Kimberly resident uses film to expose challenges of poverty, drugs and unemployment

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A young filmmaker, Eric Kock from Roodepan in Kimberley in the Northern Cape has taken it upon himself to tell the stories of where he was born and raised through the eye of a camera.

In his films, he addresses and exposes the challenges of poverty, drugs and unemployment faced by the people in his community.

The 34-year-old is currently shooting his second feature film called “Boeta Kom Huis Toe” after his first one, “Liesbet” was well received nationally and internationally.

Kock says his lived experiences have inspired him to start making films.

“I tend to take inspiration from my environment from my community and those are issues that are prevalent in my community, especially such as substance abuse, unemployment is a huge issue among the youth. So, for me these are things that we have to raising our stories, speak about an address them so that the broader community can take a take them serious.”

Meanwhile, other up and coming film makers in Kimberley in the Northern Cape say they are struggling to get financial support from the government and private sector. They say they have been knocking on the doors of government departments for years.

Despite having one film out and another in the making, these creatives insist that they have had to fend for themselves. They believe funding would help improve the quality of their work.

“We need to develop ourselves and we need the support from government and from private companies to say you know what we going to do this. I’m gonna support you,” says one of them.

“This is the opportunity for us to reach out and ask them to extend the hand so that we can improve quality and also improve in terms of the resources that we have in our province,” says another.