By Boitumelo Nte and Julian Jacobs, Journalism and Media Studies students
The Rhodes University School of Journalism and Media Studies (JMS) held a collaborative film seminar, Kindo Kadre and the Dream of the Cinema: Outside, Against and Beyond the Abyss, with the Kino Kadre Community Cinema Circle at the Fingo Village Library in Makhanda. The seminar formed part of the Mellon 30th Anniversary Seminar Programme hosted by the JMS in October.
Kino Kadre, a Cape-originating group of film artists documenting township stories, led the Fingo event by showcasing their Love and Faya movie, and engaged with the audience on the making of township cinematic projects. Love and Faya is a fiction feature film portraying the love story of two Cape Townian youths during the tumultuous uprisings of the ‘80s in Bonteheuwel, on the Cape Flats.
When opening the event, Kino Kadre’s Eugene Paramoer (JMS PhD candidate and writer of Love and Faya), said that the idea behind the screening was to “share the experiences of film artists and film activists, with the aim of understanding how cinema can assist social transformation in South Africa”.
Other members of the group spoke after the screening, and stressed that it is communities that drive the success of Kino Kadre’s storytelling. Speaking with direct reference to Love and Faya, the group’s Quinton van Wyk told the audience that “the communities of Bonteheuwel and Langa taught us a lot, and helped us figure out much of the process as we went along”. Enkosi Mkhaliphi added that Kino Kadre values the film-making process, and ensures that community members are heard and protected throughout their projects’ life spans.
The film’s screening was followed by a robust question-and-answer session; where arts creatives from Fingo, and students and academics from Rhodes University’s JMS and Drama departments engaged the group.
As part of the Kino Kadre cinema circle initiative, JMS is working with the Makhanda Black Kollective in teaching learners how to use cameras to tell their stories.