By Martin Mhando
Published February 19, 2023
Zanzibar International Film Festival, popularly known as ZIFF, has opened a Call for applications for films in the Festival. African films (including those from the Diaspora) and films from the Caribbean – i.e South East Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, the Persian Gulf, Iran, Pakistan, India and the Indian Ocean Islands – are also in competition.
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This was said by the Festival Director, Martin Mhando, when he opened a new window to submit films for this year’s competition.
Films to be competed for must have been completed before March 12, 2023 and after 2021. Many Tanzanians are expected to send their short films in the competition.
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Short films from African producers can be entered into the Sembene Ousmane Awards competition where three winners walk away with seven million shillings.
“These winners are given this money to help them make another short film that will be entered in the following year’s competition, in order to give Africans the chance to excel professionally”, added Professor Mhando
The award system is a measure of value accepted by the industry as a criterion for assessing the quality of work, their creativity, innovation and status.
“One winner who won in last year’s festival has already presented his new film”, explained the director.
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Ahmed Samir from Egypt won through his film Big Day which talked about how young men have a hard time deciding to get married due to various social and family pressures. The film Room 61 made by Tanzanian Edwin Kazoka also won.
The ZIFF festival will start from June 24 to July 2 in Mji Mkongwe Zanzibar. It is the 26th festival since the establishment of ZIFF in 1998.
