Filmmaker Lekolwane sings different tune

Gasebalwe Seretse | Thursday December 19, 2013 15:04

 

Lekolwane said that the fact that her company has been able to achieve a lot of things this year.

“We were able to undertake a number of projects thanks to the sales we made to Btv.  In the past, we couldn’t do such projects because of financial constraints,” she said.

Lekolwane said that this year, her companies Handprint and Botswood Movies have been able to conduct successful auditions across the country. 

They have set up a studio in Kasane and have hosted a number of workshops, she said, thanks to the lucrative Btv deal.

She highlighted they recently hosted was a good conclusion for the year and that Ditshwene’s visit was not only useful to her new actors but to her technical staff too.

“Ditshwene not only taught my actors acting techniques, she also looked at some of our products, past and present and advised us on how to go about improving them to match international standards,” she said.

Lekolwane said that the company is going to do its best to offer Batswana better quality products next year. 

She added that owing to Ditshwene’s input, they are going to do a re-shoot of some of the works they had already started working on.

The filmmaker said her intention is to be able to deliver products of international standard with her next offerings.

 She also said that she has connections with seasoned players in the industry from South Africa who are willing to work with her.

Interestingly, Lekolwane had painted a bleak future for the film industry in the beginning of the year. 

Then she had said that there was need to be a major shift in the industry for things to turn for the better.

“There is no hope in the film and television industry until the country gets a properly functioning and privately-owned broadcaster,” she had said.

Handprint and Botswood Movies have five new productions in the line-up namely, Dangerous Games Women Play, Dangerous Games Men Play, Perfect Love, Lepodisi La Sephiri and Matsale Part 2, which they hope would be bought by Botswana Television.

Shooting the productions is going to finish at the end of the first quarter of 2014.