MFDI 1999 Annual Report

Media for Development International
1999 Annual Report


In 1999 our main activity has been the production of the feature film “Yellow Card.” It is on the theme of teenage responsibility, supported by Pathfinder International with funds from DFID, USAID/REDSO, and the Ford Foundation. We have received $867,181 for this project, and expect another $400,000 or so this year. We have spent all that has been received plus about $33,000 additional. Of this amount $43,359 will stay with MFDI for overhead costs. (Enclosed please find some materials on the film.)

This is the biggest film production project we’ve ever undertaken, and it looks like it will be our best film ever. This film is John Riber’s debut as Director, and it looks really good. We shot on 35mm film with top-of-the-line Panavision cameras, and had the involvement of Sandi Sissel, ASC, a well-know Hollywood Director of Photography (“Salaam Bombay”, etc). The film was shot in 40 days in June - July 1999. Then the rough cut was edited by the end of November, and 100+ pretest shows carried out (20 in each of Zimbabwe, Zambia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, and with donor community in Boston, New York, Washington, DC and Baltimore). Population Communication Africa then did the analysis of the results and Louise Riber is now working on the final edit. We plan to premier it at the Harare International Festival of the Arts in late April. Steve and Sally Smith plan to attend this exciting event. We will also submit it to the Cannes Festival in May. We have Swahili, French, Shona and Ndebele language dubs budgeted and in the works now, as well as premiers and national distribution campaigns in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia as well as Zimbabwe.

Besides this project in 1999, we've done a couple things:

1. We did very little on the Peace Film project, but it is still in our future plans. We hope this year to get moving on getting funding together. Jonny Persey (who was a key person on “Everyone’s Child”) has expressed an interest in getting involved in this now that he has finished film school in London.

2. We supported the attendance of John and Louise Riber and Steve and Sally Smith at the 1999 FESPACO in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. This is the largest African film festival and takes place every other year. Steve and Sally have been to the last two FESPACOs in 1997 and 1995; and John Riber made it to the 1993 and 1995 events. We've had films in the last five FESPACOs. In 1998, we spent $400 on this project; this year costs were $11,591. These funds came from non-designated funds (that is, overhead and funds from DSR).

3. In 1999, a newly formed DSR2, Inc took over handling the sales of our 80+ African social message video titles and grossed $27,500 in sales. Unfortunately, its net profits were negative almost $1,000, so no royalties will be received this year by MFDI. DSR2 paid $15/video shipped (which we worked out as a very fair price for DSR2) to DSR (computer business) for the handling, stocking, paperwork, banking, financing, etc. This year we received $5,663 from DSR for MFDI’s royalty on the sales of videos in 1998, which was the first profitable year ever.

4. We also continued our long-term support of Maasai communication efforts. Mpeti (Tom) ole Surum was hit by a speeding bus in Kenya last year and died. Over the last several years, we have supported his efforts giving lectures to American schools on his culture and helped make a video on his life (which has won a Golden Eagle award and was broadcast on PBS). Now we are supporting his friend and tribal brother, Ledama ole Kina. He is a college student in Boston now (and previously was in Tennessee and Colorado). Steve Smith is on the board of his non-profit, Maasai Educational Discovery which is focusing on supporting education of Maasai in Kenya. He also does quite a lot of speaking to school classes, etc. MFDI spent $560 supporting his first fund-raising 550 mile walk from Durango, Colorado to Phoenix, Arizona. We will also help support his next fund-raising walk from Boston to Washington, DC and then on to Chicago in May / June this year.

5. This year we completed the Swahili dub of “Everyone’s Child” with support from UNICEF and PLAN International. We also are going to do a grass roots distribution effort in Kenya and Tanzania this year with some of these funds still left with MFD in Zimbabwe. $22,700 was spent on this project, of which MFDI kept $1,135 for its overhead costs.

6. We continued with follow on activities on our Access to Credit Media project. The two videos produced were aired in 1998 on PBS in the USA, but some continuing work was done, and many videos sold. MFDI received $1,070 for overhead costs from this project in 1999, on a total of an additional $20,487 in income. We remain with $27,130 in the bank which will be spent this year on follow on activities.

7. Also this year we spent $10,916 on MFD / Zimbabwe support. This covered a trip for John and Louise Riber to the USA where they did work on “Yellow Card” and MFD promotion. Also $1,247 of this went to cover the airfare of Rory Rooney to come to the USA from Zimbabwe for an orientation to MFDI. He has been an active and founding board member and Trustee of MFD for 10+ years.

8. Other than the costs mentioned above, MFDI spent $1,015 on overhead activities. ($730 for outside accountant fees, $40 for bank charges, $246 for supplies, printing, etc) DSR donated office space and office equipment use, and Steve and Sally Smith, and John and Louise Riber donated their time.

As of the end of 1999, MFDI has $11,521 in the bank that is not designated. Also about $33,000 more from the “Yellow Card” project for overhead amounts is due.

So this year 2000, we expect to be mostly involved with “Yellow Card” completion, promotion and distribution efforts. When it is done, we’ll send a video to all board members. We also will continue our efforts to find funding for the Peace Film, and continue our support as needed for the Maasai and MFD/Zimbabwe projects in 1999. The Access to Credit Media project should wind down this year. It has been a great project for MFDI for several years now, and we want to thank Rob Rooy and Sally Jones for their fine work on it. We hope to relocate to Colorado by the end of this year, and cut our dependence on DSR (computer business). DSR2, (film business) would move with us, and it would provide overhead support to MFDI. As you can imagine, this probable move revolves around a lot of other factors, but it should be very good for MFDI.

In 1999 we are sad to report that MFDI board member, Andreas Fuglesang died suddenly in Uganda. We will miss him, but have decided not to replace him with another board member at this time.