Rooftop’s tourism video a winner

ROOFTOP Productions has scored again with their now multi-award winning tourism video, Discover Freedom, shot for Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism, taking the accolade of Best Advertising film at the Art and Tur International Film festival.

Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism marketing manager, Titus Chuene, said the win was a coup for the local tourism industry.  “We are extremely proud of the awards Discover Freedom is raking in,” said NMBT’s marketing manager, Titus Chuene. “Not only is the short film giving Nelson Mandela Bay huge coverage internationally, the fact that this is an entirely homegrown production – conceptualised and shot by local companies – gives it more importance as it put them on the map too.”

“The fact that Rooftop and Boomtown’s skills have been recognised on a world stage is a testament to the calibre of talent we have in Nelson Mandela Bay. Over and above this, the exposure the city will get out of this video and win will have a ripple effect on our tourism industry,” said Chuene.

The annual ART&TUR – International Tourism Film Festival organized and promoted by APTUR – the Portuguese Turismology Association and the festival ART&TUR is a member of CIFFT – International Committee of Festivals Tourism Film, and an important instrument promoting the excellency of audiovisual productions related to tourism. Over 285 films from over 30 countries are entered and it has establishing itself as one of the largest film festivals in the world of tourism.

Earlier this year Rooftop won at the annual WorldFest – Houston International Film Fest in the a category of Travel and Tourism videos.

Managing director of Rooftop, Richard Ahlfeldt, who was the executive producer of the video, said it was “brilliant to be recognised”.

“We have so much on offer in Nelson Mandela Bay,” said Ahlfedlt. “But not many people know where Nelson Mandela Bay is and what you can do here. So we wanted to take potential tourists on a journey where they not only discover Nelson Mandela Bay, but also the freedom of the city in this beautiful province.

Following a collaborative meeting of local creative minds from strategic brand agency, Boomtown, which subcontracted the work to the Rooftop – both Nelson Mandela Bay-based companies – evolved the inspiration behind the video around the theme of discovering freedom.

“We are excited that all the skills are local and that the concept and execution worked so well together under the topic Discover Freedom, which the video was later entitled as. It goes to show that even though we are local we have some of the best minds fit for the global stage, right here in Nelson Mandela Bay,” said Boomtown director, Luvuyo Bangazi.

The Boomtown team included Glen Meier (creative director) and Natalie Henshaw (copywriter). The Rooftop team included Ahlfeldt, Andrew Jute (film and editing) and Linda Rossouw (producer).

Chuene also noted that the film formed part of a strategy at Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism to engage in multi-media platforms for promotion.

“We are living in the digital age and we must cater to the digital tourist. In fact, the first ‘visit’ tourists actually make to potential destinations is often online, thus we need to market to these potential tourists by showcasing our tourism offerings in an enticing manner,” said Chuene. “Video is one of the most evocative ways to do this, hence the commission for a tourism video – and we are very impressed by the final award-winning product which is already promoting our stunning destination.”

Below is the award-winning production: