Scara Mafokoane, senior Field Producer at eNCA.
Mafokoane is a strategic self-starter with a natural ear and eye for news and appealing visuals. He joined the then eNews channel in June 2010. His journey began as a production assistant, mainly tasked with ensuring that scripts for anchors are printed and on the studio floor on time. One was to make sure that guests are on time for their respective shows at the broadcaster.
After a year at the broadcaster, he was promoted to Content Producer for the Afternoon News Show with Joanne Joseph. In this role, he had to plan the direction of the show, speak to newsmakers of the day and possibly get them on the show. Eight months later, Scara moved to the Current Affairs Department, under the wing and guidance of then Executive Producer, Debbie Meyer.
“I was in charge of producing The Justice Factor, anchored by Justice Malala. I was in that role for six months. The FOMO in the newsroom got to me, and I asked to move back to the newsroom. This time, in a senior role in producing and writing for Morning News Today and Newsnight, eNCA’s flagship shows. I occupied that role until November 2013,” he explained.
Having spent a good three years of majoring in the editorial aspect of broadcast news, curiosity grew in him on how outside broadcast works. In December 2013, he was presented with the opportunity to join the eNCA Outside Broadcast team. At the time, there were only three individuals, nationwide. His immediate task in this role was to coordinate and plan broadcast coverage of the late former President Nelson Mandela’s funeral.
This earned him recognition as a respected Senior Field Producer at eNCA.
He plans and coordinates live events, from the daily diary to special projects, such as elections, conferences and commissions.
Scara narrows down highlights of his career to covering the 2010 Soccer World Cup, the Marikana Massacre and Nelson Mandela’s state funeral.
Senior staff at eNCA described Mafokoane as one of South Africa’s leading news producers. “Scara is a news junkie. Judged by his passion, drive and commitment, it is clear that news is his life,” they said.