DIFF calls for entries for 2014

27 Nov 2013

The Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) will celebrate its 35th edition from 17-27 July 2014 with over 250 screenings of cutting-edge cinema from around the world, and special focus on films from South African and Africa.

The largest of Southern Africa's film festivals, and the most important film festival in Africa, DIFF hosts a film competition component and also presents screenings in township areas where cinemas are non-existent.

The festival will consider films completed in 2013 and 2014, and there is no charge for entry. All submissions must be entered via the Eventival online system. In order to submit a film you will need to create a visitor account if you have not already done so in past years. The deadline for all entries, including delivery of screeners, is 28 March 2014 for short films, documentaries and feature fiction films.

The extensive seminar and workshop programme featuring local and international filmmakers and industry professionals includes the 7th Talent Campus Durban (19-23 July) in cooperation with Berlinale Talent Campus, and the 5th Durban FilmMart (19-22 July) in partnership with Durban Film Office, as well as various other streams of programming including Durban Wild Talk Africa and Wavescape.

Specific streams of programming for 2014 will include a focus on 20 years of democracy in South Africa, as well as films that explore architecture in various ways. This latter stream of programming acknowledges the World Congress of Architects which will take place in Durban in 2014, the week after DIFF.

"We look forward to once again receiving a wealth of top quality films from around the globe," says festival manager, Peter Machen. "We also welcome input from and engagement with current and potential partners who support the development of the film industry on the continent. It is through collaboration that we can offer film-makers and the public a festival of brilliant film and a worthwhile industry development programme."

The festival is supported by the National Film and Video Foundation, the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Economic Development and Tourism, the City of Durban and other valued funders and partners.

For more, got to www.durbanfilmfest.co.za, e-mail az.ca.nzku@ffid or follow @DIFFest on Twitter.