benchfilms is an award-winning production company based in Cape Town. We have a friendly team of passionate filmmakers who get fresh water and clean sawdust in their cages every day. We like nothing more than a good story, pretty pictures and collaboration. We write and produce and push pixels around if they misbehave. Please watch our showreels and if you like our work don't hesitate to get in touch.

Fields: Adverts, corporate video production, music videos, narrative films, motion pictures & film, entertainment

Our team has their origins in creative film making, so our versatility and experience allows us to streamline the process of translating your vision from script to screen.
We have local and international experience in all forms of creative film and video production, from adverts to music videos, documentaries to long form narratives, motion graphic and 3D animation, public service announcements, TV series and more.

THE TEAM

Hisham Samie
Owner | Producer
After years wandering the wild lands of freelance producing Hish settled into his role at benchfilms with a survivalist approach to every project, big or small. His knack for squeezing every drop of potential out of a budget or schedule or cactus makes him an agile and formidable filmmaker. We would call him the Bear Grylls of producing if he weren't so afraid of snakes.

​Alan Shelley
Owner | Creative Director
Alan is an award-winning director of numerous shorts and branded films but is probably better known for his needlework. The inaugural winner of the Jameson First Shot Competition in South Africa, Alan has directed the likes of Kevin Spacey in the short Spirit of a Denture. Also look out for his quarterly article in "To The Point: Needlework Gazette"

Monde Kawana
Producer
Don't let her friendly disposition fool you, Monde is a powerhouse producer who is also a dab hand in the edit suite. Legend is she once beat a Key Grip at hopscotch and fed a crew of 50 off one pack of two-minute noodles (when the caterers didn't pitch). She also facilitates training at DOCI an empowerment program for emerging filmmakers in Cape Town.

Barrett de Kock
Cinematographer
Barrett takes light and shadow very seriously which is why we never play shadow puppets in his vicinity. A talented Cinematographer who enjoys storytelling Barrett cut his teeth in the industry for many years and has now taken to DOP-ing fulltime. Barrett is incapable of doing less than his best which Alan regrettably discovered in a game of extreme shadow puppets.

Margaret Zambonini
Producer
Writer, Producer and entrepreneur Margaret has a list of accomplishments as long as your arm. With a passion for storytelling and cinema MZ (as she's known in these parts) is a great collaborator who brings a worldly perspective to projects. Socialite and prolific networker she makes up for a complete lack of fashion sense at the bench office.

Simon Antonelli
Consultant
Simon is a very talented editor, director and beard trimmer. His encyclopaedic knowledge of films and music make him an invaluable collaborator and a flair for technical problem solving has saved us in many a tight spot. If you are looking for a good supplier of beard oil don't ask Simon he's sick of being asked.

Source:
www.benchfilms.com/whoswho