Maruta appointed ZIFFT acting director

was the director of the festival, left to focus on other commitments.
This means that Maruta will be heading this year’s edition of the film fete, which is expected to run from September 30 to October 7 in the Harare Gardens.
A filmmaker of repute, Maruta is famous for her role as the executive director of the International Video Fair Trust based in Harare. She brings to ZIFF a wealth of experience, which saw her establishing the International Video Fair Trust out of her passion for filmmaking.
Maruta’s vast experience in the film industry spans 15 years, having started in January 1996, specialising in motion pictures.
According to her words, what motivates her to make more films is the desire to “provide an access to information for the masses of Southern Africa through the medium of film and interactive discussion after a screening”.
“We strongly believe that film digital video is the development tool for Africa and its masses of under educated citizens.”
Meanwhile, the 14th edition of the Zimbabwe International Film Festival will be held in the Harare Gardens’ Open Air Theatre for the main events while free public screenings will be held in the Book Fair Arena.
This marks departure from the norm after previous editions of the festival were held at the ZIFFT offices in Avondale, Harare, and other satellite venues. The festival, to be held under the theme “Finding Common Ground”, is aimed at uniting people across the globe through the medium of film.
Its focus this year will be on African films, a term that has caught the fancy of many film lovers these days.
While Nigerian film industry popularly known as Nollywood has been dominating in pushing forward the concept of African films, those from the Democratic Republic of Congo like “Viva Riva!” will also be screened.
Maruta said there was need to promote films from the African continent since people relate to issues portrayed in them.
“For Africa to realise its own development vision, images for this vision need to be shown. We cannot create the future if we cannot visualise it. The place of visual media is to create success. Film festivals are instruments for a new visual folklore. Filmmaking in Africa and the Diaspora portrays images of Africa to the rest of the world and conveys images of Africa to Africans in the 21st century,” she said.