in 1991 as a radio producer for Channel Africa. She moved from news into documentary film production for civil rights organisations and broadcasters. Lauren has filmed and worked all over the African continent. She was a lecturer, mentor and content creator at the Big Fish School of Digital Filmmaking. She has been a Series Producer for the Close Encounters Laboratory, nurturing emerging filmmakers. She presents industry workshops internationally such as at the Frontline Club in London, teaching storytelling through multimedia and video.
She worked as a commissioning editor at SABC in the 90s, then served as Executive Producer for series at Times Media TV (later Ochre), and moved to become an independent producer at Plexus Films in 2000, where she has produced award-winning documentaries and television series. She has produced and mentored many 1st time filmmakers and has a passion for seeing new voices flourish. She is currently the South African producer for the feature documentary, directed by Xoliswa Sithole, where she is managing a team on 4 continents to tell the complex story of access to affordable medicine. As a producer at Plexus Films, she produced Kasi Untold, a 4 part web series in conjunction with the Cape Town Museum, mentoring young filmmakers who are exploring the notion of home in a displaced environment. She has participated as a Juror for the past 5 years for the International Emmy Awards Competition.
Thea Aboud
Financial Administration & Public Officer
Thea Aboud started her career in industrial engineering with Iscor, and moved to local, provincial and national government. She branched out into accounting, procurement and human resources and, after 17 years, decided to work for herself. She started Shacabanga Consulting, working as a strategist and capacity-building advisor and, in cooperation with New Horizons, facilitated Business Implementation Plans for local, provincial and national government, non-profit organisations and the private sector in South Africa and other African countries.
In a complete turn-around, Thea then ran a successful take-away / bakery / general dealer in the Eastern Cape, before she returned to Johannesburg in 2010 to set up the Writers Guild of South Africa, which she still runs as Executive Officer in conjunction with the WGSA Council. Among her other clients are the Documentary Filmmakers’ Association, the South African Screen Federation, Sisters Working in Film and Television, the Southern African Freelancers’ Association and the South African Science Journalists’ Association.
Thea’s strengths lie in organisational capacity building, system analysis, financial management, strategic planning and project management, and she has a sound knowledge of the Public Finance Management Act. As a writer, she has screen credits on a children’s programme and has also been a ballet, ballroom and Latin American dancer and trainer.
Lameze Allie
Treasurer
Lameze Allie has been working in the Film and Documentary film space for over 16 years, from Producing, Film Festival Programming and training. She is currently Line Producing a Web Series with Plexus Films called Kasi Untold, which looks at what home means in a contested space. Encounters 2023 as the Outreach Coordinator, Programme Coordinator at Doc Activate Season 2023 Encounters Community Festival Programme. She has also partnered with the Department of Arts and Culture in training 20 youth from the Cape Town district in SmartPhone Documentary Filmmaking, focusing on Heritage. As Programme Officer for the DFA ,Documentary Feature Programmer: Durban International Film Festival, Judge at the South African Film and Television Awards 2022 –Documentary Juror. Bangkok International Film Festival 2022 as a Documentary Film Programmer, She has served on the NFVF PESP 3 Advisory Panel.
Lameze worked for Big Fish School of Digital Filmmaking which played a big role in developing her interest in doing work with a purpose, having spent almost 9 years as Project Manager of the Cape Town Campus. Facilitator with Ikasi Media focusing on Production. Production Manager on a Heritage Documentary series called “As the Dust Settles” Produced numerous short social justice documentaries and a Music Video – “Saviour” focusing on Gender Based Violence and the subtle nuances around the issues women and men face daily in South Africa. She has worked as head researcher on a three year project with the award winning Directors Francois Verster and Simon Wood on a Feature Documentary called “Girl Taken”. Lameze has worked on the European International Festival for the past 4 years as Outreach and Audience development.
Arya Amber Lalloo
Board Member
Active in the film industry since 2006, Arya Amber Lalloo is a multi-disciplinary South African filmmaker based in Johannesburg. She has written and directed shorts, music videos and factual programs as well as the feature documentary “Jeppe on a Friday” (co-directed with Shannon Walsh). As an editor, she has contributed to the award-winning feature documentaries “The Giant is Falling” and “Everything Must Fall” (dir. Rehad Desai) and was production designer on “Rafiki” (dir. Wanuri Kahiu), the first Kenyan feature film to be selected for competition at the Cannes Film Festival. Arya acted as Consulting Editor and Archives on “Milisuthando” (dir. Milisuthando Bongela), which premiered at Sundance.
She has also worked within the broader arts and culture environment, including an appointment as the artistic director of the large-scale public arts initiative “Michel Gondry’s Home Movie Factory in Johannesburg” and programme director of the Global South focused “People to People International Documentary Conference”.
She is currently developing the feature essay “A Girl and A Gun” supported by the IDFA Bertha Fund in development and “Paradisis”, her first narrative feature film. She lives and works in Johannesburg.
Mpho Tau
Board Member
Mpho Tau was born and bred in Bloemfontein and his journey in the film and television industry spans a period of 9 years, having firstly started in theatre around the year 2003 with a drama group called Majita Comedians. He obtained his training in film and television production with Nemisa (2013) and Big Fish School of Digital Filmmaking (2019). In 2023, Mpho joined the UCT and Sunshine Cinema Film Impact Screening Facilitator short course.
To date he has worked on shows like Isidingo, Skeem Saam and The Voice (Angola, Nigeria and South Africa) with Sasani Studios. 2019 Mpho was part of the crew on an international drama series called The Professionals. Through the mentorship of Bolobathaba Multimedia Group, he produced and directed a short documentary film called Glow in the dark.
At 1976 Films, a production company he runs, they have ventured into public movie screenings through an initiative called Bringing cinema to your doorstep, and this year they had their first edition hosting two films; Letters of Hope directed by Vusi Africa and Lobola, A Bride’s True Price? directed by Sihle Hlophe. In 2024, they will host their second edition.
Thando Shozi
Board Member
Thando Shozi, a luminary with almost three decades in the film and television industry, brings unwavering dedication to the realm of documentary filmmaking. As the former Head of the Factual Department at the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), she led a dynamic team overseeing documentaries, reality shows, and talk formats across diverse platforms.
Thando’s influence extends from parliamentary committees to strategic projects and collaborations with industry events, showcasing her prowess in stakeholder management. After 27 years at the SABC, Thando founded Sunrise Emandleni, where she serves as Managing Director, specialising in skills development, production, and consulting services.
Beyond her ventures, Thando’s impact reaches into nature, wildlife, and conservation, distributing African films to ensure exposure to local narratives. As a jury member and mentor at prestigious film festivals, Advisory Board Member at Durban University of Technology (DUT), and NEWF, she remains dedicated to shaping African storytelling and empowering emerging talents. Thando stands at the forefront of industry progress, embodying a beacon of leadership, advocacy for innovation, and a commitment to inclusivity, especially for women and young talents. Her passion for documentary filmmaking aligns seamlessly with the DFA’s vision, promising to enrich and advance the association’s mission.
Tiny Mungwe
Co-Deputy Chair
Tiny Mungwe is a documentary film and arts producer. She currently works at STEPS (Social Transformation and Empowerment Projects) where she produced Generation Africa, a pan-African anthology of 30 documentary films from 16 countries in Africa, on the topic of migration.
Mungwe’s films include Akekho uGogo, a 48 minute documentary about urban youth culture which screened at several festivals including the Durban International Film Festival, Apollo Film Festival and DOKANEMA Festival. Her short film script Evelyn was selected for the NFVF Women Filmmaker Project and she directed another short film in the programme, Daddy’s Boy. She has written for some of the highest rating South African television dramas such as Muvhango and Matatiele and was one of the directors on the series Uzalo.
For several years she worked as a festival organiser and programmer for four international festivals, namely Time of the Writer, the Durban International Film Festival, Jomba! Contemporary Dance Festival and Poetry Africa. During that time she also worked on the programme for Durban FilmMart (the co-production market of the festival) and Talents Durban (a career development programme for emerging African filmmakers in partnership with Berlinale Talents). She continues to work as a programme curation associate for the DFM. She also programmed and curated the city of Durban’s inaugural book and art fair, ARTiculate Africa.
Nondumiso Masache
Co-Secretary
Nondumiso Masache is an award-winning filmmaker and SAFTA nominated producer with 10 years’ experience working in television. She has worked on a wide variety of factual TV programs as researcher, content producer and producer. She received her training at Nemisa and Big Fish School of Digital Filmmaking and her documentary filmmaking journey began in 2014 with a short documentary ‘Oswenka: Dignity in a three-piece suit’ that screened at several international film festivals and won three awards in Egypt, USA and South Africa. She is a Talents Durban Alumna class of 2017, as well as Durban Filmmart Access 2023.
Nondumiso is also a qualified Impact Producer having successfully completed the University of Cape Town/Sunshine Cinema Film Impact Screening Facilitator short course in 2022. Currently, she works with the Documentary Filmmakers’ Association of South Africa (DFA) as Programme Manager for docLOVE, a program of free monthly screenings and facilitated discussions taking place in various venues across the country. Under her company Zenkosi films, she is currently developing her first feature documentary and also producing a short environmental film through the NFVF special call on the theme of ‘Environment and Belonging’.
Lauren Clifford-Holmes
Board Member
Lauren Clifford-Holmes began her career as a video and photojournalist in 2008, establishing multimedia news departments for News24 and the Mail & Guardian. She spent a decade breaking new ground in online mixed media content production, before going on to freelance for advocacy organisations and NGOs, such as Human Rights Watch, a sector she has been deeply committed to since her student days as photographer, campaign manager and fundraiser.
Seeking a significant platform for worthy stories, capable of achieving greater creative visions and reaching broader audiences, she found her home in documentary filmmaking in 2015. She has since worked on award-winning independent and commissioned documentary features, docuseries and shorts with various production houses, and as an independent producer, establishing her company in 2020, LCH MEDIA. Her roles have spanned the filmmaking value chain, including; development and content producer, head of production, series producer, line producer and post producer. Clients have ranged from local – government to international NGOs, major broadcasters such as CGTN and streaming giants like Netflix. She has also worked on a number of Advocacy campaigns as project coordinator, leading two big contracts for the European Union Delegation to South Africa and for National Treasury. During these campaigns she was also a photographer and film director/ producer.
She is actively committed to developing South African documentary film production and local producers, volunteering for several years with the Documentary Filmmakers Association (DFA) as co-facilitator of the docLOVE screening programme, and as a docSHARE mentor to young filmmakers. She serves as Company Secretary of the Independent Producers Organisation (IPO), for 2023/ 2024, as the industry body’s principal legal, compliance and corporate governance officer.
Her journalism and advocacy routes remain a solid foundation to her ethos as a filmmaker, motivating her to prioritise message-driven content that creates debate, challenges norms and breaks new ground. Her ambition is to deliver productions of an exceptional standard that captures and inspires global audiences, while ensuring new ideas and voices are realised from within a robust and relevant local film industry.