"Ayanda" next screens at the ongoing Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles this Sunday, February 14, at 5:30 pm. For ticket information and other details click here. *** What does modern Africa look like? For the American film audience, this is not a common question. The narratives of contemporary African countries and their inhabitants remain marginalized, which makes the concept of a film like Sara Blecher’s "Ayanda" all the more exciting, especially when it’s being released under the banner of Ava DuVernay’s film collective Array. And indeed, the mere prospect of a South African woman director, teaming with a woman producer to tell the fictional,...
- 2/10/2016
- by Shannon M. Houston
- ShadowAndAct
A double-shot of Array news this afternoon... First, the distribution company founded by Ava DuVernay has announced the Netflix releases of its most recent acquisitions: Sara Blecher's "Ayanda" and Takeshi Fukagana's Spirit Award nominated "Out of My Hand." Set in the vibrant, Afropolitan community of Johannesburg’s Yeoville, "Ayanda" is a coming-of-age story of a 21-year-old "Afro-hipster," who embarks on a journey of self-discovery, when she has to fight to save her late father’s legacy – a motor repair shop - when it is threatened with closure. She’s thrown into a world of gender stereotypes and abandoned vintage cars once loved,...
- 1/19/2016
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
Exclusive: Nfdc’s Co-Production Market project On the Way to Paradise has received funding from three separate government bodies in South Africa: the Department of Trade and Industry, the National Film and Video Foundation and KwaZulu-Natal Film Commission.
Director Sara Blecher’s Real Eyes Films has also secured a pre-sale deal with South African TV network M-Net.
On The Way To Paradise has now raised half of its $1.5m funding, and producer Imraan Jeeva is at Film Bazaar looking for the final financing.
The project is on track to start shooting in early 2016 in Johannesburg’s vibrant immigrant-filled suburb Mayfair.
Blecher’s first English-language film is loosely inspired by The Godfather, as the story revolves around a young Muslim man of uncompromised integrity who is drawn unwillingly into his father’s money laundering scheme.
Blecher’s Ayanda, a social drama about a young woman who inherits a garage from her Nigerian father, opened this year...
Director Sara Blecher’s Real Eyes Films has also secured a pre-sale deal with South African TV network M-Net.
On The Way To Paradise has now raised half of its $1.5m funding, and producer Imraan Jeeva is at Film Bazaar looking for the final financing.
The project is on track to start shooting in early 2016 in Johannesburg’s vibrant immigrant-filled suburb Mayfair.
Blecher’s first English-language film is loosely inspired by The Godfather, as the story revolves around a young Muslim man of uncompromised integrity who is drawn unwillingly into his father’s money laundering scheme.
Blecher’s Ayanda, a social drama about a young woman who inherits a garage from her Nigerian father, opened this year...
- 11/21/2015
- ScreenDaily
Array, the re-launching of the distribution collective previously known as Affrm, opens two films today: South African drama "Ayanda," directed by Sara Blecher ("Otelo Burning") and Takeshi Fukunaga’s directorial debut, "Out of My Hand." Both films kicking off their theatrical runs starting today, November 13, in Los Angeles and New York City, followed by a national tour to include Atlanta, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Seattle, Houston and Boston. “'Ayanda' and 'Out of My Hand' are films that represent the breadth and width of diverse filmmaking. A drama dissecting love in all forms directed by a South African woman, and a story of...
- 11/13/2015
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
It’s been in a banner year for South African filmmaking. “Hear Me Move”, a film that marries traditional South African moves with Western dance, has been screened at festivals around the world, and was a box office hit in South Africa. “The Endless River” received massive critical acclaim, including a breakout role for newcomer Crystal Donna Roberts. Tebogo Malope’s “For Love and Broken Bones”, where a ruthless debt collector falls in love with the wedding planner he’s supposed to collect from, made huge waves on the film festival circuit. Now comes “Ayanda and the Mechanic”, the coming of age story of an entrepreneurial young woman desperately hanging on to her late father’s memory while...
- 11/13/2015
- by Martine Jean
- ShadowAndAct
What does modern Africa look like? For the American film audience, this is not a common question. The narratives of contemporary African countries and their inhabitants remain marginalized, which makes the concept of a film like Sara Blecher’s "Ayanda" all the more exciting, especially when it’s being released under the banner of Ava DuVernay’s film collective Array. And indeed, the mere prospect of a South African woman director, teaming with a woman producer to tell the fictional, coming-of-age story of a woman mechanic is thrilling. As a result, one’s expectations for this film might be unfairly high. And although "Ayanda" does not deliver on all fronts,...
- 11/10/2015
- by Shannon M. Houston
- ShadowAndAct
Just over a month after the distribution collective announced its re-launching, along with what will be its next two releases ("Ayanda" and "Out of My Hand"), Array Releasing has now set a Fall 2015 special "double feature theatrical experience" that will include both pickups, kicking off on November 13 in Los Angeles and New York City, followed by a national tour to include Atlanta, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Seattle, Houston and Boston. Directed by South African filmmaker Sara Blecher, "Ayanda" is set in the vibrant, Afropolitan community of Johannesburg’s Yeoville, and tells a...
- 10/21/2015
- by Tambay A. Obenson
- ShadowAndAct
★★★☆☆ Blurring the lines between documentary and fiction, South African director Sara Blecher's Ayanda (2015) is, on the one hand, an energetic and intimate tale of one woman's plight to save her family garage business. This personal thread serves as the cornerstone of a broader portrait of the whole continent by fictional photojournalist 'The Expressionist' (Minenhle Nqaba Shazi), his moral and social insider's point of view seeking to highlight what it means to be African outside of the (Western) misconceptions of war, famine and strife.
- 10/13/2015
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
Top brass at the 21st Los Angeles Film Festival have announced the Us Fiction, Documentary and World Competition sections.
Seventy-four films in total will screen at the event, scheduled to run from June 10-18, while 54 play in competition including 39 world premieres.
Organisers pointed out that nearly 40% of the directors in the six competitive categories are female and nearly 30% of the films are directed by people of colour.
New sections this year are the Us Fiction and World Fiction Competitions and Launch, as well as the previously announced Buzz, Nightfall and Zeitgeist programmes.
The Launch section is designed to showcase innovative storytelling crafted in digital media including music videos, web series, podcasts, interactive games and digital activism shorts.
Selections include Making Cool Sh*t: The Music Videos Of Ok Go followed by a talk with frontman and director Damian Kulash and Funny Or Die’s Make ‘Em Laff Showcase.
Among the Us Fiction Competition entries are world premieres...
Seventy-four films in total will screen at the event, scheduled to run from June 10-18, while 54 play in competition including 39 world premieres.
Organisers pointed out that nearly 40% of the directors in the six competitive categories are female and nearly 30% of the films are directed by people of colour.
New sections this year are the Us Fiction and World Fiction Competitions and Launch, as well as the previously announced Buzz, Nightfall and Zeitgeist programmes.
The Launch section is designed to showcase innovative storytelling crafted in digital media including music videos, web series, podcasts, interactive games and digital activism shorts.
Selections include Making Cool Sh*t: The Music Videos Of Ok Go followed by a talk with frontman and director Damian Kulash and Funny Or Die’s Make ‘Em Laff Showcase.
Among the Us Fiction Competition entries are world premieres...
- 5/5/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
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