Filmmaking in South Africa

Today was a grand film day. I started by getting up just before 7am to head to the airport to shoot the arrival of 5 girls on our program. After returning, I interviewed Nicole, bringing me up to about 8 people from our group interviewed so far.

Shortly afterwards, I met up with a South African cameraman I connected with through cml (a cinematography professional's newsgroup). Yes, I am meeting people through the internet! His name is Jacques, and he was very kind to me. He took me to lunch in an area called Rosebank - the first interesting place I've been in Jo-Burg so far. Then he took me to the Panasonic regional headquarters, and the city's largest video rental house. I got to meet several of the people who can provide me with support if anything goes off while I'm over here. It's always good to have back-up plans! I also got to talk shop with people who know their stuff, which I always love to do.

It also makes me think of my time in Cape Town in November, where I got tours of the studios, Panavision, etc. My impression is that people in the South African film industry are extremely friendly and supportive of each other. It's great!

Tonight we are going to have a welcome dinner, and then freeze in our hostel again. All those people that were worried about me getting sunburn can relax I think, but we'll see what the weather is like in Zambia.

Ciao
David