By Farayi Mungoshi

THE Herald recently published an article, titled ‘Low Budget, High Achievements. US$380 Movie Bags International Awards’, which sparked debate among film-makers.
The movie in question is called Mind Games and it was directed by Charles Mawungwa.
It is a psychological thriller featuring Kevin Hansen.
It has not only won the hearts of fellow local film-makers, but also of those abroad.
It has won awards in Columbia, Los Angeles and India.
MindGames is a commendable piece of art characterised by beautiful writing and directing.
Many Zimbabweans would want to watch the movie, if only they know where to get it.
Back to the article in The Herald, it’s not the final product or film that sparked debate but the production cost of the film.
Film-makers wanted to know how Mawungwa managed to do a film for just US$380.
How he managed to pay the cast, the crew, transportation, locations, the make-up, wardrobe, continuity, cameras, lenses, sound equipment and lights?
It is impossible to produce a film with that budget even if you own the equipment.
It is only when you read further down the article you realise that this figure does not include money for cast.
Regardless of cast, even if one owns the equipment used on set, its cost must be factored as it needs to be serviced and replaced.
Most film-makers felt that the published information was misleading especially when it comes to attracting partners, donors or investors.
Mawungwa, however, explained that the US$380 was not the only amount spent in making the film as it did not include services rendered by cast which cost more than US$2 000.
In his defense, he said he had availed all the information, regarding costs, to the journalist who wrote the article.
It is important, especially to film-makers, that this anomaly be corrected.
Film-makers pitch their projects sometimes to lay people with no knowledge of film-making and when they believe that a movie can be made for US$380 our proposals begin to appear as if they are meant to rob funders.
For instance, a US$15 000 budget for production, which is barely enough, begins to look inaccurate and unjustifiable.
Most of the people and corporate world that film-makers approach in the country do not fully understand the film industry, thus when they learn that a film can be made by that meagre figure and go on to win awards, locally and abroad, we have a serious problem.
To put things in perspective, for instance, a regular camera costs between US$100 and US$150 to hire per day, and considering that there is no way one can shoot a movie in just three days, it means more money is required just for equipment.
It is not an anomaly that millions of dollars are spent in making movies such as The Black Panther.
For a production to be captivating and sellable to a wide audience beyond our borders funds have to be invested in movie production.
It makes good reading that a local film receiving wide acclaim was shot on a shoestring budget but it sets back efforts by film-makers because in reality the film was not produced with that budget but much more.
A film requires a significant amount of capital if it is to capture the imagination of the world.
Adequate financial resources enable one to achieve quality in all aspects of production from conception, cast, to equipment.
Film has so much potential to develop our nation, it is an important component of the development matrix.
The corporate world stands to benefit from a thriving film industry.
As support is extended to all sectors of the economy to be fully functional, the film industry must not be left out.
It must receive adequate support to tell the Zimbabwean story.
Film production is not a hobby but a billion-dollar industry sustaining economies of some nations.
The industry requires huge investment, the sitcoms and dramas we watch on television require a substantial amount of money to be produced.