Encounters is Africa’s premier documentary festival, running from 4 to 14 June 2015 in Cape Town and Johannesburg. The festival calls for established and up-and-coming filmmakers to submit work, screened at The Labia and Ster-Kinekor Nouveau at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town, and The Bioscope and Ster-Kinekor Rosebank in Joburg. The festival is a chance for filmmakers and movie fans to interact through film, Q&A and panel discussions and the Audience Choice Awards.

The festival is made possible through the generous support of loyal sponsors, and Backsberg has the privilege of being one of them. At the opening night on Thursday we were able to pour some wine and mingle with the crowds.

Backsberg is also proud to be sponsoring the Encounters Audience Choice Awards. This is the ideal chance to gauge an audience’s taste and preference. It’s a chance too for festival-goers to have their own critical input. It has become evident that South Africa has the capacity to grow an intelligent and engaged documentary film audience, and the awards give insight when selecting for each year’s festival.

Almost 6000 festival goers attend and vote in both Johannesburg and Cape Town. It’s an exciting time to be involved in the South African and African film industries.

Watch our Audience Choice Awards video, download the festival programme and get involved!