Netflix will Invest $62-Million into SA Film and TV Productions

During the Annual Investment Conference in Johannesburg, Sandton on Thursday, Netflix, the US-based streaming giant, announced an investment of R900 million ($62 million) in South African film and television productions.

According to Tech Central, the investment will cover four productions over the next two years, one international and three local.

“These productions, which are just a few of the many shows the company is developing in South Africa with local production partners such as Film Afrika, Gambit Films, Quizzical Pictures, and Burnt Onion, will significantly boost the South African film and television industry,” Netflix said in a statement.

According to News24, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa initiated the annual investment conference, which aims to secure R1.2 trillion ($82.5 billion) in domestic and inbound investment over the next five years.

Over the last five years, Netflix has invested more than R2-billion ($137.6-million) in South African productions, and by 2021, it expects that for every one local view of a South African title on Netflix, there will be 26 views by households outside South Africa.

Netflix stated that government investment incentives drew the company to South Africa.

The company stated that it hopes to see the government continue to maintain the favorable investment environment that has allowed such investments in the past, including notable initiatives such as the foreign film and production incentive scheme run by the Department of Trade, Industry, and Competition, as reported by Tech Central.

“It would be fantastic for our long-term investment plans to see even more transparency and predictability in that area because the presence of a dependable incentive scheme is critical for our financial decisions,” said Shola Sanni, Netflix’s director of public policy in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Local productions will be featured on Netflix’s global platform, which has over 200 million subscribers.