Higher Education News South Africa

Curro buys AFDA film school

AFDA has been incorporated into the Curro Holdings' wholly owned tertiary education subsidiary, Stadio Investments, the AFDA board of directors and co-founders, Garth Holmes and Bata Passchier, announced today.
Garth Holmes and Bata Passchier
Garth Holmes and Bata Passchier

The institution has grown from six students, a broken TV and rented VCR to over 3,500 alumni, 2,000 full-time students, five campuses and nine fully accredited degrees. This year, AFDA alumni scooped 20 SAFTA awards out of 46 nominations, including best actress, best film, best director, best screenplay, best cinematographer, best editing, best sound design, best costume, make up and styling as well as the Youth Achievement award.

“In 1994, we had a vision to create world class film, television and drama schools across the country that would produce graduates with the skills and attitude to develop a new democratic cultural voice and sustainable local entertainment industry," says Holmes.

In the last 23 years, AFDA graduates continue to make a significant impact on the film, television and performance industries, with their powerful network of skilled and creative alumni, producing top class theatre, television series and record breaking box office films.

“AFDA believe that with Stadio, we will have the necessary resources to ramp up our existing degree and certificate offers. Similarly, we will have the backing to make significant strides to meet the challenges and opportunities of the ever - expanding creative economy,” says Passchier – in so doing, realizing the new AFDA vision to optimize the vocational opportunities of content creation and business and technological innovations.

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