South Africans are not choosing to see their own stories on the big screen, even though the films are being made THOUGH many do well in international film festivals, movies made by South Africans are not always welcomed at home. In 2004 the department of trade & industry (DTI) launched its foreign film and television production incentive, aimed at growing the local film industry. It has since assisted in the production of more than 400 locally made films.The scheme is simple enough: it offers a 35% rebate on the first R6m if a home-grown film meets all the criteria. With this in place the industry should be booming, but the variable often overlooked is the audience. SA box office figures reveal a sad tale — local audience attendance is sorely lacking. Factors including the rise of home entertainment systems and Internet downloads all play a part. But a closer look at the figures shows that SA-made films simply do not perform as well as their international counterparts. Another big p...
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