Pule
April 8th, 2012, 06:36 AM
First I hears of this but there's no article written about it this year...
Mangaung Movie Studios receives international grant of one billion (http://www.bloemfonteincourant.co.za/Community-News/mangaung-movie-studios-receives-international-grant-of-one-billion.html)
Tuesday, 24 May 2011 21:59
LOUWNA ERASMUS
Mangaung will soon acquire its own movie studios complete with permanent sets and sound stages on 400 hectares outside Bloemfontein. Apart from the grant that the Premier of the Free State, Ace Mageshule, allocated as start-up capital, an international media house just signed a grant of one billion rand towards the project. Owner and initiator of the project, Lize Labuschagne, is no newcomer to the film industry. Her company, CPI (Corporate Payroll Institution), has been writing the cheques and providing extra actors for big time movies such as Invictus which featured Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela and Beyond Borders featuring Angelina Jolie and Clive Owen. “We often work on films in far off places like Springbok, for instance.
There are no facilities, barely enough housing for the film crews and every person needs to be flown there and back. It’s an expensive way to make a film,” says Labuschagne. According to her, the idea originated one night when they entertained a film specialist from Cape Town, and she complemented them on the newly upgraded Bloemfontein airport. Labuschagne’s husband made the statement: Why don’t you shoot in Bloem? And the rest is history.
Thereafter they compiled a business plan and got an initial ten minute interview with the Free State Premier who shared their vision and who introduced them to MEC Dukwana who started looking for international investors.
Soon after, they were flying in location scouts from all over to see if they could interest them in the beautiful Free State and Lesotho landscapes. “Most of them said that they have never scouted Bloemfontein or the Free State and they loved it. It was just a question of inviting them over!”
Labuschagne is passionate about the Free State. She believes that we have every conceivable backdrop to offer. “Look at the great expanses in the Free State, the Lesotho Mountains, arid regions and farmland.” On top of that, there is a sound infrastructure, but also affordable housing, catering and other amenities in our region. “We also have many great local stories to tell and if we manage it well, there will always be international support.”
Labuschagne also believes that the influx of business on this scale in the Free State would be to the advantage of every citizen. “Extras or support actors are paid up to R600 per day – we employed 25 000 extras for Invictus. This could mean the world to an unemployed person who is willing to master some basic skills like walking the walk and working on an accent.”
A movie on the scale of Invictus spends about R500 million on the ground, which means that this would give our economy an incredible boost.
Labuschagne is also serious about supporting local business. “If we need a certain skill, we will either import someone to teach it to locals or we would expect nothing less from them but to open a Free State branch, and to employ and train local talent.” They plan to create 1000 jobs during the building phase, 650 permanent positions during in-production status and at least 350 permanent placements in out-production.
The business opportunities for local entrepreneurs would also be numerous. Basic needs for film production are crowd control, traffic control, grips and cameramen, sound engineers and electric engineers, set builders, catering, pyrotechnics and stunt men and women. “A whole new market niche would open for the IT market as most productions would need conference streaming to the USA. Not to mention that there will be world-class recording studios that will need to employ musicians and composers. We are in dire need of more talent search agencies.”
The planned studio facilities will incorporate production offices, stunt tracks, recording studios and sound stages that can be as big as 40 000 square metres, as well as permanent sets that would for instance include an ancient village, roman street etc. “Gaining public support is also a priority,” says Labuschagne and they plan on implementing a training facility to train locals in every conceivable position they are offering. “We are also developing an electronic platform where local businesses can show their goods, so to say, and where producers, set builders and wardrobe planners can shop.”
They are also working closely with institutions like the National Youth Development Agency. “The level of development on an entrepreneurial level could be incredible.”
The greatest issue to overcome, according to Labuschagne, will always be public doubt about the possible success. “We have already solved one of our greatest challenges; that of marketing our product internationally. Our biggest investor is also one of the biggest movie marketing vehicles in the world!”
The first movie is already on its way – they start shooting on the first of August and will probably wrap it up in December, but we are not allowed to publish the name, yet.
Mangaung Movie Studios receives international grant of one billion (http://www.bloemfonteincourant.co.za/Community-News/mangaung-movie-studios-receives-international-grant-of-one-billion.html)
Tuesday, 24 May 2011 21:59
LOUWNA ERASMUS
Mangaung will soon acquire its own movie studios complete with permanent sets and sound stages on 400 hectares outside Bloemfontein. Apart from the grant that the Premier of the Free State, Ace Mageshule, allocated as start-up capital, an international media house just signed a grant of one billion rand towards the project. Owner and initiator of the project, Lize Labuschagne, is no newcomer to the film industry. Her company, CPI (Corporate Payroll Institution), has been writing the cheques and providing extra actors for big time movies such as Invictus which featured Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela and Beyond Borders featuring Angelina Jolie and Clive Owen. “We often work on films in far off places like Springbok, for instance.
There are no facilities, barely enough housing for the film crews and every person needs to be flown there and back. It’s an expensive way to make a film,” says Labuschagne. According to her, the idea originated one night when they entertained a film specialist from Cape Town, and she complemented them on the newly upgraded Bloemfontein airport. Labuschagne’s husband made the statement: Why don’t you shoot in Bloem? And the rest is history.
Thereafter they compiled a business plan and got an initial ten minute interview with the Free State Premier who shared their vision and who introduced them to MEC Dukwana who started looking for international investors.
Soon after, they were flying in location scouts from all over to see if they could interest them in the beautiful Free State and Lesotho landscapes. “Most of them said that they have never scouted Bloemfontein or the Free State and they loved it. It was just a question of inviting them over!”
Labuschagne is passionate about the Free State. She believes that we have every conceivable backdrop to offer. “Look at the great expanses in the Free State, the Lesotho Mountains, arid regions and farmland.” On top of that, there is a sound infrastructure, but also affordable housing, catering and other amenities in our region. “We also have many great local stories to tell and if we manage it well, there will always be international support.”
Labuschagne also believes that the influx of business on this scale in the Free State would be to the advantage of every citizen. “Extras or support actors are paid up to R600 per day – we employed 25 000 extras for Invictus. This could mean the world to an unemployed person who is willing to master some basic skills like walking the walk and working on an accent.”
A movie on the scale of Invictus spends about R500 million on the ground, which means that this would give our economy an incredible boost.
Labuschagne is also serious about supporting local business. “If we need a certain skill, we will either import someone to teach it to locals or we would expect nothing less from them but to open a Free State branch, and to employ and train local talent.” They plan to create 1000 jobs during the building phase, 650 permanent positions during in-production status and at least 350 permanent placements in out-production.
The business opportunities for local entrepreneurs would also be numerous. Basic needs for film production are crowd control, traffic control, grips and cameramen, sound engineers and electric engineers, set builders, catering, pyrotechnics and stunt men and women. “A whole new market niche would open for the IT market as most productions would need conference streaming to the USA. Not to mention that there will be world-class recording studios that will need to employ musicians and composers. We are in dire need of more talent search agencies.”
The planned studio facilities will incorporate production offices, stunt tracks, recording studios and sound stages that can be as big as 40 000 square metres, as well as permanent sets that would for instance include an ancient village, roman street etc. “Gaining public support is also a priority,” says Labuschagne and they plan on implementing a training facility to train locals in every conceivable position they are offering. “We are also developing an electronic platform where local businesses can show their goods, so to say, and where producers, set builders and wardrobe planners can shop.”
They are also working closely with institutions like the National Youth Development Agency. “The level of development on an entrepreneurial level could be incredible.”
The greatest issue to overcome, according to Labuschagne, will always be public doubt about the possible success. “We have already solved one of our greatest challenges; that of marketing our product internationally. Our biggest investor is also one of the biggest movie marketing vehicles in the world!”
The first movie is already on its way – they start shooting on the first of August and will probably wrap it up in December, but we are not allowed to publish the name, yet.