South African Premiere Media Network, M-Net, Launches Online African Film Library

South African media network, M-Net, was South Africa’s first private subscription television service with its first broadcast in 1986. Since then, M-Net has gone on to provide rich entertainment content to its subscribers: from foreign programming to original African programming.

Now, M-Net has added to its long list of subscription channels by launching a new online website called the African Film Library. The following is information on the new initiative according to the website: www.africanfilmlibrary.com

“The African film industry is one of the oldest – with its roots in Ain el Ghezel (The Girl of Carthage), which was produced in Tunisia by Chemama Chikly in 1924. M-Net has spent the last three years negotiating the rights to almost 600 works in English, French, Arabic and Portuguese and digitally remastering them.

The library forms an important archive of the continent’s cultural cinematic heritage, and also, for the first time, makes the African artists’ works easily accessible by a wide viewership around the globe – creating a new audience for existing and emerging filmmakers.

The library consists of award-winning works from more than 80 producers including Senegalese Ousmane Sembene and Djibril Mambety, Yousef Chahine from Egypt and Haile Gerima from Ethiopia.

The African Film Library website provides you with unique access to the worlds largest collection of African and South African films ever produced. Our library covers a wide range of themes and topics some of which include African music and culture, drama, entertainment, history, arts and many other subjects.

Site visitors can browse the website and view trailers in the flash player without registering or logging in. Users will need to be logged in to rent a film.

The African Film Library service will be a PPV rental service. The system will work on credit, users can buy credit, and credit will be deducted when content is viewed. The library includes, amongst others, films by: Ousmane Sembene, Senegal – known as the father of African cinema …. Youseff Chahine, Egypt – pioneer of Arab cinema …..Haile Gerima, Ethiopia/USA – filmmaker and philosopher[;] Kwaw Ansah, Ghana[;] Idrissa Ouedragou, Burkina Faso[;] Djibril Diop Mambety, Senegal ….. Jean Rouche, Niger/France[;] Flora Gomes, Bissau”

The Library charges $5.00 to rent any film for a period of 36 hours.