Established in 2015, AFDA Gqeberha began its journey in a modest suburban home off Cape Road. As student numbers grew, the institution sought a more expansive space, eventually acquiring a cluster of properties in the historic Bird Street area. These buildings, once home to the original Port Elizabeth Museum and later the new University of Port Elizabeth, were thoughtfully renovated to accommodate the first cohorts. As demand increased, further expansions were made to provide facilities for aspiring professionals in the creative industries.
Unlike Johannesburg and Cape Town, Gqeberha did not have an established film industry to drive its growth at the same pace. However, AFDA has recognized the importance of developing its intellectual capital to support the demands of the creative economy. With the rise of remote work, both locally and globally, AFDA Gqeberha has positioned itself as a key player in equipping students with the necessary skills to thrive in this evolving industry.
In 2017, the institution saw its first graduates produce the fiction film Bear, inspired by the life of Siya Kolisi. A year later, AFDA Gqeberha’s first postgraduate cohort created Isikhalo (The Outcry), which proudly represented AFDA in the fiction film category at the prestigious CILECT PRIZE awards. Since then, AFDA Gqeberha has continued to make waves, with its films being featured on platforms such as BET Africa and Showmax. Over the past decade, AFDA Gqeberha has nurtured a number of storytellers, filmmakers, and artists, helping to shape the future of the creative economy in the region.
“In addition to making future history by way of our graduates, Gqeberha campus has coincidentally inherited an extraordinary legacy from the past. In the early 1960s, before the establishment of the University of Port Elizabeth (NMU today), a group of young thespians utilised the vacated premises as a place to develop and present their form of innovative and provocative theatre. These actors and playwrights were particularly drawn to the abandoned open-air snake pit which had been a feature of the museum. They named themselves the Serpent Players in recognition of that earlier use, but also in reference to their intent as socio-political provocateurs. Among their members were today’s theatre greats John Kani, Athol Fugard, and the late Winston Ntshona. The extraordinary coincidence is that the birth of South Africa’s famed resistance theatre took place on exactly the site where AFDA has established a school of film and performance. Today’s students walk in the paths of global icons.” says AFDA Ggeberha dean Mark Wilby.