Benoni – The first-ever Connie Chiume International Youth Film Festival was launched at the Sibikwa Arts Centre in Benoni.
The weekend festival held on 18 and 19 July 2025, ushered in a bold new chapter in the quest to open South Africa’s creative economy to underrepresented youth.
Held in honour of the late acting legend Connie Chiume, the festival was far more than a tribute.
It was a call to action — a grassroots cultural intervention that successfully mobilised learners, educators, mentors and emerging creatives from across the country.
Designed by the Connie Chiume Foundation as a flagship platform for education, access, and visibility, the festival set out to bridge the long-standing gap between aspiring filmmakers from townships and rural areas and the professional industry.
Over two days, it delivered a robust, hands-on programme aimed at exposing young people, many of them first-generation storytellers, to the skills, tools, networks, and confidence required to tell their own stories on screen.
Speaking after the festival’s conclusion, Nongelo Chiume, Spokesperson for the Connie Chiume Foundation and son of the late actress, said:
“This weekend was a realisation of my mother’s dream.
“She always said the greatest stories come from our people, and this festival was proof.
“We saw raw talent, untold stories, and young people who simply needed space and support.
“I’m grateful to every partner, mentor and participant who believed in what we were building.”
With more than 600 participants, the festival welcomed high school learners, TVET students, community-based production groups, and educators working in arts, media, and language development.
For many of them, this was their first interaction with the formal structures of the film and TV industry – an industry often inaccessible due to geography, class, and resources.
The Connie Chiume Film Festival responded to this by stripping away red tape, bringing mentorship to the learners, and centring the community as both audience and author.
Workshops covered a wide array of topics, including Scriptwriting for Social Impact, Directing Your First Short Film, Smartphone Filmmaking, Careers in Sound and Post-production, and Funding and Distribution for Emerging Filmmakers.
Industry professionals facilitated each session with a brief to engage, not lecture, allowing learners to interact, ask questions, and even pitch ideas.
Some facilitators returned for both days after being inspired by the quality of engagement.
Screenings ran throughout the day in dedicated pop-up theatres inside Sibikwa Arts Centre.
A total of 22 youth-directed short films were screened, tackling themes such as gender identity, rural marginalisation, language preservation, youth unemployment, mental health, and justice.
Many were self-funded or school projects, but their power, originality, and technical range drew standing ovations and post-screening Q&As that left no seat empty.
In the evenings, the festival shifted gears — opening with a special screening of archive footage from Zone 14, Soul City, and Black Panther, paired with a moving tribute to Connie Chiume’s life, voice and influence.
Community members, students, former co-stars, and mentees took to the stage to reflect on her legacy as an artist who never forgot where she came from, and who always made time for those trying to find their path.
Ntando Mabuza, Board Member of the Connie Chiume Foundation, added: “We didn’t just want to honour uMam’ Connie’s work, we wanted to continue it. This festival is about access.
“It’s about township and rural kids not just dreaming of the industry, but stepping into it.
“We’re walking away with more than good memories, we’re walking away with a pipeline of new voices and a network that can grow with them.”
What made the festival stand out was its insistence on sustainability. Not just a one-off celebration, the programme was designed to create long-term value.
Delegates left with contact lists of film schools, calls for submissions, and access to mentorship programmes coordinated by the Foundation.
A post-festival incubator programme is now being developed to support standout participants with mentorship and funding guidance through to their next project.
The Foundation also used the festival as a platform to spotlight policy issues affecting emerging talent, from funding inequality to regional infrastructure gaps and the absence of film education in public school curricula.
A roundtable hosted on Saturday afternoon featured students, teachers, content commissioners, and civic organisations unpacking how schools, government, and the private sector can build an enabling environment for rural and township creatives.
The festival was made possible through the work of over 40 volunteers, partnerships with educational and community institutions, and a growing base of industry professionals who offered their time pro bono.
More than anything, it was built on a belief that greatness exists in every community — and all it needs is a microphone, a lens, a stage.
The Connie Chiume International Youth Film Festival will return in 2026, with plans already underway to scale its reach nationally and deepen the training component.
The Foundation aims to extend the programme to include monthly screenings in townships and rural areas, a digital storytelling toolkit for schools, and a national young filmmaker mentorship registry.
About the Connie Chiume International Youth Film Festival
The Connie Chiume International Youth Film Festival is a two-day Mandela Month event hosted by the Connie Chiume Foundation.
It brings together student filmmakers, industry professionals, and cultural practitioners to celebrate storytelling, legacy, and empowerment through film.
The festival includes screenings, masterclasses, mentorship challenges, and a memorial lecture – all designed to expand access, inspire creativity, and build practical pathways into the film and television industry.
About the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF)
The National Film and Video Foundation is a statutory body mandated to ensure the equitable growth of South Africa’s film and video industry.
It provides funding for the development, production, marketing, and distribution of films, as well as training and development programmes.
As a key supporter of the Connie Chiume International Youth Film Festival, the NFVF reinforces its commitment to nurturing future storytellers and building a vibrant, inclusive creative economy.
