IDIDTHAT HOUSE has become the industry’s home at Loeries

Every year, Loeries brings our industry to Cape Town. And in just two years, IDIDTHAT HOUSE has become the place to find each other, catch up properly, meet someone new and remember why we love this industry. Preferably with a drink and chippy in hand.

And this year, one HOUSE wasn’t big enough. We spilled into three spaces across our little corner of District Six, welcomed more people through the doors than ever before and somehow squeezed in an actual choir, a piñata (thank heavens we took out liability insurance), ice cream for days, a brand-new party for the ladies and theydies of our industry, panel chats that got people talking and more than a few questionable dance moves. But for all the beautiful chaos of IDIDTHAT HOUSE 2026, the thing we’ll remember most is the people who filled it…We’re not crying, you are!

For two days, directors, producers, creatives, marketers, editors, sound people, post people and everyone in between moved through the HOUSE. They talked about the work, celebrated each other, made new friends, caught up with old ones and bumped into the people they’d been meaning to WhatsApp for the past year. All powered by the South African production industry.

“Loeries Week is one of the few times our whole industry is in one city. We wanted to create a place within that week where everyone could find each other, catch up, talk about what’s happening in our industry, meet the people behind the work and, obviously, have a really good party. We opened the doors two years ago and somehow the industry moved in,” says Julie Maunder, Founder of IDIDTHAT.

As is now tradition, both mornings kicked off with free coffee, brekkie rolls and those dangerously popular Bloody Mary shots before everyone made their way upstairs to the Nedbank Loft for our panel discussions.

Thursday’s ‘Directors on Directors’ with Thina Zibi, Bruno Bossi, Zee Ntuli and Jessie Zinn, got us inside the minds of four directors, each a multiple IDIDTHAT Craft Award winner, before we asked what the production company of the future might look like in ‘The conditions have changed, the ambition hasn’t’ with Dani Hynes, Emma Lundy, Katherine Jones and Zayd Halim.

On Friday, we tackled the very real question ‘Where’s the 40-year-old Art Director?’ with Carl Willoughby, Saf Sindhi, Steph van Niekerk and Fran Luckin and whether, in a world of endless content, we’re losing sight of the big creative ideas in ‘More Content. Less Creativity?’ with Khensani Nobanda, Brian Muguto, Jolene Roelofse and Xolisa Dyeshana.

A massive thank you to every moderator and panellist who gave us their time, experience and, most importantly, their honesty. And to Kensi, Mivuyo, Tebogo, Tanya, Annie and the whole Nedbank team for giving us the space to have the conversations our industry needs, thank you.

The HOUSE got a little art on its walls this year, too. Across both days, Volkswagen brought a some nostalgia to the HOUSE with a wall celebrating 75 years of great VW advertising. Everyone who had worked on a VW campaign over the years was invited to add their signature. By the end of the HOUSE, it had become a lovely tribute to the people behind 75 years of VW ads.

And then there was the VW ice cream Kombi, keeping us all very happy across both days. Totally worth the blue tongues afterwards.

Once the morning panel chats wrapped up, the afternoons were for the parties. Thursday afternoon was a big one for us: our very first SHE DID THAT party.

We’ve wanted to create a space dedicated to the incredible women and non-binary people in our industry for a long time, and this year we finally got to make it happen. But it’s one of our SHE DID THAT party guests, Justine Puren-Calverley co-founder and director of FirstPencil, who summed it up best:

“Groups of women conjure up a certain magic. Being in a group of our familiars allows for a letting down of guards we didn’t even know we had.

We’re so used to having to check each other’s backs (we’re hardwired to do this), that being in a space where that isn’t necessary opens up so much capacity for fun and sharing and creativity and honesty and camaraderie.

What a joy to be amongst a group of women who all felt safe and free and were all just up for a really good time. We need spaces like these to remind us of just how many powerful, creative women are responsible for so much of the success in our industry. The privilege of standing amongst them was not lost on me.

I’ve been on a bit of a Susan Sontag binge and she speaks of the importance for women to drive the change independently of men. Of course, we love the guys – we love hanging with them and working with them and learning from them, but, flip, being in a group of women who were all about the power and the good and the fun and the creative is how we make ourselves feel free.“

Beautifully said Justine!

Another huge thank you to Kensi, who didn’t just believe in the idea but helped us make the space bigger and better so even more ladies and theydies could join us. Seeing that space filled with women and non-binary people from across our industry was one of our favourite moments of the whole HOUSE. We have a feeling this is just the beginning of SHE DID THAT.

Next was our Friday HOUSE Party, back for its second year and once again hosted by the production industry.

And this year, apparently, one venue wasn’t going to contain us. The Electric filled up. We spilled into neighbouring Surfa Rosa and then we took over the adjoining vintage store too. Our little HOUSE had turned into a neighbourhood.

And what a party! At one stage there was an actual choir on the dance floor. A choir! And, of course, Manila von Teez and the Tequila Queens, who we absolutely adore. Our HOUSE Party just wouldn’t be the same without you!

Boundless arrived with a piñata. You can imagine how that went. Again, amen liability insurance! Meanwhile, Prop Art and Len Cockcraft had turned the vintage store into a beautifully dressed little lounge for anyone needing five minutes off the dance floor.

1st pic: Surfa Rosa
2nd Pic: Vintage Store

Heineken Beverages kept the drinks flowing, and the new Pongrácz bar became a particular HOUSE favourite across both days.
KFC once again came through with the goods. Those delish Zinger strips and chips might be the closest any of us gets to a KFC brief!

VRtuosus dropped a hilarious new WWI-set commercial, directed by AK and produced by Spitfire Films, that had us all cackling. Watch it below. We heard there’s already some awards buzz around Nathan Reddy, Matthew Barnes, Clinton Bridgeford, Thabang Tipi Manyelo, and John Davenport.

VRtuosus ‘WW1’

And just when we thought we’d reached our ice cream quota, POPCO arrived with even more on Friday. Turns out there is no ice cream quota.

And finally, to every single person who came through the doors over those two days, thank you.
See you at ours next year.

All images by Laura McCullagh