Pan African Visions

All new Jozi Film Festival Award category, in partnership with Discovery Channel, kicks off 2017 call for submissions

February 01, 2017

Submissions for the sixth annual Jozi Film Festival (JFF) open on Monday 6 February 2017. As always, JFF is calling for feature films, short fiction films, documentaries (both short and long) as well as student films, both from South Africa and internationally. For the first time, the Jozi Film Festival is thrilled to be partnering with Discovery Networks to launch a brand new category to this year's lineup. The "Discovery Channel Don't Stop Wondering Award" will call for 2-5 minute documentaries from filmmakers across Africa which showcase and celebrate unique African stories and capture Discovery's ethos of sparking curiosity. This is an Africa-wide search for filmmaking talent that carries a cash prize from Discovery Channel of $5,000 for the final winner to go towards their next filming project. Entry is free and multiple entries are welcome.

"For over 30 years Discovery has been satisfying curiosity, breaking ground with high-quality factual entertainment programming that inspires and entertains audiences around the world," said Lee Hobbs, VP of Brand & Content, Discovery Networks CEEMEA. "Discovery Channel's Don't Stop Wondering brand positioning is a call to action; a challenge to always remain curious and celebrate the value of treading your own path. Through this new partnership with the Jozi Film Festival, we hope to discover films that showcase what curiosity means to individuals today, all shot within a contemporary African context, and celebrate the continent's remarkable filmmaking talent." The Top 10 films as selected by a JFF and Discovery jury will be broadcast on Discovery Channel in July and August, and later at the sixth annual Jozi Film Festival in September. The winning film will be selected by popular vote via the voting tool on Discovery's website: www.discoverychannelafrica.com and the winner will be flown to Johannesburg to receive their prize at the Jozi Film Festival awards to be held on 24 September 2017. Entrants must be 18 years or older and must reside on the African continent. Submissions for this category open at 12:00 on 6 February 2017 and close at 18:00 on 31 May 2017. For more information on how to submit to JFF2017, please visit www.jozifilmfestival.co.za or www.DiscoveryChannelAfrica.com

Discovery Communications (Nasdaq: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) satisfies curiosity and engages superfans with a portfolio of premium nonfiction, sports and kids programming brands. Reaching 3 billion cumulative viewers across pay-TV and free-to-air platforms in more than 220 countries and territories, Discovery's portfolio includes the global brands Discovery Channel, TLC, Investigation Discovery, Animal Planet, Science and Turbo/Velocity, as well as OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network in the U.S., Discovery Kids in Latin America, and Eurosport, the leading provider of locally relevant, premium sports content across Europe. Discovery reaches audiences across screens through digital-first programming from Discovery VR, over-the-top offerings Eurosport Player and Dplay, as well as TV Everywhere products comprising the GO portfolio of TVE apps and Discovery K!ds Play.

The Jozi Film Festival was initially created to provide a platform for local filmmakers in Johannesburg, and to develop an audience for South African films. While still prioritizing local film, JFF now accept films from around the world - features, short films, documentaries and student films. We are the longest running multi-genre festival in the City of Gold and our motto remains the same from Day One: We Love Jozi. We Love Film.

The Jozi Film Festival strongly supports independent films.