27 Nov 2023

Film directors have been advised to spend more time on pre-production to cut post production expenses.

 Heather Cooke, a flim director from South Africa enlightened master class on  the intricacies of film-making during the Botswana International Film Festival at MASA Square Hotel on November 22.

The directors were told about the importance of storytelling and encouraged to develop their unique narrative voices as well as explore innovative storytelling techniques to captivate audiences.

The class aimed to equip participants with a comprehensive understanding of the various aspects of the craft, empowering them to create compelling and impactful cinematic experiences.
Led by the renowned filmmakers and industry veterans, Cooke and Thabiso Maretlwaneng who is a film director in Botswana, the masterclass covered a wide range of topics from script writing, pre-production to cinematography, editing, post-production and other aspects of the film-making process.

Cooke emphasised the importance of proof reading one’s script as well as blocking and marking it, identifying character’s turning points and scene location.

Maretlwaneng addressed the evolving landscape of the industry urging other film makers to go all out to make it a point to reach their ambitions.

“With the advent of new technologies and platforms, you need to embrace innovation and adapt to the changing dynamics of the film industry, things such as YouTube, TikTok and Facebook are being used by many influencers and perhaps that is where one can start in this journey,” he said.

The master class tailored specifically for film directors provided a unique opportunity for attendees to learn from industry experts and gain valuable insights into the art of film-making. ENDS