Durban FilmMart Welcomes Canadian Delegation

The Durban FilmMart Institute (DFMI) will welcome a delegation of Canadian film professionals to this year's market that takes place from 9 to 12 October. The delegation's presence, presented in partnership with the High Commission of Canada Trade Office in South Africa, is anchored by a dedicated speed-meeting session connecting Canadian filmmakers with DFM delegates.

“Canada has long been one of South Africa's strongest coproduction partners, and this delegation builds on a relationship with the Canadian High Commission that we've been growing year on year,” says Magdalene Reddy, Director of the Durban FilmMart Institute. “South Africa's co-production treaty with Canada gives our filmmakers real, practical access to Canadian financing, expertise and markets, and vice versa. Durban FilmMart exists to be that meeting space; a hub where international delegations like this one can sit across the table from African producers and turn shared interest into actual projects.”

SPEED MEETINGS: MEET THE CANADIAN FILMMAKERS

Presented in partnership with the High Commission of Canada Trade Office

Durban FilmMart delegates will have the opportunity to meet selected film professionals from Canada, with the opportunity to finance, distribute, co-produce and collaborate. The Canadian delegation brings together an award-winning, genre-spanning group of 17 producers, writers and directors working across documentary, fiction, animation and factual formats - with slates spanning genre and elevated-genre features, impact-driven documentary, BIPOC-led storytelling and international co-production, from across Canada.

Alex Bogomolov, is CEO/Producer, at Apsis Pictures (British Columbia) an independent production company handling full-cycle development, financing, production and delivery for genre and elevated-genre features.

Amy Miller, is a Producer, with Wide Open Exposure Productions, who has for more than two decades, produced bold documentaries investigating the political, environmental, historical and cultural forces shaping the world, screening at 150+ international festivals. The company is now focused on expanding international collaborations through documentary co-production.

Annette Clarke is a Producer, at Ruby Line Productions Inc, and a National Film Board of Canada veteran who has produced or co-produced 100+ films.

Chibie Louis-Okoye, is Founder/Producer, at Colo Studios who is also a media entrepreneur whose work is shaped by spirituality, Africa and social themes. She produced KOFA (2024), which debuted at Number 1 in Nigeria on Amazon Prime Video and won Best Feature Film at AFRIFF.

Danilo Reyes, is Founder/CEO, Blue Maroon Media, and is also an actor and musician striving to diversify the voices and faces on screen. An alumnus of Reelworld's BEP Producer's Program and the CMPA Producer Mentorship Program, Danilo is currently developing a slate of television series and feature films.

Eritrean-Canadian filmmaker Feven Ghebremariam, is Founder/CEO of Zantana Media who is working at the intersection of cinema and community engagement, whose work explores diaspora, colonial legacy and belonging. Feven is a co-founder of Black on Black Films, a collective supporting Black filmmakers in Quebec.

Ian Mark Kimanje, is a Producer at Film Garage Studios that develops premium documentary and impact-driven content connecting culture, identity, science and social change, with relationships spanning Canada, Africa, the Caribbean, Europe and the US.

Katia Café-Fébrissy, is Producer/President, KaFé Productions Inc., a bilingual production company dedicated to telling bold, intimate stories that amplify fresh and underrepresented voices.

Letay Williams, is a Writer/Producer, at A Little Happy Media. She is the Founder of a production company amplifying BIPOC talent for global audiences.

Nina Dube, is Trade Commissioner, High Commission of Canada Trade office in South Africa. The Canadian Trade Commissioner Service helps Canadian export-ready companies navigate the complexities of international markets. Representatives from the Canadian Trade Office will be available throughout Durban FilmMart to facilitate introductions, support networking opportunities, and explore potential partnerships and co-production opportunities between Canadian and South African industry stakeholders.

Patricia Sims, is the President/Producer at CanazWest Pictures which has produced award-winning documentaries and factual series for CBC, Discovery Channel, ARTE, NHK and others. Patricia is also the Founder of World Elephant Day, a global awareness campaign reaching over 2 billion social media impressions.

Roble Issa, is Producer, Gobez Media Inc.an Ethiopian-Canadian production company creating documentary, fiction and digital content rooted in Africa and its diaspora. Recent projects include Finding Sally and the Emmy-nominated Made in Ethiopia, with work screened at Cannes, TIFF, Tribeca and FESPACO.

Samantha Kaine, is an activist, mentor and speaker; founder and CEO of IMPACT (Independent Media Producers Association of Creative Talent). She is a Jamaican-Canadian producer working at the intersection of AI, cultural policy and economic inclusion. Samantha leads IMPACT's accelerator programmes supporting Black mid-career producers across Canada and the diaspora, and serves on the AI Committee of the Coalition for Diversity of Cultural Expressions. IMPACT is also a co-partner of the 2026 Canadian delegation to DFM.

Sarlota Csete, is Director, Mentorship, International Development & Board Secretary (CMPA (Canadian Media Producers Association).  Sarolta leads international development initiatives at the CMPA, fostering global partnerships and co-production opportunities for Canadian producers. A co-partner of the Canadian delegation to DFM 2026, the CMPA is Canada's leading advocacy organization for independent producers, dedicated to helping Canadian producers establish international partnerships and bring their content to screens around the world.

Shane LaTouche, is Founder/CEO, Toronto Black Media Productions, a producer and cultural creative focused on projects for Black and Caribbean communities. He also volunteers as Executive Director of the Toronto Black Media Association.

Shannon Walsh, is Producer/Director at Last Songbird Productions, and is an award-winning filmmaker and Guggenheim Fellow producing documentary and fiction features, shorts, VR works and music videos centred on bold, underrepresented voices.

Sylvester Ndumbi, is Founder/Producer, at Simba Creative, and leads an award-winning production company creating scripted, documentary and unscripted content for global audiences, with fifteen years of Canadian broadcast credits and productions screened at UN events worldwide. Simba Creative is actively expanding its international co-production slate.

The Canadian delegation's presence at Durban FilmMart demonstrates, a growing interest in building sustainable co-production pathways between the Canadian and South African audio-visual industries, with opportunities spanning documentary, fiction, genre and digital content.

To find out more about the Canadian delegation as well as others attending the 2026 edition of the DFM, go to https://durbanfilmmart.co.za/.