680 graduate in film-making

Luthando Mapepa Chipinge Correspondent
At least 680 people across the country recently received film and television content creation certificates after undertaking lessons with the Zimbabwe Film and Television School of Southern Africa (ZIFTESSA).

This was said by ZIFTESSA director Dr Rino Zhuwarara at Chipinge Primary School recently where 36 of the 680 graduates received their certificates.

In an interview last week, Dr Zhuwarara said the purpose of training people was to make sure that there were more players in the film sector before more television stations were launched through the digitisation project.

“Right now most of our film-makers come from Bulawayo and Harare and we cannot continue having a few players in the industry,” he said.

“We are on a whirlwind mission across the country to train more people so that locals will be equipped with skills on how to make films.

“We have trained almost 680 people and time and resources permitting, we will introduce advanced skills training and more training to keep refreshing their skills.”

Dr Zhuwarara said local content creation was expected to save the Government millions of dollars in the future.

He said film was a multimillion-dollar industry, which could help generate much-needed revenue for Government if given more attention.

“The Government has come to the realisation that the film sector is not something peripheral or marginal,” said Dr Zhuwarara.

“For years our local broadcasters grappled with foreign currency challenges as they sought to buy content outside the country because there was none being generated locally for use in their stations.

“In countries like Nigeria they are making more money from production services and Zimbabwe can also do that. More importantly, the film industry can create employment opportunities. For instance, one production can take up to 30 people and during the project it means people can be gainfully employed.

“They will be also generating social value, so it’s very important to look at the film sector as a business, which presents employment creation opportunities.”