Backpacking may sound like a gap-year activity to many, but not to Calvin Phaala. The 24-year-old South African spends his time moving from village to village in northern Mpumalanga, giving people a rare treat: a night at the movies.

Phaala is part of a 14-strong team aiming to bring innovative technologies to hard-to-access rural areas. The ‘Cinema in a backpack’ project is funded by South Africa’s Department of Science and Technology and the European Commission.