On Set Productions

What On Set Productions does

On Set Film Productions (Pty) Ltd, trading as On Set Productions, is a privately held South African documentary film production company founded in 2004 and headquartered in Hout Bay, Cape Town. The company produces cultural, historical, and feature-length documentaries focused on the heritage and contemporary realities of indigenous Southern African populations, including the KhoeKhoe, San, and Griqua communities. Its flagship asset is The KhoeKhoe Saga, a 7-episode documentary series completed in 2022 after a multi-year development cycle funded by a National Lottery Commission grant, which won the SAFTAs 18 Golden Horn for Best Educational Programme in October 2024 and is broadcast on SABC 2.

The company's production model is field-based and relationship-driven, relying on long-term access to remote communities and the accumulation of archival footage, photography, and oral histories over more than two decades. Distribution occurs through public broadcasting (SABC 2), international film festival circuits (New York, Russia, India, Canada), tourism-channel exhibitions (Cape Town Tourism), and gallery photography sales. An emerging sub-brand, AIS (Africa's Indigenous Survivors), signals intent to franchise the heritage-documentary format across additional subjects and territories.

The business is founder-led (Rudolf/Rudi Rieger) and operates with approximately 11 employees. Revenue mechanics are project-based and dependent on a small number of institutional counterparties — lottery and grant funding for production, public-broadcaster licensing for distribution, and tourism partnerships for physical exhibitions. The company does not disclose revenue; based on scale and funding profile, annual revenue is likely in the low hundreds of thousands of US dollars.

Name

On Set Productions

Legal name

On Set Film Productions (Pty) Ltd

Website

https://onsetproductions.co.za

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

On Set Productions is a Cape Town-based documentary film production company, founded in 2004, that produces cultural and historical documentaries about indigenous Southern African communities including the KhoeKhoe, San, and Griqua, serving public broadcasters, international film festivals, and tourism exhibitors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Documentary Film Production

NAICS

Motion Picture and Video Production (51211), Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers (71151)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)

akta.pro primary industry

Arts & Culture Documentaries (MPADADAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Social Issue & Advocacy Documentaries (MPADADAG)

Keywords

• Documentary film production
• Cultural heritage documentaries
• Indigenous history films
• Photography exhibitions
• Television broadcasting

Headquarters

HQ city

Hout Bay

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Documentary Production and Broadcasting: Production of documentary series funded partially by National Lottery Commission grants, with broadcasting on SABC 2. The KhoeKhoe Saga was co-funded by the National Lotteries Commission.
2. Photography and Print Sales: Sales of photography prints through Sembach Art Gallery, including works by Rudolf Rieger documenting African cultural heritage.
3. Publications: Publishing of coffee table books such as Faces Of The Cape, offered to stakeholders at discounted rates with minimum order requirements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

On Set Productions is a documentary film production company that produces cultural, historical and feature documentaries focused on the indigenous Khoekhoe, San and Griqua populations of Southern Africa, broadcast on South African television (SABC 2) and screened at international film festivals. The company also operates a photography division (On Set Images) producing exhibitions such as FACES OF THE CAPE and selling coffee table books and prints through art galleries. It runs under the umbrella of Africa's Indigenous Survivors (AIS), with related programming spanning reality shows (KALAHARI KITCHEN, HUNTERS AND HERDERS), a talk show (THE MENTOR), and the AFRICANI IN CONCERT open-air cultural festival.

Product overview

On Set Productions operates as a film production company offering documentary, reality, and photography services. The core products include THE KHOEKHOE SAGA documentary series, various documentary features (In Search of My Mother Tongue, BLOOD ON OUR HANDS, HOTTENTOT AUTUMN), reality programming (KALAHARI KITCHEN, Hunters and Herders), talk shows (THE MENTOR), and photography services through On Set Images. The company also produces the AFRICANI in Concert festival and maintains a photography portfolio including Faces of The Cape publications. Projects fall primarily under the AIS (Africa's Indigenous Survivors) documentary umbrella serving Southern African culture preservation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Africa's Indigenous Survivors (AIS): Documentary series umbrella covering The KhoeKhoe Saga and related documentaries about indigenous Southern African populations.

Products and services

• On Set Film Productions (Pty) Ltd Film production company specialising in cultural, historical, and feature documentaries about Southern Africa's indigenous Khoekhoe, San and Griqua populations, with production services spanning concept, shooting, post-production and broadcast delivery.
• THE KHOEKHOE SAGA A 7-episode documentary series (7 x 48 minutes) portraying the history and survival of the Khoekhoe people of South Africa from 1500 to the present, produced under the Africa Indigenous Survivors (AIS) initiative, co-funded by the National Lotteries Commission and broadcast on SABC 2.
• In Search of My Mother Tongue A 90-minute feature documentary following Bradley van Sitters (Bradlox) on a personal journey to rediscover and revive the Khoikhoi language, featuring cultural heritage activism.
• THE MENTOR A 52-minute reality talk show focused on business mentorship, entrepreneurship skills and solutions for starting and growing businesses, featuring 3-4 mentees and marketing professionals.
• AFRICANI in Concert An open-air festival combining arts, cuisine and fashion to celebrate African, Indigenous, Indian and Malay traditions through dance, music and cultural performances.
• TRIBAL AFFAIRS Khoe Korana A 90-minute documentary series capturing the contemporary life of Khoe and Bushman people of Southern Africa, portraying reflections of Khoe structures, art, culture and heritage.
• Hunters and Herders A 52-minute reality series exploring tribal cuisine, arts and ancient rituals of Southern African destinations, tribes and clans, featuring Master Chef-style traditional cooking methods.
• KALAHARI KITCHEN A 48-minute cooking reality show featuring Kim Engelbrecht and chef Reuben Riffel traveling to Khoikhoi communities in Botswana, Namibia and South Africa to learn and document traditional cuisine.
• THE GATEKEEPER An educational reality TV series using animation to visualise transformation from legacy programme code to cloud-compatible structures, targeting audiences aged 12-40.
• BLOOD ON OUR HANDS A 70-minute historical documentary feature about the complete annihilation of the IXam nation (South African Bushmen) during the eighteenth and nineteenth century.
• HOTTENTOT AUTUMN A 90-minute factual documentary following three artists descended from the Hottentot and Bushman nations, exploring the impact of constructive art on society in Lavender Hill, Cape Town.
• Faces of The Cape A photography exhibition and coffee table book portfolio of approximately 80 A3 pages of Cape Minstrel imagery documenting Cape culture, sold at R500/copy with stakeholder pricing at R200/copy for minimum 50-copy orders.
• On Set Images Photography Services Photography services including location scouting, behind-the-scenes capture, and visual arts documentation of Southern African culture and indigenous communities, offered as commercial photography and prints sold through the Sembach Art Gallery.

Quantifiable outcome

• SAFTAs 18 Golden Horn Award for 'Best Educational Programme'
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Indigenous Peoples Society of South Africa (IPSOSA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit company founded in 2007 where Rudolf Rieger serves as Chief Executive Officer and board member. Project feasibility studies, research and development, including basic fundraising forms part of IPSOSA.
• Alternative TourismminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch organization working alongside On Set Images for cultural documentation projects under the umbrella of Alternative Tourism.
• South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC 2)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSABC 2 broadcast The KhoeKhoe Saga documentary series during 2023, making the content available to South African television audiences.
• Western Cape Integrated Indigenous and Traditional Leaders (WCIITL)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization where Rudolf Rieger serves on the council as Media Relations and Logistics contact, working on indigenous and tribal council matters.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Quizzical Pictures: Larger, multi-format South African production company producing drama, documentary and reality content — comparable in genre breadth and broadcast relationships, but with substantially greater scale and slate diversity.
• Film Afrika Worldwide: Established South African production company producing commercials, film and television content — comparable in commercial production model but operating at materially larger scale and broader international footprint.

Direct peers

• Curious Pictures: South African documentary and factual production house producing content for local and international broadcasters — comparable in delivery of award-eligible documentary work targeting both domestic and international festival/broadcast markets.
• Big World Cinema: Cape Town-based documentary and feature film producer with strong international co-production track record — comparable as a small-team South African producer exporting African documentary content to international festivals.
• Ochre Media: Cape Town-based production company producing documentaries and factual series for South African broadcasters — directly comparable in cultural-heritage and social-issue documentary focus, and competing for the same SABC commissioning slots.
• Giant Films: South African film and documentary production company producing commercials, branded content and long-form documentaries — directly comparable as a Cape Town-based production house competing for the same talent, broadcasters and grant funding.
• Uhuru Productions: Johannesburg-based production company producing commercials, documentaries and branded content — comparable as a black-owned South African production house competing for the same Lottery-funded and broadcaster-commissioned work.
• Penguin Films: South African production company producing documentaries, lifestyle, reality and factual television — comparable in scope of formats, broadcast delivery model (SABC/M-Net/DStv), and reliance on South African commissioning.
• Tafelberg Film: Independent South African production company focused on African stories and documentary features — highly comparable as a small Cape Town-based producer of culturally rooted, festival-targeted documentary work.
• Blue Planet Films: South African documentary production company producing factual content for SABC and international broadcasters — comparable in scale, format mix and reliance on Lottery/commission funding.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/on-set-productions

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about On Set Productions