ILembe Shorts Indie Film Festival

02/06/2026

🎬 Appreciation post: A huge thank you to Mr. Thubelihle Dube, our ward councilor, for stepping up and sponsoring meals and refreshments for one full day of the Ilembe Shorts Indie Film Festival 🍲🥤

Because of his support, our delegates stayed nourished, energized, and fully engaged in every session, and that made all the difference. 🙌

True leadership isn’t just about words — it’s about action. Mr. Dube showed us what it means to serve the community where it matters most. 🌟

This is a call to others... from government officials, the private sector, and everyday heroes — let’s keep building together. Your support, big or small, can help us create something unforgettable for our community. 🤝🎥

Unwele Olude. Izandla zidlula ikhanda.
☀️

28/05/2026

Meet Ncamisile Nomazele ✨
She holds a BSc in Geography 🌍 & Organizational Psychology from Rhodes University, but she builds bridges—between brands and people.

A marketing pro who lives at the intersection of creativity + connection. Whether she’s coordinating campaigns, crafting content, or building community, she brings strategy with soul.📈🎯

Her superpowers? Communication, teamwork, and making audiences stop scrolling. 🛑📱

Driven by growth. Rooted in innovation. Ready to make marketing feel human again.

25/05/2026

25/05/2026

🎭 Bongani Makhathini
Actor • Director • Scriptwriter • Mentor

20+ years of telling stories that matter.
From the stages of Durban to your TV screen—House of Zwide, Scandal!, Uzalo, Durban Gen, and beyond. I’ve brought characters to life. But my greatest role? Lifting the next generation in Ndwedwe.

🎬 Currently shaping the creative space through my involvement in iLembe Shorts Indie Film Festival as a coordinator and outreach MC. We aim to create jobs, build skills, and turn rural stories into powerful theatre. My love is not only on screen or stage. I am a ✍️ Script editor of the award-winning Incwathi Yomzali (Best Director, Jumbo Art Centre).

🌍 Because authentic African storytelling doesn’t start in a studio, it starts in the community.

📍 Based in Ndwedwe, KwaZulu-Natal. Working for transformation through the arts.

23/05/2026

🎬 Aspiring Scriptwriter | 🇿🇦 Proudly from Mandeni

I matriculated from Impoqabulungu High School in 2013, then found my calling in storytelling.

I trained at the Ilembe Story Lab, where I learned to build characters, shape narratives, and format screenplays. In 2025, I landed an internship with StainedGlassTV on the UZALO telenovela and fell even deeper in love with the craft.

In 2024, I joined the ISIFF family through their partnership with Ilembe Story Lab. Since then, I've been learning, growing, and flying the Mandeni flag high.

My goal? To make sure other creatives from my community also get to be part of the magic, by attending the Ilembe Shorts Indie Film Festival, thanks to the support from Mandeni LM.

🎥 We can't wait to share the 2026 programme.
Please follow us on social so you don't miss anything.

Ready to help shape South Africa's film and TV landscape—one true story at a time.

Let's tell stories that matter. ✨

21/05/2026

Meet Minenhle Zikhali 🎥✨ Journalist by qualification, storyteller by heart.

By day, a part-time Student Orientation Adviser at DUT helping new students find their feet, their people, and their place on campus. Think of him as a welcome wagon with a clipboard and a whole lot of warmth. 🎓

But when the indie film world calls? Minenhle answers with not one, but two hats:

🎬 Festival Coordinator – He maps out the day’s rhythm, from morning energy to final credits. Banners, posters, vibes? Handled. He helps turn the iLembe Shorts Indie Film Festival into an experience you don’t just watch – you feel.

📸 Photographer – His lens is on the people who make indie film magic real: the laughs between takes, the quiet behind-the-scenes moments, the smiles that don’t make the poster but make the story. Capturing it all, one candid shot at a time💫

19/05/2026

As we continue to shine a spotlight on our amazing diverse team. Meet Sam a 29 year old Aspiring film director📣

“I fell in love with visual storytelling to educate and uplift disadvantaged communities. Growing up in rural PMB -Nxamalala, I never saw anyone like me behind a camera everyone just wanted to act. I got lucky in high school: exposure changed that.

This path hasn’t been easy. But it led me to extraordinary minds and talents that feel like home.”

This Workers Month, I’m building my dream—frame by frame. 🎬
ISIFF

19/05/2026

As we continue to shine a spotlight on our amazing diverse team. Meet Sam a 29 year old Aspiring film director📣

“I fell in love with visual storytelling to educate and uplift disadvantaged communities. Growing up in rural PMB -Nxamalala, I never saw anyone like me behind a camera everyone just wanted to act. I got lucky in high school: exposure changed that.

This path hasn’t been easy. But it led me to extraordinary minds and talents that feel like home.”

This Workers Month, I’m building my dream—frame by frame. 🎬

16/05/2026

This Workers’ month, we’re shining a light on our own...meet Andile Ngubeni – a digital marketer, content creator, and arts mentor with a deep passion for empowering young people through creativity and digital skills.

From social media campaigns to mobile filmmaking, from community arts development to one-on-one mentoring – Andile is on the ground, helping young people see that their creativity isn't just a hobby. It's a career. It's a tool for change. It's a way to build a better community.

While some work for a paycheck, Andile works for a legacy. 💼✨

🧡 His work reminds us that the most meaningful labor is the kind that creates more laborers, more dreamers, more doers.