UKZN Students Participate in DIFF Media Lab

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A team of students under the wing of UKZN’s Centre for Communication, Media and Society (CCMS) recently participated in a media lab for the 2016 Durban International Film Festival (DIFF).   

The on-going project is a way of offering students real world journalism experience, helping them build their portfolio for employment applications and immersing them in the world of film, TV and video.

Student interns were selected for and trained in the fields of Journalism/Film Reviews, Communication Management, Events Management and Organisational Communication. Qualifying reviewers were supported by an experienced team of CCMS-based sub-editors and senior film students.

In conjunction with City Press, the newsroom of selected students wrote reviews on the Festival and its films, panels, directors and actors. Their stories were submitted for publication to various newspapers; the CCMS magazine SUBtext, and entered onto the African Cinema and TV page on the CCMS website. isiZulu-speaking students were also encouraged to write for the Isolezwe newspaper.  

CCMS Student Ms Lungelo Khanyile saw the whole experience as a learning opportunity. ‘It was both fun and enriching to be a part of the student media lab because you enhanced your skills as a media practitioner and networked and built contacts.’

Media and Cultural studies student Ms Senzekile Khwela added: ‘This is a great platform for students to get to know the media industry a bit better and to learn from those in it. You get to apply all that you’ve learned during lectures. It also opens you up to constructive criticism on your work, builds your self-confidence and makes you a better writer and reviewer.’

Said English Studies student Mr Thomas Cipolla: ‘Being a part of the Festival media lab was an unforgettable experience, providing a totally new outlook on how the film and media industry work. It allowed me to view independent films…films I wouldn’t necessarily have watched. It made me appreciate and value the Festival and the hard work that goes into film making.’

Melissa Mungroo