South Africa’s film and television industry faces renewed uncertainty after the Save SA Film and TV Jobs Coalition, an alliance of 18 industry organisations led by the Independent Producers Organisation, declared that its engagement with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) had broken down for a third time.
The coalition wrote to Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau on 22 October, giving the department seven days to address outstanding concerns. That deadline passed without a response, according to the coalition. The letter followed an earlier warning on 7 October that negotiations were at credible risk of collapse.
The dispute centres on the implementation of the DTIC Film and Television Incentive Negotiation Framework and Heads of Agreement, signed by both parties on 10 August. The agreement was intended to provide a basis for resolving longstanding problems with the incentive scheme and developing revised guidelines. However, a 30 October deadline for the new guidelines passed without the expected outcome.
At the first working group meeting following the signing, held on 21 August, the department’s deputy director-general reportedly indicated that the objective was to produce a single joint report for Parliament. The coalition’s latest position suggests that the process has failed to deliver the progress it expected.
The industry body has now attached a specific condition to any further engagement: it wants Nelly Molokoane, head of the DTIC’s Film and Television Incentive Unit, removed from the unit and excluded from further decision-making on the incentive. The coalition has described this demand as a red line.
It is also calling for direct intervention by the Presidency, arguing that the department has demonstrated neither the capacity nor the willingness to resolve the problems. The coalition says it intends to take the matter to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Trade, Industry and Competition.
The operational consequences are significant for producers and broadcasters relying on the incentive to support local production. According to the coalition, the last adjudication committee to approve new applications met in March 2024. The resulting delays have contributed to a payout backlog running into hundreds of millions of rand, while the industry body projects that the department will again underspend its allocated incentive budget during the current financial year.
The incentive programme, introduced in 2004, has been an important component of South Africa’s production financing environment, supporting local content creation and attracting international productions. Prolonged uncertainty around applications, approvals and payments can affect production planning, cash flow, employment and the ability of independent companies to commit to new projects.
In response to the impasse, the coalition is planning a month-long public protest campaign from 28 January to 27 February 2027. The planned mobilisation signals that the dispute is moving beyond closed-door negotiations towards a wider public and parliamentary campaign.
For South Africa’s broadcasting and production sectors, the immediate concern is the lack of clarity over the incentive’s administration and the outstanding payments. The next steps by the DTIC, the Presidency and Parliament will be closely watched by producers seeking a predictable framework for financing and delivering new screen content.
