Welcome to the South African Screen Sector Support Initiative (SASSSI), a ‘by the industry, for the industry’ effort to provide urgently-needed relief to those individuals, small businesses and industry organisations who derive their livelihood from the screen sector – and to assist and encourage the sector’s recovery, development and rapid growth post-Covid.

This sector is amongst the hardest hit by the ongoing ravages of the pandemic. Overnight, productions were shut down, thousands lost their jobs – many of whom have no access to any of the government relief measures or to UIF and have lost their homes and cannot put food on the table. Many of the small businesses which are the backbone of the sector floundered with too many closing their doors never to recover. Similarly, the various mostly volunteer organisations which represent and support the workers in the sector have been overwhelmed with work and extraordinary costs as they have tried to help their members navigate this crisis.

SASSSI’s immediate project is the Screen Sector Support Fund which seeks to provide relief where it is most needed to enable the sector and those who work in it simply to survive. The Fund will be administered by the country’s leading and oldest Social Investment Managers, Tshikululu. They will screen all applications to ensure they meet the application criteria. Those that do will be evaluated by an independent panel of adjudicators and Tshikululu will disburse funds to successful applicants and provide full disbursement and financial reports to ensure transparency.

In the longer term, industry recovery and growth efforts will be led by a panel of local and international industry and business experts who will seek to identify and capitalise on every possible opportunity to help the industry transform, in every respect, into the dynamic sector it has the potential to be. That would be a sector which invites and encourages investment from outside and inside the country and, as a result, makes a significant contribution to the economy, to job creation and to the promotion of brand South Africa through the telling of our stories and the promotion of our national identity and cultures.

We urge companies and individuals who have an interest in this sector or share our passion for screen content to donate to the Screen Sector Support Fund. Any amount, no matter how great or small, will be most gratefully received – not just by ourselves but, most importantly, by the thousands of struggling industry workers who will be the ultimate beneficiaries.

All donors will, if they wish, be listed as contributors to the Fund and large donors may receive logo placements on this website and in other communications collateral that we will produce.

Donors may request a Section 18A Tax Certificate to enable your contribution to be tax deductible. Click here.

To find out more about donating, please click here.

We hope you will join us in ensuring the survival of this vital sector.