Screendance Africa (Pty) Ltd: African Screendance made by Africans

Abstract

Screendance Africa (Pty) Ltd (SDA), is a Screendance company founded by South African co-directors and co-curators, Jeannette Ginslov and Dominique Jossie, in Cape Town, South Africa, 2012. SDA’s mission is to advance and encourage the making of Screendance in Africa, made by Africans. This may be thought of to challenge, reshape and tackle ideas about racial diversity in Screendance in South Africa, its representation and its curation at local and international Screendance Festivals. Before discussing how SDA does this, this chapter provides a short background on the history of filmmaking in South Africa and questions why Screendance never developed a strong voice alongside the growth of film and Contemporary Dance in South Africa. It then discusses how SDA attempted to promote Screendance in South Africa, using the method of PAR - practice as research or ‘learning by doing’, running workshops, online discussions and curating locally made Screendance for local and international Screendance audiences. Finally, it reveals issues around international collaborations and how the COVID19 Pandemic Lockdown and the phenomenon of Zoom has ironically accelerated and inspired a new generation of Screendance makers in South Africa, which reveal African voices and African bodies in front of African lenses.

Keywords: Decolonize, Screeendance, African Screedance, South African Screendance, Curatorial pratice

How to Cite: