Free Women Films (FWF) is a leading, multi-award-winning South African production company specializing in fiction, TV dramas, and non-fiction storytelling. Our recent documentary, Music is My Life – Joseph Shabalala and Ladysmith Black Mambazo, has been submitted as South Africa’s official entry for both the Best International Film and Best Documentary Feature at the 96th Academy Awards. This co-production between South Africa and the UK highlights our dedication to global partnerships.
FWF’s work has premiered at prestigious festivals including the Toronto International Film Festival, Berlinale, IDFA, and over 20 other international festivals. Our productions have reached audiences on platforms like Amazon Prime, Netflix, SABC, BBC, ZDF/ARTE, CANAL+, NHK, YLE, Sky Arts, and MNET, among others. We are proud of our award-winning legacy, having received accolades at Reims France, IDFA Amsterdam, Fespaco, ZIFF, DIFF, and Carthage, and winning seven SAFTAs for When We Were Black.
As a production house, we are not only storytellers but also pioneers in building cross-border collaborations. Three of our films—The Number, Disco Africa, and Sew the Winter to My Skin—have been funded by the World Cinema Fund (WCF). In 2013, our documentary Nelson Mandela, The Myth and Me received the Special Jury Award at IDFA, further strengthening our global presence.
Our deep-rooted commitment to African cinema and youth outreach is evidenced through a decade of campaigns spanning 38 African countries. In television, we’ve produced the highly successful 90 Plein Street (6 seasons) and When We Were Black (7 SAFTAs).
Since 1992, we have been actively transforming the South African film industry through training and development programs, while also co-producing with international partners to leverage equity finance, soft funds, and the DTIC film incentive schemes.
FWF is a fully female-owned, Level 2 BBBEE company, led by Judi Nwokedi (Executive Chair), Carolyn Carew(Producer), and Tsholo Mashile (Producer), based in Johannesburg, South Africa.