The world under our banner (Sithengi 2005)

Every year, we always articulate the agency role of the NFVF as the institution that is responsible to co-ordinate the development and growth of the film sector of the South African economy and position it competitively in the world. For those people who have heard us in the previous years what I am going to say is just a reminder. It is also a report on the challenges and the developments since we last met. For those who are here for the first time we hope that we shall be able to bring about understanding about our role.

All the people who will be present at Sithengi Film and Television Market are the stakeholders of the NFVF in one-way or another. It is the synergies that we create that will result in the development and growth of our economic domain.

Once again I wish to celebrate our relationship with the organisers of Sithengi, and my appointment as chairperson of the board has solidified this relationship. Over the years our relationship has matured, guided by the shared ideals of promoting the development and growth of the industry.

To the local fraternity, you all know we have just come out of the NFVF Indaba 2005, where the National Value Charter was adopted. Without going much into details, the Value Charter positioned the film sector in terms of the Microeconomic Reform Framework that was approved by the national cabinet in the year 2002. It covered the capital formation strategy, the human capital development strategy, sectoral co-ordination strategy, Sectoral Information System and the critical programmes to achieve these strategies. Our pavilion at Sithengi and the NFVF website provides information in this regard.

One of the historical outcomes of the NFVF Indaba 2005 was consensus on the formation of the industry federation. The federation will play a critical advocacy role and bring about policy and programme changes by way of improving the sector. The establishment of the federation aligns our sector to the matured sectors of the economy in which federations play a critical role to shape the sectors. The establishment of the federation is therefore no small milestone.

During Indaba we also saw and heard major institutions such as the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department of Communications, the Industrial Development Corporation, express the importance of creating synergies and alliances among us as state institutions. The determination of common understanding about the issues that face the sector were discussed at the subsequent investor conference hosted by the Industrial Development Corporation. At that workshop the NFVF emphasised the importance of determining the impact of investment measures presented by all the institutions, the NFVF, South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), the incentives offered by the DTI, the IDC loan capital to the transformation of the film sector.

The single transformational means still remains public policy and programmes. We should anticipate with eagerness and zeal the finalisation of the convergence policy of the country, the regional indigenous language television stations, and the digital migration of the broadcasting systems. All these are supply side drivers of sector, which would bring about new services unprecedented before.

We are often asked why the NFVF spends so much time promoting South African film overseas when so much needs to be done within our boundaries. The truth of the matter is that the film industry is highly networked at the global scale. It favours highly mobile factors of production, funding as illustrated by co-productions, skills and technology, and critical markets such as the various film festivals and markets, including Sithengi. It is often said that no prophet was ever famous in his land of birth. This truism is illustrated strongly in the case of Africa, including South Africa. Our international participation has been a catalyst for learning best practice; benchmarking the competitiveness of our country and the development of markets for our product. We often complain that the South Africa screens are full of foreign product, forgetting that if we market our product abroad we shall start to see it on the screens there. I really wish to thank our foreign partners, especially those who are participating at Sithengi.

All the points that I have raised so far, are some of the critical developments that have taken place to take the film sector of the economy from being an infant industry to rapid growth. You will agree with me that to lead one just one enterprise to rapid growth is a strategic challenge fraught with dynamics of boom or burst. We at the NFVF have a three fold challenge, to manage our own growth as an organisation, to coordinate the rather fragmented sector and to contribute to the socioeconomic transformation of the country. Our experience shows that different kinds of assets and currencies, over and above money are needed for these ends, political currency, social force, activism, foreign alliances and administrative effectiveness. Most of all, to go through a learning curve. Unfortunately there are no programmes in the university that teach the leadership and the management of the development and growth of the economic sectors. As a result, and surprisingly resistance and hurdles come from the least expected sources.
As we go through the learning curve we hope that the risk profile will decrease and the investor attractiveness will grow. It would seem that serendipity, learning as we go along is a very important determinant of the rate of growth. At NFVF we exercise our highest innovations to create fuel for the rapid growth of the sector, lobbying parliament and our very keen political leadership, inter-institutional synergies, public opinion, foreign alliances to realise the national film portfolio.

ENDS

Eddie Mbalo
CEO: National Film and Video Foundation