As far as TV is concerned, AR's show that certain local TV shows are doing well. But then again, have we made any else of a higher standard to challenge that position? It remains to be seen. As for film, there's no doubt that Hollywood obliterates any competition. Despite this, other countries are slowly starting to make genres such as thrillers, actioners etc. and those are doing well - take the Russian-made NightWatch for example. Tsotsi was by no means a ground-breaking film, and much of it's popularity locally was because it won an oscar. How many locals would have bothered watching it if it didn't? Why is the South African industry afraid to tackle this formula? Most of the time the excuse is budget. But then wouldn't it make sense to make one big-budget actioner - with the potential to attract local audiences and international ones as well - instead of making several low-budget-nobody-cares watching films? I'm sure these comments will invoke a storm of criticisms and excuses, but I can guarantee you it won't bring us any closer to making better films.
