Bio
Rene is a film professional with more than 10 years' experience as Line Producer and Financial Manager at Giant Films, and as Assistant to Director Ian Gabriel on both the 'Forgiveness' and 'Four Corners'. She produced a short documentary on the life of Zolani Mahola, South African singer, motivational speaker and actress, and is currently in production on the feature length version. She holds a degree in Adult Education and serves as a consultant and facilitator on screenwriting and film skills training programmes. As former Head of the SAE Film Department she expanded the focus on Screenwriting and Directing in the Degree curriculum.
Rene is currently the Programmes Director at Sunshine Cinema, an alternative distribution NGO, where she leads the implementation of skills training programmes in film impact facilitation and entrepreneurship in marginalised communities across South Africa, Kenya, Mozambique, Eswatini, and Zimbabwe.
In 2023 she collaborated with local community representatives and developed and led the impact facilitation training programme and impact screening tour of 'Journey to Justice' across rural western Kenya. She is currently developing an impact screening plan along with the Zimbabwean team behind the documentary that highlights the work of 'The Friendship Bench' NGO, and a Zambian impact screenings tour of 'The Grab' documentary. Rene recently returned from a highly successful impact facilitation training workshop with four young people from Eswatini and Mozambique that focused on themes of climate justice, gender justice, and conservation.
