New board for The Producers Alliance

The TPA was set up to stimulate film and television and related media production with particular reference to emerging and independent producers, and to engage and lobby all industry stakeholders towards developing a sustainable film and television industry.

At the AGM, which took place on Wednesday 28 March 2007 at Atlas Studios in Johannesburg, the following members were elected to the board:

• Akin Omotoso
  
• Bridget Pickering
  
• Dan Jawitz
  
• Kenneth Kaplan
  
• Neil Brandt
  
• Pule Diphare
  
• Robbie Thorpe
  
• Tendeka Matatu

All in all, 50 members voted, some by proxy, allowing non-Johannesburg members a chance to participate. Jihan El-Tahri and Rachel Laureles supervised the elections. Twenty members were nominated with four nominations from Cape Town.

Board members will hold office until the next AGM in one year’s time. They will vote in a chairperson at the first board meeting and will co-opt up to two Cape Town-based members onto the board.

Outgoing acting chairperson Pickering thanked the 10 members of the outgoing “interim” board and the various sub-committees for their services to the association, and said in her chairperson’s report that the TPA had already made significant contributions to the development of the production industry through its on-going engagement with the SABC over IP, operational issues and the SABC Film Fund, and with the DTI over the new rebate scheme and the implementation of new BBBEE Industry codes.

She also said the TPA Sub-committees were working closely with the IPO and SASFED and that these organisations had formed an alliance to advance their common cause.