Netflix has said it wants to bring South African movies and shows to a global audience through its platform.

“There are great stories to be told here. It’s just the question of finding the right story,” said Yann Lafargue, head of Netflix corporate communications for EMEA.

He said Netflix is not looking for content that will only appeal to a local audience. As with shows like Narcos, they want local stories that may travel globally.

One of the ways Netflix finds such content is through its content acquisition team, which scouts for places where there are good storytellers.

People will also come with near-finished films or episodes for shows, while others will only have a script to pitch – like the Duffer brothers did with Stranger Things.

Regardless of which category creators fall into, Netflix said it is best to get an agent to promote your idea.

Networks

It may also happen that a film or series has attracted the attention of TV networks, in which case there will be a bidding war – where the highest bidder usually wins.

Lafargue said he could not promise Netflix will pick up South African content, but now that they are officially in South Africa, he is sure they will receive pitches from local creators.

Netflix is spending billions of dollars on original content, which it said drives subscriber growth and keeps users on the platform.

Lafargue said they also expect to charge South African subscribers in rand soon – within the coming weeks or months.

Netflix has not announced the rand prices.