(Hlengiwe Matiwane,
Marketing & Communications Manager: KZN Film Commission and Marc Mathieu,
Unilever Senior VP Global Marketing)
Unilever is launching the Academy for
African Filmmakers (AAF), a new initiative which seeks to empower, equip and
celebrate African filmmakers. The Academy will develop filmmaking expertise and
give students the opportunity to work on live Unilever briefs, as well as
potential further funding for their work and the possibility of seeing their
finished films broadcast.
In partnership with MOFILM and as part
of the Academy for African Filmmakers, Unilever will offer an intensive
three-day course, created and delivered by experts from the filmmaking
industry, that will run in Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa in December 2014.
The curriculum will cover several aspects of filmmaker theory and practice,
with a focus on developing the story telling skills of the attending students.
Aspiring filmmakers from the age of 16
to 30 can apply, as long as they are resident in any African country, have a
technical proficiency in filmmaking and can demonstrate a passion for film and
storytelling. Filmmakers can find out more and register their interest at http://foundry.unilever.com/filmacademy
Marc Mathieu, SVP Global Marketing
explains: “Africa is home to a huge pool of young, talented filmmakers. Through
the Academy for African Filmmakers, we’re seeking to enable, develop and
promote African filmmaking talent within Africa and for Africa. Through this
partnership with MOFILM, we’re seeking to nurture talent and give young African
creatives the opportunity and the stage to tell the authentic story which
underpin Unilever’s brands in Africa.”
Jeffrey Merrihue, Founder and MOFILM
CEO, said, “MOFILM had great success in 2013 in finding untapped African
filmmaking talent. We visited countless film schools and production houses,
meeting hundreds of filmmakers and those efforts resulted in two filmmakers
being celebrated at the International Festival of Creativity at Cannes. Through
partnering with Unilever, the AAF will build on this work and give even greater
opportunity for African filmmakers to shine on a local and global stage”.
The Academy for African Filmmakers is
part of the Unilever Foundry, a platform which Unilever launched in May to
collaborate and experiment with the digital and creative community.
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