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WEF to screen Mandela movie

10 January 2014

Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom will be screened at the annual general meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on 24 January, Videovision Entertainment, the film's production company, said in a statement on Thursday.

Producer Anant Singh, who is a recipient of the forum's Crystal Award, will present the film, which will be screened as a tribute to Nelson Mandela, the former president of South Africa and subject of the film who died in December last year.

The Crystal Award honours artists who have used their art to improve the state of the world.

In an initiative started in 2006 by Professor Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of WEF, movies are regularly screened at WEF to highlight topical global issues.

'Great friend'

"Everybody who sees Anant Singh's film Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom is moved by the trajectory of this most outstanding personality of the past decades, who was such a great friend of the forum. This film reminds us to incorporate the spirit of Nelson Mandela into our mission and all our activities," Schwab said.

Singh said the screening of the Mandela biopic is of "special significance" to the forum, which recognised Madiba's leadership role shortly after his release from prison and invited him to address the annual meeting in 1991 - three years before he became president of South Africa.

"I hope that the film will inspire the delegates as Madiba did in his first address at the annual meeting," Singh said.

The film has received international critical acclaim and has been released in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, France, Holland/Netherlands, Portugal, Israel, Iceland, Switzerland, Belgium and the Middle East. Germany, Finland, Norway, Spain, Denmark, New Zealand and India will release the film later this month.

Source: Videovision