Silwerskermfees serves as a showcase for new talent, whether it is established personalities that are trying out new roles behind the scenes or first-time filmmakers. There are 21 short films in competition this year and vary between 12 and 24 minutes respectively. The films are greatly supported by the industry and it is always a highlight to see which established actors take the leap into the deep end of the imagination of these filmmakers.
โWe are very proud of the short film project and the talent that have gone on to achieve bigger success in the film and television industry. Two of the previous short film winners have been developed into feature films (Vuil Wasgoed, Nommer 37) and a television series (Buurtwag).โ Says Karen Meiring M-Net Director: kykNET Channels
Filmmakers such as Christiaan Olwagen, Renรฉ en Cornรฉ van Rooyen, Nosipho Dumisa, Travis Taute, Bennie Fourie and Bouwer Bosch to name only a few, are previous winners that have become key role players in the industry.
According to Meiring: โThe financial contribution that kykNET makes towards this project is an investment in the future of Afrikaans film.โ
Filmmakers enter the competition by submitting a one-page proposal and are judged anonymously and on concept only. This year 258 entries were received and 31 films were invited to take part in the script workshops in Johannesburg and Cape Town. Final scripts were submitted from which the top 21 were selected.
There are 10 mentors that guide the filmmakers through the process from script to post production. These mentors included on script Beer Adriaanse, Bennie Fourie, Brett. M. Innes and Etienne Fourie and production support from Johan Kruger, Josh Rous, Jozua Malherbe, Luke Rous, Nosipho Dumisa and Travis Taute.
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The 2017 kykNET Silwerskerm films will be available on Showmax in November.