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WELCOME TO THE WILDLIFE FILM ACADEMY NEWSLETTER 10 Learn the art of wildlife filmmaking in Cape Town, South Africa. This intensive one-month course, offers lectures by industry professionals, includes a spectacular all expenses paid field trip to a premier game reserve, and each student produces their own unique five-minute short film. The Wildlife Film Academy is offering a discount on the July course, which runs from 30 July – 29 August 2008. To maximise the experience that students gain from attending the course and to ensure the most professional tuition - spaces are limited to 10 students per course. If you are interested in booking for this course email info@wildlifefilmacademy.com |
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UPDATE ON CURRENT WILDLIFE FILM ACADEMY STUDENTS It’s winter in South Africa and with the seasonal change, bushes are no longer as dense, grasses not as tall, making it so much easier to have excellent game sightings. And amazing sightings the students had – large herds of buffalo, mating hippos, dust-bathing elephants, a pride of lions, crocodiles, baboons, rhino, and two sightings of leopard on a night drive. The birdlife and smaller insects were just as riveting and students zoomed in on them. Staying in tented camps, surrounded by the bush in the Kruger National Park, students worked from dawn until dusk, getting very little sleep. With aspiring wildlife filmmakers on board there was no time to rest and the days were filled with filming of sunrises and sunsets, scenics, time lapses, game sightings, cutaway shots, all necessary to produce a captivating wildlife film. On the field trip, the students learnt to deal with all the different aspects of wildlife filmmaking, from pushing the boundaries of wildlife ethics, shooting according to the final edit of the programme and to dealing with condensed cameras and other technical problems. But above all, they learnt how exciting, rewarding and mind blowing wildlife filmmaking can be. The field trip enriched them with fantastic experiences and unforgettable moments…it was indeed an exhilarating and fun expedition being in the African bush. |
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SCREENING OF STUDENT WILDLIFE FILMS
The students on the current course will be screening their films, for the first time on the big screen at the Labia Cinema in Gardens on Wednesday, 9 July from 16h00 – 17h00. The films are: The Protector by Izaak Steyn Animal bites by Luca Bodello A witness’s testimony by David Riley See more, hear more, feel more. Get the most from your safari by Peter Braat African Salsa by Mike Amos Wild Tales: Nature’s storytellers by Sarah Wilson In the time that we have by Danielle Kinley Tiny giants by Sergio Squilloni 15 kilometres: Life along the river by Khanyo Nzunzu CollecTough Animals by Yolandi Du Plessis
Each student will present their 5 minute film, make mention of their highlights and challenges during production, and answer questions from the audience. There is no charge, however to secure a seat email info@wildlifefilmacademy.com or call 021 422 5363.
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ANIMAL PLANET'S.....IN TOO DEEP Be it the ice-cold tundra, bug infested jungles, suffocating swampland or scorched desert, animal life survives in the harshest of environments and Animal Planet is on a mission to find out how. How does a fog basking beetle find water in the driest deserts? How strong is the electric shock produced by an eel in the Amazon? And how does a swift navigate its way through the swamps of Borneo? In Too Deep is a light-hearted animal adventure programme that sees presenter and adrenalin junkie, Jamie Crawford, travelling through the world’s harshest climates and terrains in search of the most intriguing animal adaptations. This series focuses on a highly visual comparison between man and animal that highlights the brilliance of evolution’s adaptations, demonstrated through the frailties of the human body. Our presenter really will beIn Too Deep, struggling physically and mentally with the challenges of the wild while trying to demonstrate the amazing animal capabilities with quirky homemade devices and extreme stunts. Catch up with Jamie, as he travels far and wide in search of the ultimate animal adaptations, from the Everglades of Florida to the Namib Desert, the rainforests of South America and the icy shores of Alaska, in, In Too Deep. Consult your local TV listings for schedule times. UK Premiere: 20th July at 8.00pm |
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NEWS FROM FILMMAKERS IN THE FIELD The Wildlife Film Academy interviewed Paul Redman. Since 2000 Paul has been making campaign films with the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). These films have involved investigating and documenting environmental crime using covert and open filming techniques in some of the remotest parts of the world. He has also trained over 100 civil society groups in Indonesia and India to use video to campaign for change. He recently started his own production company, Handcrafted Films, whose first set of films won ‘Best Cultural Message’ at the Montana International Wildlife Festival. 1 What are you currently working on and who commissioned it? “I am currently putting together a film on the 88 demonstrations in Burma and how the military’s grip on power was based on the sale of timber. We will then show how the situation is similar today. It is funded by the UK Governments Department for International Development (DFID). I am also heading out to Indonesia in July to finish training a group of Papuans on how to use video as an advocacy tool. This is the end of a 6 year project that has created a network of video activists through out Indonesia. This work is with the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) working on environmental trade using investigative journalism techniques. The last set of films I made with my production company, Handcrafted Films, have also just won some awards so we are now finding new avenues to distribute them. Making the film was easy but distribution is all consuming.” 2 What has been your most memorable / hair-raising experience whilst out there filming? “There are many memorable moments but for me it is when the films have a perceivable affect on your subject. So, with this in mind, one of my most memorable moments was filming the tiger skin trade in Tibet in 2005. The amount of skins being worn by Tibetans then was staggering. Nobody had shown the scale of this skin use so we did just that. Once the footage was seen by the Dalai Lama, and he made a statement asking Tibetans not to wear it, the impact was astonishing. I returned in 2006 to find that around 80 to 90 percent of the skins were not being worn anymore. It is this ability for video to make a difference that consistently has a profound affect on me. Working with a pioneering NGO like EIA has allowed me to do this. Video is a very powerful tool when used correctly and shown to the right audience.” 3 What is your advice for newcomers to the industry? “If you don’t like how the world or the industry works, change it. There is funding for films that are beyond the constrains of the TV industry. Make films that you are proud of, on issues that you are passionate about, and keep on doing it. People will see how worthwhile your films are and they may even pay for you to keep making them.” |
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HD EQUIPMENT FOR HIRE The NHU AFRICA (Natural History Unit), based in Cape Town, has a wide range of equipment, including the latest HD equipment, which is available for hire at vastly discounted rates to help with your budgeting constraints on wildlife and natural history productions. For more information about the rental rates for cameras and other gear email lianne@nhuafrica.com or geta@nhuafrica.com or telephone +27 21 422 0012. CAMERA FOR SALE Second hand HDV Canon XHA1, less than 40 hours of recording to date, and includes 3 batteries, for R28 000. Contact Marna +27 82 374 4492.
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CALL FOR ROSCAR FILM ENTRIES The call for ROSCAR film entries is now open. In a celebration of natural history, eco-tourism and cultural filmmaking, the ROSCAR Awards will be awarded to filmmakers during a prestigious gala evening event during the Durban Wild Talk Africa Festival, which runs in April 2009. For Newcomers to the industry, there is an Award for the Best Newcomer. It doesn’t matter how long your film is (can be 5 minutes or over an hour). To qualify as a Newcomer, you should only have been producing films from January 2007 onwards. For more information, visit www.wildtalkafrica.com |
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NEWS FROM PAST STUDENTS News from past student, Cristian Ilea, email cristilealin@yahoo.com “After spending 4 years at Film School, and many years in television, one might get the impression that there is nothing else to be learnt or to be done in this field. However, after working for 10 years with the Romanian National Television filming various programmes, shows, news, political and social documentaries, travel shows and entertainment, I felt that something was missing. Today I realize that the Wildlife Film Academy was the missing bit. Why? Because the Wildlife Film Academy is a unique experience. The tutors are very passionate and always willing to share their experience with the students, and have answers to all the questions. There is no way of leaving the Academy without having learnt something new, regardless of your level of training. The course is well-structured, both amateurs and professional people have something to learn. The week I spent in Kruger National Park showed me the direction I want to follow from now on. It literally changed my life. Meeting wild animals is absolutely magical. Nothing compares to their energy. Ever since my return back home to Romania, I can only think of my new project about the brown bears. It has been a month already since I have been researching them. Romania is Europe's largest wild animal growing country but not many people know this. I sincerely hope that Romania will soon become an important spot on the map of the wildlife film industry.”
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INTERNS AVAILABLE
The Wildlife Film Academy has a number of students who have completed the wildlife filmmaking course, and are now brimming with enthusiasm and creative energy and would welcome any internships in South Africa and abroad. Should you be interested in employing an intern please email info@wildlifefilmacademy.com
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THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS
Animal Planet - www.animalplanet.co.uk NFVF - www.nfvf.co.za Lizard Entertainment - www.lizardentertainment.co.za |
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CONTACT DETAILS
Wildlife
Film Academy www.wildlifefilmacademy.com Should you wish to unsubscribe to this newsletter, please reply with unsubscribe in the subject line or click on the link below. |
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