24-05-2025
Veteran actress Clementine Mosimane happy women protected against abuse in the film industry
During a wellness event in Joburg hosted by Koketso Masuluke, founder of Duende Meraki Cartel, in partnership with the Gauteng Film Commission, veteran actress Clementine Mosimane said she is glad most production companies protect women against abuse.
Mosimane said some companies create a safe space for women, especially in sexual scenes where sexual instructors are on board even though half the time producers and heads don't know where the rage on set stems from.
'Sometimes you'd find an actor upset and rageful on set and producers would say these actors are not easy to work with, forgetting that they are also human. Producers sometimes don't give actors grace or try to understand the underlying issue. .
'What I would like to plead with production companies for is not to formalise nakedness on screen because it's mostly the woman's body parts being shown .
Mosimane added that for years people had said women compromise themselves to land a role and sometimes you watch the screen and wonder how that individual got the role. She hopes in today's generation this is not the case.
She said she is glad that women are occupying space in the film industry and people like Karabo Lediga, filmmaker of Sabbatical are bold enough to create a safe space that is conducive for women and cognitive of mental health.
GFM CEO Keitumetse Lebaka, said they started assessing the contribution of women-owned films in the industry and realised that more than 20% of the films they were funding were female-owned and directed.
'We thought it was important to talk about issues affecting women in film — why do we have so little and why are some women holding back?' .'
She said they have partnered with Sisters Working in Film & Television (SWIFT) in understanding the business of film and how they make film sets safer for women.
'The partnership with swift is supporting the code of conduct that women feel safer and are not violated, ensuring that there is training and awareness that takes place and also looking into the mental wellness aspect of it: how do we make sure we have well-rounded women in the industry?'
