To the frustration of local film fanatics the Namibia film week that took place at NTN last week was only open to invited guests.

When asked about this local film director and leading member of the Namibia Film Commission, Tim Huebschle, said, “Film festivals prior to commercial exploitation are traditionally only open to invited guests and members of the press.” He adds that the Namibia Film Week was dedicated to Namibia’s most famous actor, N!xau Coma, the late San actor who starred in Dirkie Uys’ unforgettable film, ‘The Gods Must Be Crazy.’
So, who were invited guests? “They were members of the cast and crew of the films. The NFC also had a seating contingency which they filled with guests from the Ministry and other partners, members of the press, a few members of the public who had won tickets during a ‘give-away ticket’ programme hosted on local radio stations, and a few regular attendees of the Namibia Film Week,” Huebschle explained.
He further says that the total duration of all seven NFC films when played back-to-back is just under 200 minutes (more than 3 hours) and according to him, screening all of these in one night is difficult for any audience member to sit through.
Members of the public who did not have the opportunity to watch the short films will be able to buy these on DVD, but they are not yet available to the public. “The films are not yet available for the public to buy. As of yet, the Namibia Film Commission, the copyright holder of all seven films, has not clearly indicated as to how and when the DVD distribution of the seven NFC films will be implemented,” he says.
According to Huebschle the public will soon get an opportunity to watch these films as the first set of public screenings are planned around the weekend of 26 July. Details of the venue and screening line-up will be announced at a later stage.