The Centre for Creative Arts (University of KwaZulu-Natal) invites African choreographers and dance filmmakers to submit work for the 2026 JOMBA! Digital Open Horizons Platform, part of the annual JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience and South Africa’s premier contemporary dance festival, running from 27 August to 8 September 2026 in Durban.
“We are looking for works conceived as screen-based choreographic experiences, where movement, lens, time, and environment are integral to the making of the film,” explains JOMBA! Artistic Director Lliane Loots.
In its commitment to present bold, experimental, and inclusive dance, JOMBA! offers this open application digital platform as an opportunity for artists across Africa to showcase new works in a safe and supportive environment, while connecting with audiences both locally and globally.
JOMBA! focuses on screendance and dance film created specifically for the screen. Submissions (5-10 minutes in length) are invited from choreographers aged 16 and above, based anywhere on the continent, and beyond, who are exploring the moving body in relation to the camera, editing, framing, and digital space -where choreography extends beyond the stage into cinematic forms.
“We welcome innovative, experimental, and critically engaged practices within the contemporary dance idiom, including interdisciplinary and hybrid forms that push the boundaries of how dance is created, perceived, and circulated in digital space,” Ms Loots continues.
Selected works will be screened publicly on the festival’s YouTube channel as part of the official programme, offering choreographers visibility on an international platform to showcase their screen dance work.
A jury-selected “Jury Pick of the Platform” will receive an award of R2,000 (KSh. 15,000). The platform is unfunded, and no travel or accommodation support is provided.
“We remain deeply committed to creating accessible, inclusive spaces for dance makers. The Digital Open Horizons platform is an important incubator for boundary-breaking choreographic voices and provides a foundation from which African artists can springboard new works into the world,” Ms Loot said.
