21 Filmmakers Shortlisted for ‘African Folktales, Reimagined’ Competition

After a rigorous evaluation process by a wide range of industry professionals from across the continent, 21 emerging filmmakers from 13 African countries have been shortlisted for the short film competition by UNESCO and Netflix ‘African Folktales, Reimagined’.

The shortlisted filmmakers were selected from 2080 entries across the continent.
They are Nosa Igbinedion (Nigeria); Ebot Tanyi (Cameroon); Loukman Ali (Uganda); Tongryang Pantu (Nigeria); Walt Mzengi (Tanzania); Venance Soro (Côte d’Ivoire); Mark Wambui(Kenya); Volana Razafimanantsoa (Madagascar); Mohamed Echkouna (Mauritania); Nader Fakhry (Côte d’Ivoire); Anne Catherine Tchokonté (Cameroon); Mphonyana Mokokwe (Botswana); Anita Abada (Nigeria); Samuel Kanyama (Zambia); Machérie Ekwa-Bahango (Democratic Republic of Congo); Oprah Oyugi (Kenya); Ndiyathemba Modibedi (South Africa); Gcobisa Yako (South Africa); Akorede Azeez (Nigeria); Katya Aragão (São Tomé and Príncipe) and Voline Ogutu (Kenya).

“This competition showcases the extraordinary cultural richness that Africa has to offer that we want to share with people all over the world, as Africa is a priority for UNESCO,” said UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Culture, Ernesto Ottone R.

The next phase of the competition will see the filmmakers pitch their stories to a judging panel comprising Nigeria’s filmmaker Femi Odugbemi, South Africa’s Bongiwe Selane, Leila Afua Djansi from Ghana, David Tosh Gitonga from Kenya, and Jean Luc Herbulot from Congo as well as representatives from Netflix and UNESCO who will act as guides in the process.

The panel will select the final six filmmakers who will receive a production grant of US$75,000 (through a local production company) to develop, shoot and post-produce their films under the guidance of Netflix and industry mentors to ensure everyone involved in the production is fairly compensated. Each of the six winners will also receive $25,000.