Carfo

CARFO ( acronym for the Christelike Afrikaanse Rolprent en Fotografiese Organisasie, i.e. the "Christian Afrikaans Film and Photographic Organisation"), was a film production and distribution company active in the 1950s and 1970s.

Origins and history

In 1939 a group of Afrikaners organised themselves in what was known as the Volksrolprentbond (approx. "people's film league") with the aim of combatting the English and Hollywood dominance in film production. This later disbanded and then reappeared in 1940 as the Reddingsdaadbond-Amateurrolprentorganisasie (approx. "Reddingsdaadbond Amateur Film Organisation") or Raro, with the support of the Reddingsdaadbond.

Eventually, however, it was a group of Afrikaans clergymen from the Dutch Reformed Church, and a few former members of the defunct Raro, who founded the Christelike Afrikaanse Rolprent en Fotografiese Organisasie (Carfo) in 1947.

Carfo was registered as a non-profit company in September 1947, with Rudolf Raath as managing director.

Contribution to South African theatre, film, media and performance

Over the period of its existence Carfo made fourteen feature films, many filmed versions of literary works, and a number of shorter educational and documentary films. Like the films made by Raro, their work was founded on Christian principles and displayed what one author (Wheeler, 1988) typifies as "a Christian local realist tendency" in its themes, form and style.

The films made include:

Carfo made approximately 40 films, among the better known are:

Ek sal opstaan (1959), Carfo's first full-length film, followed by Kyk na die sterre (1960), Die hele dorp weet (1961), Gee my jou hand, gebaseer op die roman Het van Verlangekraal deur Johann Heinrich Bekker, in 1963 Die voortreflike familie Smit, gebaseer op die roman met dieselfde naam deur Anna M. Louw, 1965. Dit word beskou as die beste film deur Carfo vervaardig. Bennie-Boet, ‘n storie geskryf deur Sita, 1967 Hulda Versteegh, M.D. met o.a. Kappie Botha in die rolverdeling, 1970 en gebaseer op ‘n roman deur C. du Plessis Vrou uit die nag, gebaseer op ‘n boek van Ena Murray, 1973

Sources

Philippus Ferdinand Wheeler. 1988. Lokale realisme in speelprente van Raro en Carfo: 'n inhoudsontleding. Unpublished MA thesis, University of the Orange Free State[1]

Christa Steyn. 2015. Die argivering van die Afrikaanse film (1916 – 2014). Unpublished MA thesis, University of the Free State[2]

Leon van Nierop. 2022. Ligte, kamera ...preek!. Rapport Weekliks. 9 October, 2022: pp. 8-9

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