adminStephen Chifunyise Own Correspondent
Recent reports of progress in the digitisation of the radio and television channels of Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation are most welcome news to creative content producers in the audio-visual industry.
Digitisation of our national broadcasting network will in many respects enable Zimbabwe to effectively implement the UNESCO 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions which Zimbabwe ratified in 2008.
The Convention observes that “cultural diversity forms a common heritage of humanity that should be cherished and preserved for the benefit of all; that culture takes diverse form across time and place and that this diversity is embodied in the uniqueness of plurality of the identities and cultural expressions of the peoples and society making up humanity.”
Some of the critical objectives of this Convention include the following:
to create conditions for cultures to flourish and to freely interact in a mutually beneficial manner;
to promote respect for the diversity of cultural expressions and raise awareness of its value at the local, national and international levels;
to give recognition to the distinct nature of cultural activities, goods and services as vehicles of identity, value and meaning.
The Convention’s International Fund for Cultural Diversity (IFCD) has since 2011 assisted Zimbabwe with funds for projects at validating the contribution of culture to national economy, the capacity building of arts organisations and the development of a national copyright strategy.
For ZBC to enable the cultural and creative industries to prosper through the digitisation of radio and television channels, a new relationship of respect, trust, partnership and collaboration with independent creative content producers would have to be established.
It will be futile for ZBC to have ten television channels dedicated for documentaries, music, children’s programmes, talk-shows, drama, soaps, news, feature films and cartoons without putting aside financial resource to buy or support the production of local creative content.
During the analogue area ZBC could not develop a viable downstream industry of producing and marketing good quality copies of the excellent local dramas that exhibited a rich diversity of our cultural expressions.
The advantage of digital format which allows information to be communicated and transferred without the degradation of originals in subsequent copies , is that broadcasting and content producing media houses can develop viable local and international market of digitised local artistic products.
Digitization also allows closer integration of production lines of films, books and music. It therefore means that ZBC can be transformed by digitization into a viable and profitable business unit effectively benefiting creative content producers and the Government as a shareholder and reducing national dependence on foreign produced creative content.
There is no doubt that for the local audio-visual industry to benefit from the digitization of ZBC, efforts of creative content producers to promote professional and viable relationship with ZBC should be consolidated.
One such effort was the established in June of the Zimbabwe Independent Producers Association (ZIPA) whose main objective is to “promote motion picture production, capacitating of motion picture production personnel and all services that ensure the growth and sustainability of the industry” as well as to “promote and foster good relationships between independent producers and organisations with whom the industry is in association with.”
Another effort, in this regard, was the submission in August 2014, to the Government of Zimbabwe through the Ministry of Sport, Arts and Culture, a paper by Nocks Chatiza on behalf of the Film Makers Guild of Zimbabwe (FMGoZ) that was considered to be “a comprehensive and accessible description and analysis of the process of film production, financing, practice and challenges that should be tackled to achieve a full realisation of a viable audio-visual industry in Zimbabwe.”
In this paper, FMGoZ lists the following as serious challenges being faced by the film industry in Zimbabwe: absence of a national film policy; lack of government commitment to the film industry; insufficient participation of the private sector in film production activities; lack of funding; absence of a viable domestic film market and lack of training opportunities for people who enter the film industry as well as for producers, directors and script writers currently working in the film industry.
FMGoZ propose in this paper, the establishment of the Film Council of Zimbabwe that would “research and propose legislation and government funding of the film and television industry”.
The paper concludes by indicating that “Zimbabwean story tellers have their own narratives which spring from the ethos, cultures and lifestyles of Zimbabwean people” and that the main objective of FMGoZ is to “celebrate Zimbabwe’s common humanity, unity in diversity and mutual quest for knowledge and learning through creativity, innovation and indigenous expressions.”
Also considered critical to the development of a viable audio-visual industry in Zimbabwe were the 19 proposals by Independent Producers “towards the rejuvenating and capacitating the electronic media production sector”submitted to the Information and Media Panel of Inquiry (IMPI) in 2013.
Also presented to the IMPI on behalf of Zimbabwean film makers by the Zimbabwe Film Industry Development Committee were recommendations for the establishment of a National Film Board “to make better provisions for the development of a dynamic, professional and self-sustaining Zimbabwe film making industry that is globally competitive.”
The Committee also recommended to the Ministry of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services the establishment of a National Film Fund that would comprise a film development fund, local feature film fund and a commercial film revolving fund.
The main objective of the proposed film fund would be:
to provide bursaries to promising student to study film making;
to support film training workshops, the production of television documentaries
to support script develop, film festivals and marketing of films
to provide “ seed money in the form of loans and capital investment with the aim of attracting private investment of deserving film projects with potential to generate profit”.
If these bold and foresighted proposals and recommendations are taken on board and action is taken as recommended, the viable film industry that the national requires will materialise.
The establishment in 2013 of the Zimbabwe Chamber of Creative Industry is another worthwhile national effort towards finding solutions to problems hindering the development of the cultural and creative sector.
Unfortunately, creative professionals who were delighted to receive news of the establishment of chamber have begun to think that the organisation has already collapsed.
Its lack of activity and visibility may be a clear sign of its demise.
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