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ABALOBI | Honest Film Company Deck
Honest Films Co. is a documentary-focused production company built around real stories. We make cinematic films that feel grounded and intentional, often working in remote landscapes, conservation spaces, and community environments where authenticity cannot be faked.
❋ Strong Visuals❋ Genuine Emotions❋ Real ConversationsEverything we create is driven by one idea
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Is it HONEST?
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Everything we create is driven by one idea 〰️ Is it HONEST? 〰️
Our Team
Zander Botha
Director and CinematographerZander has spent the past six years directing and shooting documentary films across Africa. His work focuses on conservation, community stories, and organisations doing meaningful work on the ground.
Cinematographer and EditorLiam Nesbitt
Liam works across production and field filming. He brings a strong instinct for story and a practical approach to getting the job done in challenging environments.
OUR FOCUS
Conservation, wildlife and environmental work
NGOs and social impact organisations
Communities and human stories
Brands doing meaningful work in the world
Our work focuses on stories rooted in people and place. We are interested in organisations doing meaningful work in the real world, where the impact is visible in the lives of the communities involved.
The work ABALOBI is doing with small-scale fishing communities reflects that. It is a story about people, livelihoods, and the connection between communities and the environment.
That is exactly the kind of story we are drawn to tell.
PROOF OF CONCEPT
‘Silence to be Broken’
A documentary film following the rollout of the Take 5 mental health programme.
The film centres on the people behind the work. By spending time with the Waves for Change team, the champions being trained, the coaches delivering the programme, and the children taking part, the story unfolds through their experiences. Filmed in the suburbs of Cape Town, the film builds a strong emotional connection to the characters carrying the work forward on the ground.
Through these personal stories, the audience comes to understand the impact of Take 5 locally, and the potential it holds for young people around the world.
FILM IDEAS FOR ABALOBI
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Beyond the Catch builds on the story introduced in Coding for Crayfish, but shifts the focus deeper into the lives of the people behind the fishery. Through intimate portraits of local protagonists, the film explores how communities live alongside this valuable resource and how the current structure of the industry shapes their daily realities.
At its heart, the film reveals the profound connection between the community, the coastline, and the food it provides, while also exploring the possibilities that emerge when small-scale fishers gain greater recognition and access to fair markets. Through its work with fishing communities, ABALOBI helps bring visibility, traceability, and new economic opportunities to small-scale fishers, supporting a more equitable and sustainable future for the fishery.
Beyond the Catch is a story about livelihoods, dignity, and the future of coastal communities whose lives remain inseparable from the land and sea that sustain them.
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Hook to Plate follows the path of a single fish from the moment it is harvested to the moment it is served on a plate. Told through an immersive, point-of-view style, the film reveals the network of people involved along the way: the fisher who catches it, the community landing sites where it arrives, the people who process and trade it, and the chefs who finally prepare it.
As the fish moves through each step, the film uncovers the often unseen system that connects coastal communities to consumers. Through ABALOBI’s technology and traceability tools, this journey becomes visible, ensuring that every fish carries a story and that the people behind it are recognised and fairly connected to the market.
Hook to Plate is a simple but powerful journey that reveals how many hands, livelihoods, and relationships exist behind a single meal from the sea.
Next Steps
If our work resonates, we would be excited to explore how we could collaborate.
ABALOBI REVIEWS STUDIO DECK
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TEAM INTRO INITIAL
DUCTIONS DISCUSSION
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CONFIRMATION OF
INTEREST FROM ABALOBI
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PROJECT PROPOSAL
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CREATIVE TIMELINE BUDGET
DIRECTION ALIGNMENT FRAMEWORK
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CLIENT SIGN-OFF
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PRE-PRODUCTION
Research · Planning · Logistics
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PRODUCTION
Field Filming
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POST-PRODUCTION
Edit · Sound · Colour
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FINAL FILM
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DISTRIBUTION / USE
Campaign · Web · Impact