The Centre for Creative Arts (CCA) within the College of Humanities will host the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) from 21 to 30 July. The 43rd edition of the festival programme speaks to the curatorial theme Adaptation, Survival and Sustainability. The festival will present a selection of South African premieres, which include diverse features, documentaries and shorts, as live screenings at Suncoast CineCentre in collaboration with the Avalon Group.
The festival has curated a hybrid programme consisting of almost 200 features, documentaries, shorts and student films. The selected films, programmed by national and international film professionals, highlight alternative views through different lenses
Festival Manager, Ms Valma Pfaff said, ‘The DIFF prides itself on discovering and nurturing new talent, and each year we select films from filmmakers from various countries, including first-time feature-length directors. The 43rd edition is no exception with almost 30% directorial debut feature-length films programmed, which we are very excited about.’
The festival will open with 1960, a drama feature film set in SophiaTown and directed by King Shaft and Michael Mutombo. The film follows a retired singer who revisits her past to assist with an investigation of an apartheid-era policeman.
The closing film is You’re My Favourite Place, the fifth feature film directed by acclaimed and prolific South African director Jahmil X.T. Qubeka. It centres around a young girl played by Tumie Ngumla from the roughest part of East London whose life has never been the same since the death of her sister Anathi. On the last day of their high school careers, she and three friends embark on a life-defining road trip by stealing a taxi and heading to the remote landmark of Hole in the Wall, where Xhosa legend has it you can talk to the dead.
The DIFF 2022 will be presented in a hybrid edition with online screenings at www.durbanfilmfest.com and a diverse live programme at Suncoast CineCentre. Information on the live screenings is available at https://ccadiff.ukzn.ac.za/live-screenings/
Tickets for the live screenings are available at the Suncoast CineCentre www.cinecentre.co.za. The entire festival programme is available at www.durbanfilmfest.com
