OAFF User guide
Find your answers here
GENERAL INFORMATION
Where can I buy my ticket to see the movies?
You can directly buy the OAFF Pass ticket on this website by clicking on the tab “Book your OAFF Ticket”. You will be redirected to the OAFF Platform.
- If you can’t find the tab on the menu, here is the direct link to the payment page:
https://oafffest.cinewax.org/subscribe
(Credit card only).
- You can access some of the movies (free-to-watch), by creating a free account on the OAFF Platform.
Please keep your password safe. if you forget it, you can reset it at any time.
Note: Mobile Money is not available yet, but we are working on it. Find more information in “How much is the OAFF online ticket?“
What is the OAFF platform?
Created by Cinewax, this platform promotes African films all year long.
The OAFF Platform is a streaming platform where you can watch online African films and movies from the African diasporas, all around the world, at an affordable price. Our goal is to help you discover the best new talents, and thus broaden your mind.
We use the same platform during the OAFF Festival; however, the festival only lasts 1 month, and proposes each year a new film selection according to a specific theme.
FYI: The business model of the platform was made for supporting the filmmakers. In addition to the film rights we pay them, 10% of the total revenues are redistributed to the producers.
We want the OAFF to become a platform which emphasizes the visibility of African filmmakers, the curation of films. It would be a hub to discover and support new talents.
Cinewax is a non profit organisation (according to law 1901) created in 2015, whose goal is to promote African films. It’s registered at the trade and companies register (RCS de Créteil France) within the number 80974288500019, and RNA W942005318.
How much is the OAFF online ticket?
The OAFF platform is available worldwide at an affordable price. Prices can vary according to the country you are based in when you purchase the ticket. You must purchase your OAFF Pass to access the movies.
The prices for the Festival OAFF are different and the movies selected may differ from the selection available during the year.
Credit/Debit card payment*:
Europe: €6
USA/Canada: $8 (and other countries)
United Kingdom: £8
Africa: $5
or 3000 FCFA, 1800 NGN (see local price conversion for your country)
South America: $5
Rest of the World: $5
Mobile payment:
Mobile payment is not available yet on the platform. We are currently looking for local or regional partners to handle Mobile payments. If you know some of them please send and email to oaff@cinewax.org
For any questions regarding payments, you can write to the same email address.
*Note: your bank may charge additional fees, but we only take the amount we indicated. The payment information used for purchasing your ticket are strictly confidential. Never communicate your bank information, credit card information, for any reason.
How long can I watch the movies?
Movies are available all year long on the OAFF platform.
You have unlimited access to all the films as long as you subscribed, 24/7, whenever and wherever you want.
The film catalog can vary depending on the movies we can or cannot show (ie. distribution deals).
The films that are selected for the Festival may not be the same you will find during the year on the OAFF platform.
During the OAFF Festival, your ticket is available for this specific period (1 month per year), and grants you access to the movies in the same conditions as described.
Resume Watching feature
If you stopped a movie, it will appear at the top of the platform when you come back. If you play the movie again, the moment you stopped last time will be remembered.
Is the OAFF available in my country?
The OAFF is a worldwide platform that allows viewers to watch films anywhere.
We believe our movies are universal and African filmmakers and stories should be seen in the whole world. We wanted thus to allow as many spectators as we can to have access to it.
However, we are restricted by our distribution deals with right owners, and sometimes movies are not available in somes specific countries, so we have to activate geo-blocking restrictions for them.
If the movie isn’t allowed in your country, it won’t appear on the platform.
How to participate in a launch session?
NEW!
We are doing our best to promote African films all year long.
The OAFF Platform will be open throughout the year. You will be able to join our “online events”.
Go check the question “What is the OAFF platform?“
THE OAFF FESTIVAL EVENTS
Each year, Cinewax OAFF organises preview screenings in several cities around the world to launch the OAFF Festival.
Cinewax will communicate information regarding the participation in its socials.
You can join our newsletter for all the details (it is the best option :D)
OAFF French Newsletter
You can also follow Cinewax on
During the OAFF Festival, the screenings & events are happening between October and November depending on your country.
After the Official Launch, meet us online to find all the movies the streaming platform.
ACCOUNT AND ACCESS TO OAFF
I didn't receive the e-mail confirmation
Once you subscribe to the OAFF platform, you need to ACTIVATE your account.
- Please check your SPAMS first
or the Promotion, notifications, and/or Forum tabs (for gmail only – it may be different on other email service).
Many of you are not receiving our emails because their email service considers it as “spams” or automatically classifies it outside your Main inbox.
How to put our mail back in your Inbox?
You just have to put the e-mail in your main tab
ex: for gmail “drag & drop” the e-mail in your main tab.
- Search our e-mail address “oaff@cinewax.org” and whitelist it.
- You can always reset your password if you lost it, by clicking on the reset button on the login page.
I received a free ticket, but I can't watch the films
In some cases, the OAFF can send you a “free ticket” to watch the movies for free:
– If you are a guest, partner, a director (or other)
– if you have bought a presale ticket before the opening
– if you won a giveaway/contest
Most of the time, the activation issue is due to the fact that you didn’t activate your account by clicking on the email link, or missed a step in the process.
Solution
1. Please watch this tutorial and respect every step:
click here to watch the tutorial
2. Check your spams to see if you may have lost the email.
More info at question “I didn’t receive the e-mail confirmation”
3. Try to reset your password. Or log out/log in
4. Empty your cache
If it still doesn’t work, we can send you a new free access link. Email us at oaff@cinewax.org.
Note: our platform provider configured the tickets to last 30 days, from the moment you purchased it. Your access to the platform might be restricted within the period of the festival without knowing why. The problem comes from this technical restiction.
(ex: The festival opens on November 8, you activate a free ticket before the launch, on October 20. On November 20 (+30 days), your access will automatically expire, whereas the Festival OAFF will still be running)
I bought a ticket for the OAFF festival (presales) and I can't watch the films
Your access to the platform might be restricted within the period of the festival without knowing why. The problem comes from this technical restiction.
Example:
The OAFF Festival opens on November 8 and closes on December 8.
You purchase a ticket before the launch, on October 20 (or activate a free access). On November 20, your access will automatically expire (+30 days), whereas the Festival OAFF will still be running.
To solve this issue, contact us by sending an email to admin@cinewax.org.
I purchased my ticket but I can't access the movies
Once you bought your ticket, you will receive a confirmation email with your payment details.
The OAFF streaming platform is available on https://oafffest.cinewax.org. You need to create an account.
PLEASE keep your password safe. If you forget it, you can always reset your passwork.
In some cases, a slight update delay from our platform provider (Okast) can prevent you to have access to your offer after the payment.
1. First, verify with your bank services that your payment has been processed.
2. Try to log out and log in again.
3. If it doesn’t work, clear your cache (see in your browser settings) and repeat the operation.
4. Reset your password and try to log in again.
5. Check your browser compatibility (go to our section “report a technical issue” to get more information).
If you still can’t connect after all these steps, please contact us with your email used for creating your account (more information in the same section: report a technical issue).
FILMS, PLAYER, SUBTITLES
About the film player and OAFF
Users will of course blame our festival for this problem, and that is understandable.
You need to know that technical issuers are not managed directly by us, and everytime you submit a ticket we are working on it with our external platform provider.
But there is always a solution 🙂
The following section will help you to solve your problem.
I am redirected to the payment page when I click on the player
– You did not buy any ticket. You will be redirected to our offer page.
– You are not in the country access area (you won’t be able to see any film)
If you bought a ticket, and you are still being redirected, it means you didn’t activate your account.
See the section “I didn’t receive the email confirmation” to solve this issue.
I cannot play the films / Error : "There appears to be playback issue" / The film stops while playing
– Set up issue (the server doesn’t understand you are connected)
– loading time is too long (your network is not good)
– Latency time on the page (you left the film page open too long before coming back to play the film)
– your device/browser may not be compatible
Solution
1. First and foremost, start by reloading your page (close and open your browser).
2. Empty your cache (find it in your browser settings)
3. Then log out and log in to your OAFF account. Click on your icon at the top right of your page and log out. Then log in by using your password.
4. Check your internet connexion. Low or instable connection can lead to a player default.
5. Are you using a smartphone? The player always work using a computer. However, it might encounter some problems with smartphones, tablets and other devices (see compatibility below)
“There appears to be playback issue“
If you get this message on a black screen, follow the steps 1 to 4.
– – – –
6. If you can’t watch the films, it may also be due to a browser compatibility problem with our platform (or device).
Find out about browser compatibility issues
7. If the “player button” doesn’t work, you might not be in a zone where the platform is available. (see the question “Is the OAFF available in my country“)
8. If you still have a problem after these steps, see the section “report a technical problem”
Note: in some cases, the movie might have been taken down by the platform admin for technical reasons (or others). Cinewax will inform the users of the platform via email and/or social medias if this happens.
There are no subtitles/The movies are not available in my own language.
All the OAFF platform movies are at least subtitled in “french” and “english”. We will add more languages over time depending on our audience’s needs.
The Cinewax team is dedicated to offering the best work to edit subtitles of quality and translate all the films, in order to make them accessible for the widest audience.
We are a small team and we pour our time and energy to these translations. Sometimes, we recover the subtitles from the right owners of the films directly, and they might have some mistakes. We are not responsible for these previous translation mistakes, and we are sorry for the inconvenience.
– – – –
Why can’t I read the film subtitles?
1. Did you activate the subtitles? Check on the player menu.
Watch this tutorial to learn how to display the subtitles.
2. It may be a display problem.
You can check more info about this in the question “report a technical problem”.
3. If you still can’t read the subtitles, it means we don’t have it in your language, or couldn’t translate it (sorry :/).
Where can I see the OAFF film selection?
Every year, the OAFF Festival proposes a new selection based on a specific theme.
The Cinewax OAFF 2019 selection theme was the African Dream.
Example of the 2019 selection.
CONTACT US
How to contact us for a technical issue? (new)
For all your questions about any technical issues (film player isn’t charging, subtitles, platform access, etc…) please send an email to admin@cinewax.org
Important:
- All of the questions have been answered in this User Guide/Help. For almost all the problems your might have, you just have to read the answers detailed here. Even if you write us, we will redirect your to this HELP section.
- The adress oaff@cinewax only concerns general questions.
- We are a small team based in France, and our means are limited. Our response time can vary between 24h to 48h, but we try our best to answer within a few hours.
We are currently working on a possible live chat so as to be able to assist you directly.
Contact Cinewax association (new)
Cinewax is a non-profit organization (according to 1901), that has been promoting African films since 2015 through festivals, film premieres and original programming.
We produce the Online African Film Festival.
For all questions regarding the film selection: oaff.progra@cinewax.org
For partnerships and general inquiries: oaff@cinewax.org
You can write us and follow us on our socials
Note: we are more reactive by DM in Instagram 🙂
Join us on:
Subscribe to our newsletter so as to get all the updates (it is the best choice)
How to submit a movie? (new)
Are you a filmmaker or a producer?
Cinewax has been promoting African films since 2015.
Thanks to the Online African Film Festival (OAFF) we want to promote these films worldwide.
We are always looking for new films and inspiring stories. Here is how you can submit your film to our programming team.
This process is free, you don’t have to pay anything.
Read the following article
Report a technical problem
For any technical problem such as:
– black screen
– movie that can’t be opened
– subtitles reading
– payment that doesn’t work
1. Check if your equipment (Mac, laptop, smartphone) is compatible with our platform, by clicking here.
2. If needed, update your browser
3. If you didn’t find the solution, please fill in this form:
http://bit.ly/OAFF-support_report_a_bug
or write to admin@cinewax.org
(Our team will answer in the next 24 to 48 hours)