HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, PAULINE!

 

(Pauline and Caroline celebrate a valued relationship)

artSMart editor/owner Caroline Smart, says: “Today marks the 20^th anniversary of the date that Pauline Dalais joined artSMart and eventually became my hugely-valued PA.

"We’ve been through many experiences - apart from keeping artSMart going: travelling with shows to Johannesburg and the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown (Makhanda).

"I’m also happy to load onto her all the accounting-type issues and call on her incredible memory when I can’t remember something myself!!”

'You are highly valued, Pauline, and I pray our association will long continue."

ROCK ACROSS AMERICA

 

Rhumbelow Theatre will present Rock Across America on July 5 at 19h30 and July 6 at 14h00. The venue opens 90 minutes before the show.

Rock Across America is performed by Barry Thomson & The Reals: Dawn Selby, Robz Millar, Mali Sewell, Shaun Dragt and Barry Thomson.

Rhumbelow management says: “We’re celebrating America’s top rock hits, including the artistes who developed the style of Heartland Rock in the 1970s.

This is a genre of rock music characterized by a straightforward, often roots musical style, often with a focus on blue-collar workers, and a conviction that rock music has a social or communal purpose beyond just entertainment.

“Verses in heartland rock songs often tell stories about people undergoing hard times and the choruses are often anthemic. The genre is exemplified by singer-songwriters Tom Petty, Bob Seger, Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp and Little Feat. This genre reached its commercial peak in the 1980s when it became one of the best-selling genres in the United States. In the 1990s, the major figures have continued to record with commercial success.

Paying tribute to this music is Barry Thomson and The Reals, comprising front man and guitar maestro Barry Thomson (lead guitar and vocals), Dawn Selby (keyboards and vocals), Mali Sewell (drums), Robz Millar (bass guitar and vocals) and Shaun Dragt (guitar and vocals).

Tickets R200. Booking is essential – on email please: roland@stansell.co.za or Webtickets.

Bring food picnic baskets or buy at the venue. Bar available (no alcohol may be brought on to the premises)

Limited secure parking available    

For more information contact 0824998636 or visit http://events.durbantheatre.com/

Rhumbelow Theatre is located at 42 Cunningham Road off Bartle Road, Durban

 

BEAT-ROUTE FOR ST CLEMENTS

Mondays at 6 – St Clements. Monday July 7, 2025 – 18h00

Friends of Pieter Scholtz invite patrons to come relish a mellow evening featuring the light and infectious acoustic sounds of four brilliant musos playing some seriously good music. Join Beat-Route, one of Durban’s longest running, professional jazz bands for an evening of traditional and contemporary swing.

Beat-Route was formed in 2004 by front man Daniel Sheldon (trumpet and flugle horn). With him at St Clements will be the inimitable Gerald Sloan on guitar, Logan Byrne on double bass and Bucco Xaba on drums.

“A long-standing band is one thing, a long-standing jazz band is a real feat that flies in the face of convention,” says Sheldon, who is also a music teacher and an artist (and who will talk about the band and the music and take questions). “We look forward to entertaining you with some of our favourite repertoire including an original tune or two.”

Having been around for over two decades Beat-Route has become a firm favourite on the music scene in KZN and further afield. “Our musical choices focus on the traditional swing jazz-era sound of the smaller acoustic combos and our vast repertoire reflects that. We play the evergreen classics of both the American and South African Jazz song books. But also stretch out into some more contemporary recognisable songs (Amy Winehouse, John Meyer, Stevie Wonder) — all done in our signature jazz style.”

When the donation box is passed around, the organisers suggest generosity and a minimum of R50 per person. Weather permitting, the show will take place outdoors.

Bookings limited to diners in support of St Clements restaurant and staff.

Be there in time to open your tab, order at the counter and settle in before the scheduled 18h00 start. If you wish to dine after the presentation, place your order before 18h00.

Please cancel if you book then can’t make it. (They are often at capacity.)

Table bookings essential: RSVP ST Clements +27 62 582 0980* (aka 062 582 0980)

*Please note the new St Clem number

St Clements is situated at 191 Musgrave Road in Durban. Mondays @ Six run between 18h00 and 19h00. Table bookings are essential on 062 582 0980. There is no cover charge but there is a donations box to support presenters.

KZNPO WINTER SEASON CONCERT #2: REVIEW

 

KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra

World Symphony Series Winter Season 2025 Concert 2

The Playhouse Opera

Review by David Smith

 

This occasion has not been a straightforward one for me to review.

On the one hand: while the orchestra’s management has made every effort to ease concert access (the well-subscribed bussing scheme; parking discounts; lavish programmes freely distributed), their term ‘season’ has lost its meaning: two concerts a week apart are not a season, and what was the Early Spring Season is now similarly reduced.

Thus, the progressive shrinkage of these premier offerings seems to be an unavoidable fate. Long-time supporters are seen engaged in worried conversations in the foyer, while they remain thankful for what continues.

On the other hand: these two winter concerts have seen healthy attendances marked by a diversity of listeners that is, in my experience, uncommon on the classical orchestral scene here. The ‘new faces’ seem eager for the experience and are generous in their approbation of quality playing. And that has been in good supply. They have also glimpsed, in the KZN Youth Orchestra’s contribution to last Thursday’s performance, a highly active nursery of young players who are some of the seeds of our culture to come. Under Lyk Temmingh’s direction, they delivered resolute accounts of music by Rimsky-Korsakov, Karl Jenkins and Orff. Cathy Peacock must also be commended for her co-leadership in this long-running project.

Social media had already alerted us to the presence in South Africa of the formidable Andrey Baranov, the Russian violinist based in Switzerland. His account of Lalo’s Symphonie espagnole, which is a combination of virtuoso writing and Spanish fantasy, was beautifully assured, its technicalities flying off the instrument, its low-string melodies warm and big-boned. In general, it reminded me of Arthur Grumiaux’s recordings, though Baranov’s lyrical playing had a silky tenderness and pliancy that made me long to hear more of it. Conrad von Alphen conducted the work with similar flair, and created of this unusually structured ‘concerto’ a high point in the evening.

It was his reading of Beethoven’s Pastorale Symphony that occupied the second half of the programme. For people with long acquaintance of the symphony, it is understandable that yet another rendition might threaten to be just that: a ritual reprise of an unmistakably ‘great work’. Von Alphen gave it a fresh presence without straining for romantic effects or indulging in eccentric speeds, allowing its simplicity (one of Beethoven’s hard-won achievements, given his natural bent for dramatic elaboration) to rise to the top, and encouraging its section soloists to play the game of ‘happy feelings’ (heiterer Empfindungen). It was a genuinely heartfelt response to the nobility and attraction of nature as embedded in the music.

By the same token, he unleashed a notably vehement ‘Thunderstorm’ in the fourth movement, so that, when it had past, the shepherd really had something to sing about.

No wonder that the audience could hardly contain its delight at this striking yet reposeful score, and the honest-to-goodness way in which it was executed. - David Smith

 

The Early Spring Season will take place on August 28 and September 4, 2025, in the Playhouse Opera at 19h00. Tickets available from Quicket.

For more information, click on the KZNPO advert at the top right hand of this page. This will take you to the orchestra's website.

 

8TH EDITION OF SPIER LIGHT ART 2026

 

(LRSpier-light-art-2024-Berco-Wilsenach-Written-in-the-stars-56)

Deadline: Submission entries close July 21, 2025.

 

Call for Artists: Illuminate the night at the 8th edition of Spier Light Art 2026

Artists and designers – professionals, students or collectives – are invited to submit expressions of interest for light-based and video artworks to be considered for the Spier Light Art returning to the Stellenbosch wine farm for the eighth edition in 2026.

Spier Light Art promises to once again transform the landscape with bold, experimental and thought-provoking installations from South African artists.

Running from March to April, the event has become a yearly celebration of creativity – playful, provocative, reflective and inclusive. The exhibition offers one of the largest public audiences, attracting more than 13,000 visitors in 2025.

Submission entries close July 21, 2025. The curatorial team, led by Jay Pather and Vaughn Sadie, hosted an online briefing on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, at 16h00. An on-site briefing will be held on Saturday, July 5, at 10h30. Artists interested in attending should RSVP by sending an email to spierlightart@lightplace.org.

The curatorial team invites submissions that place Light at the heart of each artwork. Artists are encouraged to experiment boldly and push creative boundaries, with a strong emphasis on innovation and cross-generational appeal.

While there is no fixed theme, the curators welcome works inspired by the ethereal and whimsical, pieces that explore technology, engage with contemporary issues facing South Africa, and reflect themes of resilience, enchantment, exuberance and the dynamic environment of a working wine farm.

Installations are either completely or partially funded and the categories of work may include the following:

-Site-specific work (designed to be displayed in particular places on Spier Wine Farm)

-Sculptural, object-based work

-Interactive art

-Digital works that foreground technology

-Video art

 

 

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS AND PROCESS

Expressions of interest must include:

-Artist/collective/studio biographies of all involved (200 words)

-A short overview of the conceptual interests of the work, specifying which category the submission falls under (300 words)

-A concise description of the work, including concept sketches (300 words)

-A description of the use of light in the work (150 words)

-A description of the audience interaction/engagement with the work, but ideally a video (150 words)

-A provisional but realistic and well-considered budget indicating whether it is to be funded entirely or in part by the Spier Arts Trust

-Web links to and/or images of the proposed work or, if not already developed, examples of previous work.

Email your expression of interest to the project manager at spierlightart@lightplace.org  before July 21, 2025. A more thorough proposal may be requested after the shortlist is announced.

 

ABOUT SPIER LIGHT ART 2025

Visitors immersed themselves in a world of light, sound, and video at the seventh edition of Spier Light Art, which took place between March and April 2025. A diverse audience interacted with the light, sound, and video artworks exhibited across the farm. Playful, provocative, reflective, and engaging, the installations transformed the working wine farm into an artistic hub buzzing with electricity.

For ideas on the type of work the Selection Committee is interested in featuring, please refer to last year’s programme.

The Stellenbosch community and national media consistently praise Spier Light Art for creating a safe and beautiful environment where a diverse audience can come together to celebrate contemporary art.

For more information visit www.spierlightart.co.za

 

About Spier and art

Art, like food and wine, is best shared, which is why Spier is such an enthusiastic supporter of African artists and their creations. Housing one of the largest contemporary art collections in the country, Spier believes in the power of the visual arts to teach and inspire, encouraging us all to engage openly with our world and each other. With such a thriving local artistic community and rich cultural heritage, Spier is excited about the future of South African art.

For more information, visit www.spier.co.za

APPLICATIONS OPEN FOR 4TH AUTHENTICA SERIES LAB

 

Deadline: Friday 11 July 2025 

 

A unique opportunity for African screenwriters to take their stories to the global stage

African screenwriters with bold, original series ideas are invited to apply for the 4th edition of the AuthenticA Series Lab, a transformative six-month development programme designed to elevate episodic storytelling from the continent to the global stage.

Presented by Realness Institute in partnership with The StoryBoard Collective, the Geneva-based philanthropic organisation that supports the development and impact outreach of transformative stories, the Lab nurtures authentic African voices, offering one-on-one mentorship and industry access. Additionally, The Canada Media Fund returns as a funder for the second year, supporting the inclusion of one Canadian screenwriter from the African diaspora.

Running from September 3, 2025, to March 27, 2026, the programme offers a hybrid professional development experience for African screenwriters from all genres of scripted episodic storytelling. 

The Lab combines online discussions, seminars, and one-on-ones, with in-person residencies at three international locations: a 10-day residency in Cape Town, South Africa, a 2-month residency in Geneva, Switzerland, culminating in a week-long industry immersion at Series Mania in Lille, France, Europe’s largest co-production series market and festival attracting sales agents, talent scouts, distributors, broadcasters and investors.

Mehret Mandefro, Interim Managing Director of Realness Institute, says: “This Lab is more than a script development programme - it’s an opportunity for writers to unearth what they are unable to say in a supported environment and get closer to their voices.”

Director of Writing Programmes at Realness Institute and Lab co-designer Selina Ukwuoma joins Mandefro, who is the producing and showrunning mentor, in guiding the cohort. “We’re looking for storytellers who aren’t afraid to say something urgent and real,” says Ukwuoma. “The Lab provides space, mentorship, and a direct bridge to industry—to support each story to reach its full artistic and marketable potential.”

The 2024 cohort pitched their projects at the Series Mania Forum in France in March this year, drawing an audience of over 100 broadcasters, producers, and decision-makers. Since then, many have advanced into further development—proof of the programme’s impact.

2024/25 alumnus, Tony Koros (Kenya) who presented his project Money Town at Series Mania, which has been selected for further development at The Red Sea Serieslab has this to say about AuthenticA: “It was more than a workshop. It was a creative reawakening. The programme pushed me to write with more honesty and less fear. It challenged me to reconnect with why I write in the first place and gave me good friends and great wine to hold my hand through it. It produced some of my best work.”

David Rimer, Founder: The StoryBoard Collective. Says: "Because we believe in the power of storytelling as a tool for narrative change, we are committed to giving writers the time and resources they need to develop their own authentic projects,” “After three editions, we have seen the AuthenticA programme gain international recognition and make a meaningful impact on the careers of our alumni."

Francesco Capurro - Series Mania Forum Director, says, “We’re proud to continue our collaboration with the Realness Institute and the StoryBoard Collective on the AuthenticA Series Lab, which is now well established. This initiative has proven its worth in supporting emerging talent. Africa is a rich source of unique voices and compelling stories, and Series Mania is committed to showcasing them on the global stage.”

Jessica Lea Fleming, Director of Growth & Inclusion at The Canada Media Fund, says: “Partnering with the Realness Institute over the last three years has been fulfilling and impactful, The AuthenticA Series Lab empowers storytellers, including the Canadian-African participant, by developing skills that boost careers, grow companies, and increase market access. We are proud to support a program that aligns so well with the actions in our 2024-2027 EDIA Strategy."

The Lab is open to African screenwriters working in all genres of scripted episodic or series storytelling, including drama, comedy, thriller, sci-fi, amongst others. Writers retain full rights to their projects. Four participants will be selected from the submissions – three from Africa and one from Canada.

Applications are currently open, closing on Friday July 11, 2025  (16h00 SAST).
To apply or learn more: https://www.realness.institute/authentica-series-lab
Or contact: submissions@realness.institute

BAROQUE 2000 FEATURES LYNELLE KENNED

 

 

(Lynelle Kenned. Pic supplied)

On Sunday June 29 at 11h30, Baroque 2000 will present its 4th concert of the 2025 Season at St James Church in Venice Road, Durban.

Lynelle Kenned, a brilliant soprano established in Cape Town will join the Ensemble and will sing stirring and dramatic Arias from Antonio Vivaldi Gelido in ogni vena (from his Opera Il Farnace RV711) and from Nicola Porpora Parto, ti lascio, o cara (from his Opera Germanico in Germania), as well as George Frideric Handel’s aria Nel dolce dell'oblio (from Pensieri notturni di Filli HWV134).

Baroque 2000 will complete this beautiful one-hour programme with Nicola Porpora’s Sinfonia No5.

Tickets R180 (cash or card) sold at the door and children enter free. Ample and guarded parking is available in adjacent Venice and Sir Arthur Roads.

 

For more information contact Michel Schneuwly on Cell: +27 (0)82 - 303 5241, email: sursouth@iafrica.com

 

GOD’S WORK - DIFF

 

(Above: Khaya: Zenzo Msomi; Lucky_Ndu Khowa; Simphiwe_Thobani Nzuza; Malusi_Omega Mncube; and Thobani_Mbulelo Radebe) – Pic supplied

 

Premiering at the 46th Durban International Film Festival In South Africa competition taking place from July 17 to 27, 2025, is God’s Work.

It features a portrait of resilience, a meditation on memory, and an unflinching gaze into the unseen lives of those discarded by the world.

A haunting and visually arresting South African debut feature God’s Work, by Durban-based award-winning director Michael James, has been selected to be in competition for Best South African Feature, and will have its SA Premiere at this year’s Durban International Film Festival on Sunday July 20.

In the heart of Durban, South Africa, a crumbling building offers a fragile sanctuary to a group of unhoused men surviving on society’s margins. Blurring the line between reality and fiction, the film follows Simphiwe played by SAFTA award-winning actor Thobani Nzuza (eHostela, Uzalo, DiepCity), and his crew as they navigate addiction, poverty, performative politics, and the lure of fleeting fame. With Simphiwe (Thobani Nzuza) fighting demons only he can see, and moving performances by a strong supporting cast, Mbulelo Radebe, Omega Mncube, Siya Xaba, Zenzo Msomi and Nduduzo Khowa, the film is a raw exploration of survival, brotherhood, and the human desire to be seen before disappearing.

The plight of the poor and unhoused is a starkly present and concrete problem throughout the world today, and increasingly becoming a political quagmire, but for director James attempting to portray that in God’s Work, he believes called “for storytelling that transcends the conventional narrative of social realism.”

(Left: Director Michael James and 1st AD Lungani Malo) Pic supplied

Inspired whilst filming a documentary about homeless shelters at the Denis Hurley Centre in Durban during the pandemic, God’s Work doesn’t ask for pity, it demands attention. It confronts the viewer with the brutal poetry of life on the margins—and the stubborn humanity that persists there.

 “My intent is to engage with both the internal and external worlds of the characters,” says James, “and to allow the audience deeper access into the surreal and often troubling recesses of the human mind.”

 

Executive Producer, Toni Monty, adds: “From the outset, God’s Work stood out for its bold vision and emotional depth, and was always going to be a fascinating filmic challenge. The combination of Michael’s creative vision and Sithabile’s empathetic yet unrelenting approach to the production ethos combined with support from our production team and partners has brought this powerful story to life. We look forward to sharing it with Durban audiences.”

Producer Sithabile Mkhize says: “The film considers what it means to be human in an unjust world. It hopes to contribute to the current conversations within the zeitgeist regarding income inequality, the failures of capitalism, racism, police brutality, class consciousness, and ultimately how all these ideas intersect with the existential realities of life within the African context. This is not just a film about homelessness, it’s a story about power, loss, resistance - and what it costs to stay human in a world that’s abandoned its soul.”

Produced by Mkhize (SA), co-produced by Marco Orsini (USA), and executive produced by Toni Monty (SA) and Gary Springer (USA), God’s Work is written and directed by Michael James - a Maverick Resistance production in association with the KwaZulu-Natal Film and Tourism Authority, the National Film and Video Foundation of South Africa, Amafrika Films, and Mojo Entertainment LLC, supported by the Durban Film Office.

Award-winning composer, music producer, musician and film producer, West-African born George Acogny has created a deeply emotive score for the film.

The film debuts at the Durban International Film Festival on Sunday July 20 at 19h00, at Suncoast Cinecentre. Other screenings take place at the Denis Hurley Centre July 26 at 13h00, Watercrest Sterkinekor Sunday, July 27 at 17h00. There will be screenings at The Bioscope (Johannesburg) on Friday, August 1 at 12 noon, and at the Labia Theatre (Cape Town) on Sunday, August 3 at 12 noon.

For more information follow on social media : Facebook and Instagram: godsworkthefilm or website https://www.godsworkthefilm.com/

 

APPLICATIONS OPEN FOR 2025 JOMBA! OPEN HORIZONS PLATFORMS

 (Pics: Val Adamson)

 

(Above: Open Horizons - Uxinzelelo by BreeH Cele (Pietermaritzburg, South Africa) 2024) 

JOMBA! Contemporary Dance festival welcomes Live, Digital, and Youth Dance Submissions

The University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Creative Arts has announced that applications are now open for the 2025 JOMBA! OPEN HORIZONS Platforms, three distinct performance opportunities for dance-makers at the 27th annual JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience, taking place from August 26 to September 7, 2025, in Durban.

These platforms have become an important part of JOMBA!’s commitment to encourage innovation, access, and diversity in African contemporary dance. They offer space for both emerging and established dance-makers across live performance, screen-based dance work, and youth performance.

(Right: Youth Open Horizons  - Manesh Maharaj's Kala Darshan with Saraswathi Sthuthi (Chatsworth) 2024)

The LIVE OPEN HORIZONS platform, hosted at the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre is a curated showcase for choreographers aged 16 and older to submit short live works (6–8 minutes) for a professionally-supported stage presentation at the Festival. 

Six works will be selected by an independent jury, with one choreographer receiving a R2,000 “Pick of the Platform” award on the night of performance.

 

JOMBA! continues its ground-breaking commitment to screen dance through the DIGITAL OPEN HORIZONS platform inviting artists to submit 3–8-minute screen dance works that will be curated and streamed on the JOMBA! YouTube Channel during the festival. A jury will select 8–10 films with one exceptional work receiving a R3,000 jury prize.

The much-loved YOUTH OPEN HORIZONS, will take place at the Stable Theatre in Durban. Designed as a non-competitive celebration, this platform invites dancers under the age of 16 - across all dance styles - to take part in a day of shared performance, learning, and community connection. From pantsula and Zulu traditional dance to hip-hop, ballet, contemporary and more, this is a space to honour the next generation of dancers. The festival has capacity for 12 groups.

Artistic Director of JOMBA!, Lliane Loots, says: “The OPEN HORIZONS platforms remain central to our vision to provide creative inclusion and artistic risk-taking. These are not just showcases, they are vital incubators for the voices, visions, and movement languages that will shape the future of dance.”

Entry forms for all three platforms:

2025 JOMBA! Live Open Horizons application link (closes on July 15, 2025): 

2025 JOMBA! Digital Open Horizons application link (closes on July 4, 2025):

2025 JOMBA! YOUTH Open Horizons link (June 20, 2025): 

Details here: https://jomba.ukzn.ac.za

A ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME…

Included in the forthcoming Holiday Events is a Recycled Paper Workshop titled A Rose by any other Name… which will take place at Glenwood Village Centre on June 28 from 09h00 until midday.

Respected and much awarded crafters, Robin Opperman and Ujala Sewpersad from Umcebo Design are excited to be holding this creative workshop at Glenwood Village Centre teaching participants to make life-size roses out of recycled paper to kickstart the July school holidays.

The workshop is presented by Umcebo Design in collaboration with Glenwood Village and will take place in the upstairs empty shop, no 21, Glenwood Village.

To book, or for more information, contact Robin Opperman on WhatsApp at 0837933408.

WINTER SEASON CONCERT #2

 

CONCERT 2: June 26, 2025, 19h00. Playhouse Opera Theatre

Conrad van Alphen, conductor

Andrey Baranov, violin

 

KZN Youth Orchestra: Curtain-raiser

Lalo: Symphonie Espagnole, Op. 21 in d minor

Beethoven: Symphony No. 6, Op. 68 in F Major, “Pastoral”

 

Following a curtain-raiser appearance by the KZN Youth Orchestra (including Sheep May Safely Graze by Bach, Themes from Scheherazade, Palladio, and O Fortuna), Conrad van Alphen, the internationally-acclaimed South African-born conductor, takes the KZN Philharmonic podium for the second concert of the season. Maestro van Alphen will essay two concert standards, by Lalo and Beethoven.

Plunging into the heart of the programme, the celebrated Russian violinist Andrey Baranov steps into the solo spot to put his stamp on Édouard Lalo’s virtuosic Symphonie Espagnole. Notwithstanding its official title, the exotically-scored work is a fully-fledged violin concerto, with its full quotient of ‘wow factor ops’ to set an audience’s communal pulses racing. Lalo structured his five-movement show-stopper as a hybrid concerto-symphony, lavishly spiced with Spanish infusions. 

Sarasate, the virtuoso of the day, premièred the work on February 7, 1875, just weeks before the première of Bizet’s opera, Carmen.

Beethoven openly described his Sixth Symphony as a reflection of feelings about being in the countryside, replete with birdcalls, a rainstorm, and happy peasants. He nicknamed the work “Pastoral”, and even noted in the score the names of specific species of birds when he wrote imitations of their calls. After the incredible intensity of the Fifth Symphony, this one is full of serenity, peaceful contentment, and the untroubled enjoyment of nature. 

Unique in Beethoven’s symphonies, the composer gave each of the five movements an explanatory title: Awakening of Happy Feelings on Arriving in the Country; Scene by a Brook; Joyful Gathering of the Country Folk; Thunder. Storm; Shepherds Song; and Happy and Thankful Feelings After the Storm. One of the best beloved masterworks in the global concert repertoire, the “Pastoral” stands tall as one of the great paeans to nature in Western Music.

Tickets available at Quicket. For more information contact info@kznphil.org.za.

To visit the KZNPO website, click on the advert at the top right-hand side of this page or visit www.kznphil.org.za

PROFESSIONAL PODCAST TRAINING

12 African audiovisual creators selected for professional podcast training

Twelve audio-visual creators from South Africa, Malawi and Lesotho have been selected for Sound Waves: Podcast Training for Audiovisual Professionals hosted by the Goethe-Institut Johannesburg, the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS), and the South African Podcasting Guild (SAPG).

The programme aims to add new voices to the audio-visual landscape in these three countries. The cohort will work with experts and engage in workshops on sound, production, scriptwriting, live recording sessions, studio visits, and public discussions.

“We are pleased with the extraordinary wealth of backgrounds the selected creators bring to Sound Waves,” says Emmanuelle Denavit-Feller, Regional Head of New Media, Film & Television at the French Institute of South Africa. “Their interests span investigative journalism, indigenous music and healing, community leadership, disability and women’s health advocacy, to performance arts, refugee rights, and multimedia storytelling reflecting voices that can help reimagine the future of African storytelling.”

Meet the participants, who include a KZN recipient:

- Palesa Matabane (SA) is a lecturer at the Durban University of Technology with over seven years of experience in storytelling and voice work.

- Susan Comrie (SA) is an award-winning investigative journalist with AmaBhungane Centre for Investigative Journalism with over 15 years of experience her investigative work spans state capture, corruption, mining, energy, and environmental issues. Susan was part of the team that uncovered the #GuptaLeaks.

-  Nantal Hopley (SA) is the founder and director of Cape Conscious Media, a non-profit podcasting and digital media studio based in Cape Town.

- Dennis Imaan (MW) from Lilongwe is a podcast producer, audio storyteller, and multimedia content creator with a passion for audio production and experience producing and hosting a podcast series.

-  Claude Marie Bernard Kayitare (SA) is a refugee community leader and the founder of Pax Afrika Network, a refugee-led organisation committed to supporting and empowering displaced communities. He is also the co-founder of the Southern Africa Network for Immigrants and Refugees.

- Simon Manda (SA) is Managing Editor, Director and Co-Founder of THISABILITY Newspaper, where he leads a multimedia platform dedicated to disability awareness and changing perceptions through storytelling.

- Lameck Masina (MW) is an accredited stringer for the Voice of America (USA), producing radio and TV stories from Malawi, and contributes television stories to TRT World (Turkey).

- Jane Claudia Messina (SA) is an actor, voiceover artist and podcaster whose first love was theatre. She co-hosts and co-produces the podcast Shenanigans Ensue.

- Nthabiseng Mohanela (LS) is a multidisciplinary artist, musician, and creative activist from Lesotho with a background in fine arts, design, and performance.

- Motlalepula Mokoena (SA) is the founder of Tsa Sesotho, a brand focused on celebrating Sesotho culture through digital content, events, and podcasting.

- Tendayi Nyeke (SA) is a director at Netflix Animation. She is a development executive and producer for the Emmy Award-winning animation studio Triggerfish Animation.

- Bongiwe Zihlangu (LS) is an editor at Lesotho Times and Sunday Express newspapers, based in Maseru.

 

International podcasting and audio experts Claire Richard (France), Philip Artelt (Germany), and Dina Elsayed (Germany), will work with the selected creators alongside leading South African podcast experts, Paulo Dias, and members of the South African Podcasters Guild.

“We are excited to host the participants and experts in Johannesburg for creative exchange and growth, to come together to explore different approaches to audio storytelling that reflect the diversity and dynamism of the region”, says Nesa Fröhlich, Head of Information Services Sub-Saharan Africa at Goethe-Institut South Africa.

Paulo Dias, Head of Industry Relations, South African Podcasters Guild, adds: “When we talk about the future of podcasting, we often talk about tech. But in an African context, the future actually lies in collaboration, mentorship, and regional solidarity - and that’s what appealed to us about Sound Waves. These creators represent the new generation of African storytellers, and we’re proud to be part of this.”

The training programme takes place in Johannesburg from July 7 to 11, 2025, and is supported by the French Institute in Paris and the German Federal Foreign Office through the French-German Cultural Fund, a joint initiative of the French and German governments promoting cultural cooperation in third countries.

A free public panel discussion entitled The Evolving Industry of Podcasting, will take place on Friday, July 11, from 11h00 to 12h00 at the IFAS offices, 62 Juta Street, Braamfontein, Johannesburg, and is open to the public.

This session will explore the podcasting landscape from a global perspective, with a focus on the South African, French, and German industries. The discussion will delve into pressing issues shaping the medium today, including monetisation strategies, freedom of speech and regulatory challenges, and the transformative impact of artificial intelligence on podcast production and distribution.

Screenings will take place in Durban, Cape Town and Johannesburg