ZIFF partners with Showmax

What you need to know:

According to organisers Showmax will be sponsoring the coveted ZIFF Golden Dhow for Best Feature Film with a cash prize of Sh6.6 million.

Dar es Salaam. The Zanzibar International Film Festival is almost here and the excitement that usually accompanies the season is on with the announcement of a partnership with Showmax being the latest development .

According to organisers Showmax will be sponsoring the coveted ZIFF Golden Dhow for Best Feature Film with a cash prize of Sh6.6 million.

This is the first time the winner of the ZIFF Golden Dhow Award will receive a cash prize and the award will be announced on the closing night of the festival at the official Awards Ceremony at the Old Fort amphitheatre in Stone Town, Zanzibar.

“For us to make Showmax relevant in Africa, we’ve tailored our apps to manage mobile data constraints, we build local partnerships, and we use local knowledge to deliver TV shows and movies that are right for each country,” read a statement from the internet company. The statement further added: The success of our business depends on truly understanding local needs. You can’t remote manage that from another continent, which is why we’ve got people on the ground in East Africa and why we’re sponsoring the Golden Dhow award. It’s a great way for us to get closer to the industry and support African film.

Speaking about the new partnership Festival Director Fabrizio Colombo said he was elated with the latest development which puts film at the centre of ZIFF.

“This year we received over 600 entries for the festival and the quality and caliber of the films received is amazing. The juries will have a difficult task in selecting this year’s winners,.”