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Durban FilmMart's AI debate lands as Epic's pivot draws fire

The seventeenth Durban FilmMart drew more than eleven hundred industry delegates from fifty-six countries over four days; nobody reports whether the crossroads has a stop sign.

On air: Chip Darnell and Vera Bullock on BBN Newsroom
Published 2:12 PM ET, Tuesday, October 13, 2026

Photo: Sergey Galyonkin from Berlin, Germany · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

▶ As it aired · Pop Culture

Watch it as it aired: Chip Darnell and Vera Bullock on this story, from BBN Newsroom at 2:12 PM ET. Cartoon anchors, real headline: the facts are Variety's, the jokes are ours.

At a glance

First reported by Variety: “South Africa’s Cash Rebate Bounces Back, African Verticals Lift Off and AI at a Crossroads: 10 Takeaways From the Durban FilmMart”, with reporting from BBC.
Covered on BBN on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, at 2:12 PM ET on BBN Newsroom, by Chip Darnell and Vera Bullock.
Topics: Epic Games, African, South Africa, AI.
BBN covered this story before: Epic Games confirms 'huge pivot' toward AI; Raye slams touts (October 13).

The real story

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

What BBN said about it

Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorNew this afternoon, the Durban FilmMart has wrapped its seventeenth edition, with more than eleven hundred delegates from fifty-six countries, and Variety says AI is at a crossroads for African film.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorA crossroads is my favorite kind of road, Chip, because every direction is a brand new adventure.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorIt lands the same day Epic Games boss defended his huge pivot to AI, saying much of the room wants it to be twenty sixteen.

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