Savannah Creatives Digest

31 hot 🌶️ creative opportunities you shouldn't miss this August

Maurice Chapot — Mon, 27 Jul 2026 06:20:40 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 3 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 599 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack.

Today’s dispatch is our monthly opportunity board, and as always we have some serious ones to share.

👉🏾 31 opportunities that you might want to seriously consider, targeting African photographers, filmmakers, game designers, and creative professionals in general.

Here is our top #3:

🎬 The Script to market international film residency in Uganda is an advanced film accelerator supporting feature-length horror, fantasy, thriller and action projects through a 14-week development lab, industry residency and investor forum. Selected teams receive mentorship, market access, pitching opportunities and the chance to secure funding.
🎮 Supercell developer grants program is an equity-free grants of USD 20,000–200,000 for legally registered African game development studios. Open across all platforms, genres and business models, the programme supports studios with compelling games and clear plans for growth!
🎨 The mobility fund for artists & circulation of cultural goods, supporting artist travel for festivals, markets, awards, masterclasses and short professional training, with up to €5,000 for mobility and €2,500 for circulation of goods.

We wish you all the very best with your applications🪄.

With love,

Love & Maurice

PS: If you know about other opportunities that wouldn’t be listed below, please kindly share with me so I can include them in the list. Let’s remember this newsletter is very much collaborative, the end goal being to serve the African creative community as best as we can.

PPS: if you apply to of those opportunities and get selected, please let me know so we can celebrate the news with everyone here!🥹

Hot opportunities for African creatives - August 2026

(The more 🌶️ you see, the hotter the opportunity)

🌶️🌶️ 🎵 Soundcinema Düsseldorf 2026 (Germany): international showcase for experimental, electronic and electroacoustic sound works, offering selected artists a presentation at FFT Düsseldorf alongside cash awards and artist fees. Open to composers, sound artists and sonic storytellers exploring innovative approaches to listening, with a special focus this year on the theme of “Acceleration.” 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 July 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎥 AXS Film Fund (Global): grant programme supporting documentary filmmakers and nonfiction media creators, with a particular focus on creators of colour living with disabilities. Selected projects receive up to USD 10,000 in funding and can apply at any stage of production, from development to distribution. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 July 2026

🌶️ 🎮 Orange Youth Festival Games Showcase 2026 (Ghana): open call for African and diaspora game developers to showcase mobile, PC, console, tabletop and in-development games at one of West Africa’s leading youth innovation festivals. A valuable opportunity to gain visibility, connect with industry stakeholders and receive feedback from players, creatives and potential partners. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: Not specified

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎮 Google Play Indie Games Fund Africa: equity-free funding for independent game studios across Sub-Saharan Africa. Ten studios will receive USD 50,000–200,000, plus mentorship and technical support from Google Play. Open to studios with 50 employees or fewer that have already released at least one game. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 July 2026

🌶️ 🎬 The African Animated Shorts Experience Festival: free international festival dedicated to African animated short films. Open to animations produced within the last five years, with up to two submissions per creator. Films must be at least 90% animated, include English subtitles where relevant, and AI-generated content is limited to 30% of the final work. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 3 August 2026

🌶️ 🎬 Mostra de la Francophonie de la Diversité: Brazilian showcase promoting francophone cinema and cultural diversity. Open to films engaging with identity, language and cross-cultural narratives. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 4 August 2026

🌶️ 🎞️ GIRAF Festival of Independent Animation: international festival in Calgary dedicated to independent and experimental animation. Submission categories and details available via FilmFreeway platform. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 4 August 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Script to Market International Film Residency (Uganda): advanced film accelerator supporting feature-length horror, fantasy, thriller and action projects through a 14-week development lab, industry residency and investor forum. Selected teams receive mentorship, market access, pitching opportunities and the chance to secure USD 3,000 proof-of-concept funding. Women filmmakers are especially encouraged to apply. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 9 August 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎮 Supercell Developer Grants Program: equity-free grants of USD 20,000–200,000 for legally registered African game development studios. Open across all platforms, genres and business models, the programme supports studios with compelling games and clear plans for growth. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 9 August 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Fujifilm Short Film Festival: short film competition for narrative, documentary, student and experimental films, offering cash prizes, Fujifilm equipment and screenings in Dubai, with winning films touring arthouse cinemas across the region. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 15 August 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 NBO Project Showcase: Nairobi Film Festival is selecting 10 African feature projects (5 fiction, 5 creative documentaries) in development or pre-production, offering selected filmmakers a pitching slot, 1-on-1 meetings with international buyers and scouts, and a chance to win KES 250,000 in development funding. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 15 August 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🎮 Roots & Pixels 2027 (Belgium) 🇧🇪: fully funded two-week international training programme for female-identifying game developers from Kenya, Uganda, South Africa, and Belgium. Participants will attend masterclasses in game design and digital storytelling before joining an international game jam focused on games for social impact. Travel, accommodation, and programme costs are fully covered for East African participants. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 16 August 2026

🌶️ 🎭 INSTANT TOGO 2026 Festival (Togo): open call for African and French artists, companies and cultural organisations with performance-ready projects in music, performing arts, visual arts, digital arts or hybrid formats. Selected projects will be showcased at INSTANT TOGO 2026 in Lomé, offering visibility, networking and opportunities to connect with programmers, producers and cultural operators from across West Africa and beyond. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 August 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎨 Mobility Fund for Artists & Circulation of Cultural Goods: supports artist travel for festivals, markets, awards, masterclasses and short professional training, with up to €5,000 for mobility and €2,500 for circulation of goods. Best suited to artists who already have a concrete invitation, market opportunity or mobility-led growth plan. Eligibility: individual artists or collectives from OIF member countries with a proven link to the Francophone space. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 August 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 African Animation Film Market (MAFA) 2026 (Ivory Coast): Africa’s leading market dedicated entirely to animation is now accepting submissions for short films, feature films, series, student projects and XR experiences. Selected projects gain access to industry leaders, co-production opportunities, funding partners and international exposure. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 August 2026

Subscribe now

Looking beyond August 2026…

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Caméra Libre Residency 2027: six-month residency supporting filmmakers whose work is hindered by censorship, persecution, violence or political pressure in their home countries. Hosted by the CNC and Cité internationale des arts, the programme offers accommodation, professional mentorship and tailored support to develop feature film projects in a safe environment. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 September 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎮 She Got Game Emerging Talents: six-month mentoring programme for women game developers from Africa, the Arab region, Asia and South America. Participants receive expert mentorship, business and pitch training, access to international networks and CHF 3,000 to develop a prototype or demo. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 September 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎮 Epic MegaGrants: grants supporting indie games, animation, immersive experiences, open-source tools and other innovative projects built with Unreal Engine. Open to solo creators, small teams and studios worldwide, with grants typically ranging from USD 5,000–75,000 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 4 September 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎨 Inspiration Bénin: an artist residency programme in Benin for Francophone artists living outside Benin, supporting research and creative projects connected to African tangible and intangible heritage. The 6-week minimum residency takes place between November 2026 and April 2027, in the fields of visual arts and new forms of stage writing. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 9 September 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Clermont-Ferrand International Competition 2027🇫🇷: the world’s leading short film festival is now accepting fiction, documentary, animation and experimental shorts from around the globe. Selected films gain access to one of the industry’s most influential platforms, attended by thousands of buyers, distributors, programmers and film professionals each year. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 24 September 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🥽 Clermont-Ferrand XR Competition 2027🇫🇷: international competition dedicated to immersive storytelling, virtual reality and extended reality experiences. Selected creators present their work at one of the world’s most influential short-form and emerging media festivals. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 24 September 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Yennenga Co-Production Workshops FESPACO 2027 (Burkina Faso): co-production platform supporting African and diaspora feature fiction and documentary projects seeking financing and international partners. Selected teams will present their projects during FESPACO 2027, gaining access to producers, financiers, distributors and decision-makers from across the global film industry. A strong opportunity for projects entering the financing phase and looking to secure co-production and distribution partnerships. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 25 September 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 FESPACO 2027 Call for Films (Burkina Faso): Africa’s largest and most influential film festival is officially open for submissions. Open to feature films, documentaries, short films, series and animation from African filmmakers and the diaspora, FESPACO remains one of the continent’s most important platforms for visibility, industry recognition, distribution opportunities and access to pan-African film networks. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 September 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎭 Connect & Create Performing Arts & Music Fund: EU-funded programme supporting the international circulation of live performance and music projects across Africa and Europe. Open to organisations based in Sub-Saharan Africa and the EU, the call supports touring, international programming, professional mobility and long-term cultural partnerships, with a strong focus on youth, emerging scenes, inclusion and sustainable collaboration. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 September 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🌍 Connect & Create Professional Mobility Scheme: EU-funded grant supporting organisations and international events that host delegations of performing arts and music professionals (excluding artists) from Africa and Europe. The programme aims to strengthen professional exchanges, foster new partnerships and expand networks through international and intra-African mobility. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 September 2026

Subscribe now

🌶️🤖 African AI Film Festival 2026: the inaugural festival celebrating filmmakers using generative AI to tell African stories. Open to African creators worldwide, submissions are accepted across AI short films, animation, documentaries and student/emerging filmmaker categories. Selected films will screen in Los Angeles in November 2026. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 October 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎞️ FRAME Basics 2026🇫🇷: international training programme by INA for professionals working with audiovisual archives. Over six half-days, participants will build core skills in preservation, digitisation, documentation, AI, copyright and access to audiovisual collections. Scholarships are available for eligible applicants. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 October 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ Courants du Monde Residency 2027🇫🇷 (France): immersive 1–3 month residencies for international cultural professionals looking to deepen their knowledge of France’s cultural sector, develop concrete cooperation projects, and build lasting partnerships with French cultural institutions. Participants receive a monthly stipend of €1,500 to support their stay. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 15 October 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🌍 Support for Cultural Operators in Africa🇫🇷: Institut français fund supporting African cultural organisations developing creation, touring, festivals and international collaboration projects in visual arts, digital creation, music and performing arts. Projects require support from the French cultural network. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 October 2026

🌶️ 🎬 Nairobi Earth Film Festival (Kenya): East Africa’s festival dedicated to environmental storytelling, climate action and conservation. Open to documentaries, fiction, animation and impact-driven films exploring environmental challenges and solutions, offering filmmakers a platform to engage audiences, activists and decision-makers. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 October 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 “When Sound Creates an Image” International Contest: International competition by the Institut français and La Semaine du Son inviting film and audiovisual students, professionals and amateurs aged 18+ worldwide to create a short film using an original 1’52” soundtrack by French composer Anne-Sophie Versnaeyen, with complete freedom over visual techniques. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 9 December 2026

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

Why does everyone suddenly want to invest in African game studios? 🎮

Maurice Chapot — Thu, 16 Jul 2026 13:33:25 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 28 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 596 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack.

If you’ve been following the news in the African video game space over the past few weeks, you couldn’t have missed the launch by Google of a $1M fund for African game studios.

A few days later, Supercell, the Finnish mobile gaming giant behind Clash of Clans, announced the launch of its own Developers Grant Programme, with grants ranging from $20k to $200k.

Building on Epic Games' continued support for African creators through its MegaGrants programme since 2020, these new programmes testify of a renewed interest for the African video game ecosystem by the industry giants.

I thought these recent developments would make for a perfect opportunity to dive into the ongoing transformations affecting the African video game sector.

Here are the questions we’ll be answering today:

What are the Google & Supercell opportunities about? (and how to apply)
Why are global investors suddenly paying attention to African gaming?
How to defeat the final boss facing the African gaming industry?

Enjoy the read,

Yours,

Maurice

Deborah Mensah-Bonsu, Supercell's Social Impact Partner, leads the company's social impact initiatives and ecosystem engagement. Here at the Africa Games Week 2026.

1. What are the Google & Supercell opportunities about? (and how to apply)

With the launch of the first Google Play Indie Games Fund for Africa, Google is committing USD 1 million to support ten independent game studios across Sub-Saharan Africa.

Selected studios will receive between $50k-$200k in equity-free funding, meaning Google will not take ownership or shares in their businesses.

Beyond the money, successful applicants will also receive technical support and mentorship from Google Play experts to help them improve their games, strengthen their operations and reach wider international audiences.

To qualify, applicants must be independent game developers based in Sub-Saharan Africa and must already have released a game on mobile, PC or console.

In other words, this is not an idea-stage opportunity: Google is looking for studios that have already demonstrated they can finish and launch a game, and now need capital and technical support to reach their next stage of growth on the Google Play platform.

The Supercell Developer Grants Program, which also targets African studios, offering equity-free grants ranging from $20k-$200k, does not require applicants to develop their game for a specific platform, unlike the Google scheme.

However, applicants must be legally registered game development studios, with their main operations and the majority of their team based in Africa. Individual developers, hobby projects and unregistered teams are not eligible.

What it means is that Supercell is supporting studios rather than funding isolated projects.

Applicants will still need to identify the main game or milestone the grant would support, but the assessment will look more broadly at the strength of the team, its creative vision, its audience, its potential impact and whether the proposed use of funds can realistically move the studio forward.

Subscribe now

2. Why are global investors suddenly paying attention to African gaming?

The fundamentals of Africa’s gaming industry have changed.

The continent generated an estimated USD 2.3 billion in gaming revenue in 2025, with more than 32 million new gamers joining the market in 2024 alone.

While the revenue figure remains modest by global standards (the global video game market is estimated at around USD 200 billion), what matters most is the pace at which Africa's gaming industry is growing: nearly six times faster than the global average.

According to Ben McOwen Wilson, Managing Director of Google Play for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, while countries like Poland and Turkey currently lead consumer growth globally, Africa is now the world’s fastest-growing market for game developers.

For years, Africa has been viewed primarily as a market of consumers, with relatively very little games produced on the continent.

Now, global companies are increasingly looking at it as a place where the next generation of game studios could emerge.

Yet, despite the rapid growth of gaming across Africa, most of the revenue generated on the continent still flows to games developed elsewhere. Millions of African players are already spending money on video games, but very little of that value finds its way back to African studios.

For investors, this is precisely where the opportunity lies: if African developers manage to find a way to capture even a small share of the value currently leaving the continent, the upside could be enormous.

But if the market is growing this fast, what is preventing African studios from fully unlocking it?

3. How to defeat the final boss facing the African gaming industry?

Across Africa’s creative industries, the biggest challenge remains distribution, and the video game industry is no exception.

While some African studios are actively seeking to bypass this constraint by targeting international audiences, the continent’s greatest opportunity lies in unlocking its own domestic market.

Today, despite the rapid growth of gaming across Africa, most of the value generated by African players still flows to foreign publishers, leaving the local market largely untapped.

Unlocking that opportunity, however, requires overcoming several challenges:

Monetisation & payment integration

According to Ben McOwen Wilson, nowhere in the world is the payment landscape as fragmented as it is across Africa, with more than 500 payment systems operating across the continent without true integration.

For developers, that means reaching players is only half the battle. Making it easy for them to pay can be just as difficult.

Fortunately, companies like Carry1st are already working to solve this challenge.

Beyond publishing games, the South African company has built Pay1st, a payment platform that aggregates more than 120 local payment methods (and over 200 payment channels) into a single integration, allowing developers to accept local payments without having to navigate Africa's fragmented financial landscape country by country.

Better capture the data to deepen our understanding local audiences and specific consumption behaviours

While Africa’s wealthiest consumers are already among the world’s highest spenders on digital entertainment, the real growth opportunity lies in the continent’s rapidly expanding middle-income population.

Reaching that audience will require developers to better understand local tastes, spending habits and consumption patterns.

The good news is that the ecosystem has already started laying the foundations. Companies like Carry1st are generating valuable player insights through their publishing activities, while industry organisations such as Maliyo Games, the Pan African Gaming Group (PAGG), or Games Industry Africa are beginning to publish increasingly comprehensive reports on Africa’s gaming landscape, player behaviour and business trends.

The next step is to turn these isolated initiatives into shared industry knowledge. The more African studios, publishers and ecosystem organisations collect, publish and build upon this data, the better equipped the industry will be to design games that resonate with African players, and to convince investors that the market is worth backing.

Designing for African realities

If African studios are to capture a greater share of their domestic market, they will need to build games that resonate with African players.

As Ben McOwen Wilson put it, “if African developers are not developing games for African players, nobody will.”

That means telling stories that reflect local cultures and experiences, but also understanding what African audiences enjoy playing, how they discover games and what keeps them coming back.

Building for Africa also means designing for African technological realities.

Millions of players still access games on entry-level smartphones with limited processing power, storage and connectivity.

Rather than treating these constraints as limitations, they can become a source of innovation, encouraging developers to create experiences that are lightweight, accessible and mobile-first.

Ultimately, however, local relevance and technical optimisation are only part of the equation, as Peter Zetterberg, Director of Xbox Game Camp at Microsoft, reminds us: “in the end, it all starts with a great game, not business mechanics.”

Subscribe now

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

How an ethiopian studio won the Disney's Award at Annecy, and what it means for the African animation industry

Maurice Chapot — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:33:33 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 5 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 568 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack.

I wasn’t at the Annecy International Animation Festival this year.

With our second daughter expected any day now, staying in Nairobi was an easy decision. 🙃

But more than 15 East African animation professionals were there to represent the region.

A few weeks ago, I documented how the second edition of Road to Annecy East Africa, a regional initiative organised in partnership with the Association of Animation Artistes in Kenya (A3K), supported by the French cooperation, was helping strengthen the region’s presence at Annecy.

But last week turned out to be more successful than any of us had anticipated, as Ethiopia’s Behagerlij Studio won both the prestigious Disney Television Animation Prize and the AGrAF Prize for its preschool series Sunday Morning, a first in the African animation industry.🤯

I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to take a closer look at this remarkable achievement, and what it tells us about the state of the African animation industry.

Here is what we’ll cover today:

What is the Disney television animation prize about(it’s more than the money)
What you need to know about the journey behind Ethiopia’s biggest animation success
What Behagerlij's Disney prize teaches us about building Africa's animation industry (there is a long road ahead)

Enjoy the read,

Yours,

Maurice

Shhhhh, it’s Sunday Morning! Congrats for the win Behagerlij studio! 📸 Minasie Terefe

1. What is the Disney television animation prize about?

Winning the Disney Television Animation Prize at Annecy is about far more than a €10,000 cheque.

Introduced only last year, by Orion Ross, the Vice President of International Animation for Disney Television Animation, the award is Disney’s way of identifying the next generation of creators developing original animated series.

Rather than rewarding completed productions, it recognises projects with the potential to become the studio’s next global hit.

The most valuable part of the prize is therefore not the money, but the development option that comes with it.

In practical terms, Disney secures the exclusive right to further develop the project with its creators, exploring its potential as a future Disney Channel or Disney+ series.

While this is not a production deal, it provides direct access to Disney’s development process, creative executives and editorial expertise, an opportunity few independent studios anywhere in the world ever receive.

Just as importantly, the prize also sends a strong signal to the industry : being recognised by Disney at Annecy immediately raises a studio’s profile with broadcasters, distributors, investors and potential co-production partners.

In an industry built on trust and relationships, that international validation is far more valuable than the $10.000 award that comes with it.

Subscribe now

2. What you need to know about the journey behind Ethiopia’s biggest animation success

Like most “overnight successes”, Behagerlij’s journey has been more than ten years in the making.

Founded as one of Ethiopia’s first animation studios, the company started with basically nothing, long before animation was even considered a viable industry in the country.

“We started without a dedicated workspace, not even a single room. Twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, we met in small cafés; just a couple of us ordering lemon tea while the others joined in. We overstayed so often that we got kicked out twice. From there, we resorted to meeting in public squares and under bridges. That’s how our story began.” Minasie Terefe, co-founder and Director of Behagerlij studio

Over the years, it progressively built a reputation (and revenues) through commercial work, and kept dreaming of telling Ethiopian stories through animation.

Eventually, their project started gaining traction: “However little the splash was, we made a name for ourselves by self-producing two international award winning shorts Endegena (2021) and Zarem Arbegna (2023).” remembers Minasie.

Subscribe now

Ecosystem recognition and support came much later, providing the studio with the extra push it needed to start addressing international markets.

In 2025, the studio was accelerated through the Habesha Creative Lab in Addis Ababa, where the team benefited from mentorship, project development and business support.
That same year, it was selected among 60+ animation studios from across the region to join the first Road to Annecy East Africa delegation, a mobility programme put together by the French cooperation to support market access and ecosystem building in the animation sector.
In September 2025, as part of the programme, the 10 East African studios of the delegation gathered in Nairobi to attend a Distribution Lab organised in partnership with Pungulu Pa Productions and the Association of Animation Artistes in Kenya (A3K).
In early 2026, Sunday Morning won first place at the Ethio-French Createch Forum, standing out among 24 Ethiopian creative technology startups and studios, and further validating both the project and the team’s commercial potential.
A few months later, Behagerlij was selected once again for the Road to Annecy East Africa programme, this time as one of just five studios chosen to pitch during the dedicated East African Pitch Session at MIFA, following a competitive regional call that attracted 31 applications from all over the region.
At the same time, Sunday Morning was selected for the official MIFA Pitch Competition as one of 48 projects chosen from nearly 900 submissions across 95 countries. The project was the only fully African-developed project among the 12 projects selected in the TV Series category.
In June, the project received both the Disney Television Animation Prize and the AGrAF Prize, marking the most significant international recognition in the ethiopian animation industry.
In addition to its success at Annecy, Sunday Morning has also been selected to pitch at the Durban Film Mart (DFM), which will take place in Durban, South Africa, from 9–12 October 2026. As one of Africa's largest film and finance forums, DFM represents another major milestone. Just like at Annecy, this marks the first time Ethiopia will be represented in the animation sector at the Durban Film Mart. Sunday Morning was selected as one of 36 projects from nearly 500 submissions across 44 African countries, including eight animated projects.

Looking back, it’s hard not to notice how each opportunity built on the previous one, in what almost reads like a textbook example of ecosystem building.

What it really shows, however, is that creative businesses rarely grow through a single breakthrough moment. They progress incrementally, accumulating skills, networks, credibility and market knowledge over time.

Supporting creative industries is therefore not only about financing projects or organising events, it’s about making sure the next opportunity exists once the previous one ends.

I remember Minasie Terefe, the studio co-founder and director, asking a room full of incubator managers and ecosystem builders in Addis Ababa few months ago:

“Are we misleading creatives to wait for a system that no longer waits for them, or are we helping them build their own?”

Looking at Behagerlij’s journey, the Disney Prize is evidence that ecosystem building initiatives can indeed lead to tangible international opportunities.

Courtesy from Behagerlij studio: the team in Annecy!

That said, international recognition is only one side of the equation.

While reaching Disney is a remarkable achievement, building sustainable animation businesses that also thrive on African audiences remains a very different challenge, and one that is still largely untapped, yet may ultimately create even greater long-term value for the continent.

3. What Behagerlij’s Disney prize teaches us about building Africa’s animation industry

From Behagerlij’s perspective, the Disney Television Animation Prize is unquestionably a major win.

From an industry, the picture is more nuanced.

In recent years, Disney has progressively increased its engagement with African animation through projects such as Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire, Iwájú and now Sunday Morning.

Both Kizazi Moto and Iwájù demonstrated that African animation stories can travel globally, but they also highlighted where the animation industry’s value is being captured.

While African creators bring worlds, characters and stories to life, the intellectual property, distribution infrastructure and commercial benefits largely remain in the hands of global entertainment companies, with much of the long-term value ultimately captured outside the continent.

Compared to the billion-dollar markets of the US, Europe or even China, Africa simply cannot compete. Despite its vast population, the continent remains a dwarf market in terms of revenue, largely for lack of adequate distribution infrastructure.

Even Canal+, probably the company that has gone furthest in building a pan-African audiovisual distribution business, has only managed to reach around 22 million subscribers.

That still leaves roughly 1.5 billion potential viewers on the table.

Perhaps the biggest opportunity lies not in exporting more African stories to global platforms, but in capturing the value already locked within Africa’s own audience: building stronger distribution channels, experimenting with business models adapted to local purchasing power, growing paying audiences, and creating markets capable of sustaining the continent’s creative businesses over the long term.

And that, my friends, is quite another challenge.🤐

Subscribe now

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

44 hot 🌶️ creative opportunities for African creatives this July

Maurice Chapot — Wed, 24 Jun 2026 10:52:09 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 2 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 563 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack.

Today’s dispatch is our monthly opportunity board, and as always we have some serious ones to share.

👉🏾 30 opportunities that you might want to seriously consider, targeting African photographers, filmmakers, game designers, and creative professionals in general.

Here is our top #3:

🎮 Google Play Indie Games Fund Africa, an equity-free funding for independent game studios across Sub-Saharan Africa that will support 10 video game studios with a USD 50,000–200,000 grant, plus mentorship and technical support from Google Play.
🎬 Atelier Production & Storytelling 🇫🇷, an international training workshop dedicated to young producers and directors from the continent, with a focus on international co-production and film financing.
📸 The climate change photo essay prize powered by Africa Soft Power, a photography competition inviting young creatives aged 18–30 to document the impact of climate change through a compelling photo essay.

We wish you all the very best with your applications🪄.

With love,

Love & Maurice

PPS: if you apply to of those opportunities and get selected, please let me know so we can celebrate the news with everyone here!🥹

Hot opportunities for African creatives - July 2026

(The more 🌶️ you see, the hotter the opportunity)

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎮 GamesConnect Africa – gamescom dev Scholarship 2026 (Germany): scholarship programme supporting African game developers to attend gamescom dev and gamescom, the world’s largest games industry gathering. Selected participants receive complimentary industry passes, networking opportunities, professional development support and direct access to global publishers, studios and investors. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 25 June 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Ju!ced Film Festival 2026 (Kenya): East Africa’s dedicated short film festival is now accepting fiction, documentary, animation and experimental shorts made in East Africa or by East African filmmakers. A strong platform for emerging filmmakers seeking regional visibility, industry connections and audience exposure. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 26 June 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 CANEX Shorts: pan-African short film competition supporting emerging filmmakers. Backed by Afreximbank with continental visibility. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 June 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎶 Sauti za Busara 2027 🇹🇿: major East African music festival inviting artists from Africa and the diaspora to perform in Zanzibar in March 2027. Selected acts receive a performance fee, accommodation, per diems, local transport, visa support and festival visibility. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 June 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎨 Zeitz MOCAA & UWC Museum Fellowship Programme (South Africa): fully funded fellowship for emerging African curators, researchers and arts professionals, combining hands-on experience at Zeitz MOCAA with postgraduate study at the University of the Western Cape. A rare opportunity to build a career in museums and contemporary African art. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 June 2026

🌶️ 🎬 African Diaspora Cinema Festival (Italy): Florence-based festival dedicated to Black stories and filmmakers from Africa and the diaspora. Selected films gain access to an international audience, industry networking opportunities, awards across multiple categories, and one of Europe’s leading platforms celebrating African and diaspora cinema. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 June 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Africiné Occitanie 🇫🇷: festival promoting African cinema through screenings and cultural exchange. Open to films from across the African continent. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1st July 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🔊 Sound Design Workshop 🇰🇪: an intensive 8-day training delivered by Gobelins × Africa Creative Sounds in Nairobi for East African sound professionals looking to strengthen their skills in audio post-production for film and audiovisual content. Open to composers, beatmakers, sound engineers and music producers with at least two years of experience. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 5 July 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎥 SFFILM Documentary Film Fund: prestigious grant supporting feature-length documentaries in post-production with awards ranging from USD 10,000 to USD 20,000, alongside access to SFFILM’s artist development ecosystem. Particularly suited for visually ambitious nonfiction projects with strong characters, compelling stories, and a clear artistic vision. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 7 July 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Atelier PaS Nantes - Production and Storytelling 🇫🇷: international training workshop dedicated to young producers and directors from Africa, Latin America and Asia developing fiction film projects. Focus on international co-production, with tailored mentorship and project-based support to help participants navigate financing and collaboration across markets. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 10 July 2026

Subscribe now

🌶️🌶️ 🎞️ We Are Human Festival: a new international festival dedicated to AI-generated audiovisual creation through the lens of ethics, human rights and the Universal. Three prizes worth a total of €10,000 will be awarded, and selected works will be screened internationally in cities including Paris, São Paulo, New York, Nairobi, Johannesburg and Geneva. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 15 July 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Festival des 3 Continents 🇫🇷: international festival open to feature films (fiction, documentary, animation, experimental) from Africa, Asia and Latin America, connecting filmmakers to international programmers and distributors. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 17 July 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 📸 Climate Change Photo Essay Prize 2026 (Africa & Diaspora): photography competition inviting young creatives aged 18–30 to document the impact of climate change through a compelling photo essay. Winners and finalists receive international exhibition opportunities and global visibility through the Africa Soft Power network. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 17 July 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎵 Babel Music XP 2027 Showcase (France): one of Europe's leading world music marketplaces is looking for artists to perform at its fifth edition in Marseille. Selected acts will showcase in front of 2,000+ music professionals from over 70 countries, gain international exposure, and build connections with festivals, bookers, labels and distributors. Open to artists with recent original music and a live performance ready for international audiences. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 19 July 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🎬 Red Sea Fund Post-Production Grants: grants supporting feature-length fiction, documentary and animation films (60+ minutes) in post-production. Open to directors of Arab origin, African and Asian nationalities, the fund helps projects complete post-production and prepare for international distribution and festival release. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 21 July 2026

Looking beyond July 2026…

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Eastern Cape Film Investment Fund (South Africa): funding programme designed to attract film and television productions to South Africa’s Eastern Cape province, offering investments ranging from ZAR 70,000 to ZAR 3 million across feature films, TV series, animation, documentaries and short-form productions. Particularly relevant for African producers with South African partners looking to finance production while accessing one of the continent’s most film-friendly regions. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: Rolling deadline

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

Financing innovations that could help fund the African creative industries feat. Marie-Lora Mungai

Maurice Chapot — Fri, 19 Jun 2026 09:57:53 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 561 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack.

A few months ago, I invited Marie Lora-Mungai, CEO of Restless Global, a consultancy specialising in Africa's creative and sports industries, to facilitate a series of sessions on the creative economy and creative finance for an East African network of creative hubs in Addis Ababa.

Organised with the support of the French Embassy in Kenya through the Création Africa Fund, the workshop was hosted by the Habesha Creative Lab at Alliance Ethio-Française Addis Ababa and brought together creative hub managers from across the region, alongside contributions from innovation ecosystem leaders including ICE Addis and Tshimologong Innovation Precinct.

The programme sought to equip these organisations with the tools and knowledge needed to better support the entrepreneurs and creative businesses driving their local ecosystems.

And let me tell you: every single session hit the nail on the head.

Team picture @ Habesha Creative Lab in Addis Abeba, at the end of the workshop.

I have already shared some of her insights in previous newsletters, which I strongly encourage you to read: “The creative funding paradox: why money is not flowing into the African creative industries” and “What makes a creative sector investable, from an investor’s perspective?”.

This time, I want to come back to a somewhat technical topic that generated a lot of discussion during the sessions: the relationship between creative industries and finance.

Here is what we’ll cover today:

Why the traditional VC funding model rarely works (for the African creative industries)
Five financing innovations that could help breach the gap

Enjoy the read,

Yours,

Maurice

🚨Quiz: are you an artist, a founder or a CEO?🚨

That’s the very unscientific yet disturbingly accurate personality test that Marie-Lora put together to help you clarify your creative personality! It’s also the first chapter of Creative Cash Flow, a very practical guide to building financially sustainable creative businesses in Africa. Check out the book here.

1. Why the traditional VC funding model rarely works (for the African creative industries)

First of all, a definition.

Private Equity (PE) is a type of investment where investors buy a stake in an established company and help it grow in value before selling their share for a profit.

There are essentially 3 types of equity investors.

Angels & High net worth individuals: business people successful in their field interested in investing in creative sector companies. They do small tickets, bring strategic and operative expertise. They might see themselves in the founders and decide to help. There are Angels networks all over the continent, and they’re quite important people to network with...
Impact funds: they’re close to the VC model, but want to achieve both returns AND impact (climate, job creation, women empowerment, etc.)
Venture Capital: those are targeting high growth/high risk scalable tech enabled companies. They have been very successful in the Western world.

To understand why the VC model rarely works in the context of African creative industries, we first need to understand its underlying logic.

VCs are governed by math. They invest in dozens of companies hoping that one or two will eventually generate 10x, 50x or greater returns, usually within a decade.

To make this work, VCs push founders to grow rapidly so the company can reach a much higher valuation and eventually be sold or acquired after a few years, allowing investors to cash out and realise their returns.

This model works well for technology companies with exponential growth potential, particularly in sectors such as fintech.

Most creative businesses, however, grow linearly rather than exponentially, and this creates a fundamental mismatch: either founders chase artificial growth, expand too quickly and burn through cash until the business collapses, or the business grows steadily but not fast enough to satisfy investors, who disengage and make follow-on funding harder to secure.

Neither outcome is desirable.

That said, there have been exceptions. These are companies that have built infrastructure around content rather than content itself: distribution, payments, marketplaces, tools or data.

Examples include Carry1st, which has raised $57 million to address key bottlenecks in Africa’s mobile gaming ecosystem, and Kenyan startup Wowzi, which has raised over $3 million by building technology that enables brands to coordinate thousands of nano-creators at scale.

In both cases, investors are backing scalable infrastructure businesses rather than creative productions themselves.

Subscribe now

2. Five financing innovations that could help breach the gap

If venture capital is rarely the right tool for creative businesses, what alternatives exist?

The good news is that a growing number of financing instruments are emerging across Africa and globally. Each serves a different purpose, and understanding the difference can help creative entrepreneurs identify the right type of capital at the right stage of their journey.

(1) Debt: for profitable creative SMEs that need cash to grow.

Truth is most creative businesses do not need investors, but cash to run their operation and develop their activities :

A production company may have signed contracts worth $100,000 but still struggle to pay crews while waiting three months for clients to settle invoices.
A fashion brand may receive a large order but lack the cash needed to buy fabrics and manufacture products.
A music label may need to finance marketing campaigns before royalties start coming in.

This is where debt becomes useful: unlike investors, lenders do not care if your company becomes the next unicorn. They care whether you can repay the money.

The simplest form is a bank loan: you borrow a fixed amount, use it to grow the business, then repay it over an agreed period.

But debt can take other forms.

A working capital loan helps cover day-to-day expenses while waiting for revenue to arrive. For example, a production company may need to pay crews, equipment rentals and locations today, even though the client will only pay the final invoice three months later.

Invoice financing goes one step further. Instead of waiting three months to get paid, a lender advances part of the money against the invoice. When the client eventually pays, the lender recovers the advance and takes a fee.

Trade finance is designed for businesses that need to fulfil large orders. Imagine a fashion brand receives a $50,000 order from a retailer but lacks the cash to purchase fabrics and manufacture the collection. A lender provides the money needed to fulfil the order, which is then repaid once the customer pays.

In all three cases, the objective is the same: helping businesses bridge temporary cash-flow gaps without giving up ownership of the company.

In Kenya, HEVA Fund partnered with NCBA Bank to launch the Ota Loans programme, providing loans of approximately $5,000 to $40,000 to creative businesses. Similar initiatives are beginning to emerge elsewhere on the continent.

HEVA Fund CEO, Wakiuru Njuguna

For many creative SMEs, debt should probably be the first serious financing instrument considered after self-funding.

2. Revenue-based financing: for businesses with predictable revenues but limited collateral.

Revenue-based financing provides capital in exchange for a percentage of future revenues.

Instead of repaying a fixed monthly amount, repayments rise and fall with sales. If business is slow, repayments are lower. If revenues increase, repayments increase too.

This makes the model particularly attractive for creative businesses whose income can fluctuate significantly throughout the year.

A creator, studio or digital platform might receive funding today and agree to repay a percentage of future sales, subscriptions or royalties until the advance has been recovered.

One of the best-known examples is Shopify Capital, which advances funds to merchants based on their sales history and recovers the money through a percentage of future transactions.

The model remains relatively rare in Africa but is increasingly discussed as a good fit for creative industries.

3. Blended finance & de-risking facilities: for emerging sectors that investors consider valuable, but still too risky to invest in.

Many creative businesses struggle to access finance because lenders and investors perceive the sector as too risky.

This is where blended finance and de-risking facilities come in.

Blended finance combines public and private capital. In practice, Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) such as Proparco, the World Bank or the African Development Bank (DFIs), or public institutions such as the European Union, absorb part of the risk of financing, making investments more attractive for private investors.

For example, a bank may hesitate to finance a film producer because it does not understand the sector or views creative businesses as too unpredictable. A guarantee facility can cover part of the potential losses, while technical assistance can help the bank better understand how creative businesses operate.

Concretely, this can take the form of guarantees, technical assistance or first-loss capital, that reduce the risks associated with lending to creative businesses.

This is the logic behind initiatives such as CREA Fund, launched by Proparco and the European Union. Rather than financing entrepreneurs directly, the programme works with banks, funds and financial intermediaries, helping them better understand creative industries while reducing the risks associated with financing them.

The entrepreneur may never interact with Proparco or the European Union directly, yet these mechanisms may be the reason a loan, investment or credit facility becomes available in the first place.

Without these instruments, many of the financial products currently available to creative entrepreneurs simply would not exist.

4. Micro-private equity and holding companies: for established businesses looking to scale.

Rather than betting on future potential like VC investors do, micro-private equity investors look for companies with proven revenues, recurring clients and a clear business model.

Their objective is not to chase explosive growth, but to help businesses become larger, stronger and more profitable.

In addition to providing capital, they often support founders with strategy, governance, financial management and business development.

One of the best-known examples in Africa’s creative industries is FilmHouse Group in Nigeria, as exemplified in the 2024 Success Stories in the Creative Industries in Africa report written by Restless Global and PwC for Proparco as part of the Global Gateway programme.

In 2014, the company received investment from African Capital Alliance, one of Africa’s leading private equity firms. Over the following years, FilmHouse expanded into a dominant player in cinema exhibition and film distribution, operating more than 50 screens across Nigeria and helping structure the country’s film ecosystem.

This approach can be particularly relevant for creative SMEs such as production companies, agencies, fashion brands, publishers or animation studios that have moved beyond the start-up phase but need capital and expertise to reach the next stage.

At a smaller scale, funds such as I&P have applied the same model across Francophone Africa, investing in businesses operating in fashion, publishing, advertising, production and digital commerce.

A related model is the holding company.

Rather than investing in a single business, a holding company acquires stakes in multiple companies and creates value by sharing resources, expertise and infrastructure across the group. This can include finance teams, distribution networks, technology platforms or administrative functions.

The logic is simple: several businesses working together can often achieve economies of scale that none could achieve alone.

For exemple, Helios Sports & Entertainment Group, backed by investors including Proparco and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), created a dedicated investment vehicle focused on sports, media and entertainment.

Rather than investing in one company, it is building a portfolio of complementary assets and intellectual property across the sector: NBA Africa, Afro Nation (via The Malachite Group), PFL Africa and other entertainment platforms. The thesis is that value is created not by a single artist, event or business, but by building an ecosystem around content, audiences, rights, events and distribution.

For creative industries, the holding company model remains largely underdeveloped, but it offers an interesting alternative to traditional venture capital by focusing on long-term value creation, synergies and shared infrastructure

Subscribe now

5. Corporate venture capital: for businesses solving strategic industry problems.

Not all investors are financial investors.

Many large corporations operate their own investment funds, known as Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) funds.

Unlike traditional VCs, these investors are often looking for strategic value alongside financial returns.

A gaming company may invest in a distribution platform. A media company may invest in creator tools. A technology company may invest in businesses that strengthen its wider ecosystem.

The Sony Innovation Fund for instance has invested in companies such as Carry1st, which helps distribute and monetise digital content across Africa, as well as creator-economy businesses such as Wowzi, because they offer new pathways to distribution and monetisation for games and creators.

Corporate VCs are often interested in infrastructure, technology and services that strengthen an industry, rather than funding individual creative projects.

For founders building tools, platforms or enabling technologies, they can be valuable partners.

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

Six lessons to help you build a sustainable creative career inspired by French photographer Martin Bertrand.

Maurice Chapot — Fri, 12 Jun 2026 07:26:30 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 13 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 561 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack.

Last week, I had the chance to meet with French photojournalist Martin Bertrand in Nairobi, where he spent a couple of days before traveling down to Mombasa to start a 3 week long artistic residency.

Organised by Alliance Française Mombasa, with the support of the Création Africa Fund, this photography residency, focused on the environmental transformations affecting the Kenyan coast, continues to position Mombasa and the AFM as a dynamic hubs for photographers in Kenya.

While we spoke mostly about photography during the hour and a half that lasted our conversation, I couldn’t help noticing how many of the ideas he was sharing actually applied more broadly to creative entreprise.

Here are the six ideas that stayed with me, which I hope will help you keep building your creative career more sustainably.

Invest the AI field (and free up time for what you most enjoy)
Build good products, make them free (and still make money)
Build with distribution in mind (but don’t let it rule)
Your personal projects are assets (make them count)
Build from where you are, not where you’d like to be (your constraints are your opportunities)
Don't bet everything on a single project (this is not a lottery ticket)

Let’s dive right in.

Enjoy the read,

Yours,

Maurice

Subscribe now

📸 Martin Bertrand, Casa Skate series, 2025

1. Invest the AI field

One thing that came up quite early in the conversation with Martin was his use of AI in his workflow.

Not for the most creative part, but with the many, more cumbersome aspects of his job as a documentary photographer and reporter : metadata generation, research, image editing, organisation and even project development and grant applications.

In fact, he even went a step further, actually taking the time to develop a series of specialised AI assistants specifically designed to help him achieve those various tasks.

If you’re interested, I invite you to have a look at them here.

One of his tools even got so much traction among a niche professional audience of documentary photographers and journalists that he started to make a living off it (!).

2. Build good products, and make them free

The tool in question, the IPTC Assistant, helps photographers automatically generate the metadata attached to their images.

IPTC fields are the titles, captions, keywords and location data that allow photographs to be indexed, found, licensed and sold.

They’re essential to the business of photography, but are highly time consuming and boring to draft.

His GPT agent now allows hundreds of professionals to accurately generate them every month.

This sounded to me as an obvious SAAS, given the obvious traction it generated few months after its launch.

But Martin saw a different opportunity here.

He clearly had no interest in building a SAAS, and solving all the problems that would necessarily come with monetising it.

Instead, he chose his peace of mind, kept it a free community tool, building professional visibility and credibility, attracting media coverage, industry recognition, and of course, new opportunities (including a sponsorship deal).

It’s a useful reminder that value doesn’t always need to be captured directly.

Sometimes, building something genuinely useful for your ecosystem can create opportunities, partnerships and sponsorships that are worth far more than the initial sale.

3. Think of distribution from the get go

Think about where your project might end up before you start working on it.

Ask yourself who might actually be interested in seeing your project once it will be produced: a newspaper, a gallery, a festival, a photo agency, a local institution, a grant programme? All of the above?

The goal of course isn’t to let distribution dictate the creative process. Rather, it’s to understand the ecosystem in which the project will eventually live.

Across film, animation, gaming, publishing or music, we often focus our conversations on production. How do we make the thing? But distribution is often where projects succeed or fail.

Who is the audience?
How will they discover it?
Through which platform, partner, festival, publisher, broadcaster or community?

Your answers to these questions need to be concrete and realistic if your distribution strategy stands any chance of succeeding.

Building with distribution in mind doesn’t guarantee success, but it dramatically increases the chances that someone will actually experience your project once it’s finished.

4. Your personal projects are assets

For Martin, personal projects are a central part of a sustainable creative career.

Looking at his own trajectory, many of the publications, exhibitions, grants, partnerships and professional opportunities he has accessed can be traced back to projects he decided to pursue long before anyone asked him to.

Too often, creatives treat personal projects as a luxury. Something they’ll get around to once they have enough money, enough time or enough clients.

Yet personal projects are often the very thing that helps create those opportunities in the first place.

Subscribe now

Look at what Ugandan animator Raymond Malinga did with “A Kalabanda Ate My Homework”: his first 3D animation short film made in Kampala in 2017 actually unlocked a deal with Disney a couple of years later.

Personal project help you develop your voice, build your portfolio, demonstrate your capabilities and position yourself within an industry that otherwise may simply keep ignoring you.

📸 Martin Bertrand, Dessaler la mer, 2025

5. Build from where you are, not where you’d like to be

Your greatest advantage as a creative is not your equipment, your budget or your network.

It’s your access.

The places you understand. The people who trust you. The stories you are uniquely positioned to tell.

It’s easy to dream, waiting for the perfect conditions to make your project happen (more funding, better equipment, international exposure, a bigger market).

Yet some of the most interesting projects I’ve come across over the years were built from what was already available: a local community, a niche audience, a personal expertise or experience...

I’m thinking for instance of this young kenyan animator, Lydiah Mugure, who started her fantasy project “The Ebony Witch” as a comic on Webtoon, gradually building her community, who eventually raised 1M KES along the way to produce the animation pilot of what may very well become a TV series.

We often spend a lot of time thinking about where we’d like to be, while the only place we can build from is where we currently are, with all its constraints, limitations and opportunities.

6. Don't bet everything on a single project

Creative careers are already fragile, and making it depend on a single opportunity materialising is a risk you don’t want to take.

Yet many of us still behave as if our next film/game/EP/project will be the one that changes everything…

Rather than relying on one breakthrough moment, Martin advocates for building a pipeline of projects at different stages of development, each creating its own opportunities, contacts and possibilities.

Over time, this creates momentum: if one project stalls, another keeps moving. If one opportunity disappears, another may emerge.

This is not a lottery ticket, it’s a long game.

And long games are won through systems that allow you to generate opportunities, deliver outputs and capture value repeatedly, rather than relying on a single breakthrough moment.

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

25 hot 🌶️ creative opportunities for African creatives this June

Maurice Chapot — Fri, 29 May 2026 10:38:29 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 10 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 548 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack.

Today’s dispatch is our monthly opportunity board, and as always we have some serious ones to share.

👉🏾 25 opportunities that you might want to seriously consider, targeting East-African African animation studios, filmmakers, festival directors, and creative professionals in general.

Here is our top #3:

✈️ Great Lakes Creative Producers Lab #6. Coming to Kigali next November, this regional lab supporting East African film producers through mentorship, project development and industry connections, powered by the Création Africa Fund and the Embassy of France in Kenya.
🎞️ CANEX Shorts: a pan-African short film competition supporting emerging filmmakers, backed by Afreximbank with continental visibility. You don’t want to sip this one.
🇳🇬 Resonance Residency: three-month residency in Paris for experienced Nigerian curators, visual artists and designers, organized by ART X in partnership with the Embassy of France in Nigeria and the Cité internationale des arts.

We wish you all the very best with your applications🪄.

With love,

Love & Maurice

PPS: if you apply to of those opportunities and get selected, please let me know so we can celebrate the news with everyone here!🥹

La cité internationale des Arts, in Paris.

Hot opportunities for African creatives - June 2026

(The more 🌶️ you see, the hotter the opportunity)

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎨 Resonance Residency (France/Nigeria): three-month residency in Paris for experienced Nigerian curators, visual artists and designers, organized by ART X in partnership with the Embassy of France in Nigeria and the Cité internationale des arts. Selected participants receive studio accommodation, a monthly stipend, travel support, mentorship from French professionals, and privileged access to one of Europe's most vibrant contemporary art ecosystems. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 May 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 NBO Film Festival 🇰🇪: Nairobi-based festival showcasing African films with screenings and awards. Submission handled via FilmFreeway platform. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 May 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🇫🇷 🎬 Folimage Artist-in-Residence (Young Audience Animation): international residency offering directors the opportunity to develop and produce a 6-minute animated short film for young audiences (ages 5–7). Selected filmmaker is hosted in Valence (France) for 10–12 months with full studio support, leading to theatrical and international distribution (Gebeka Films, Institut Français network). 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 May 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎭 Pro Helvetia Co-creation Funding 2026: Pro Helvetia supports collaborative arts projects between Swiss-based artists and partners in liaison-office regions. Any discipline; project must be co-developed and shared equally. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 June

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Atelier Ludwigsburg-Paris 2026–2027🇫🇷: one-year European training programme for early-career film producers and distributors, focused on co-production, financing, sales, distribution and legal frameworks. Delivered by La Fémis and Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, the programme combines high-level industry training with hands-on experience, including the co-production of a short film with ARTE and SWR. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 June 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Venice International Film Festival (Italy): one of the world’s most prestigious A-list festivals invites feature films, shorts and restored films completed after Sept 2025, with strong premiere requirements and global industry visibility. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 4 June (features)

Subscribe now

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 Great Lakes Creative Producers Lab (GLCPL): regional lab supporting East African producers through mentorship, project development and industry connections, with the support of the Création Africa Fund and the Embassy of France in Kenya. Focus on strengthening projects and accessing international markets and financing opportunities. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 6 June 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎨 Future Art Ecosystems (FAE) R&D Fellowship: Art x Convergence (Global): Serpentine Arts Technologies fellowship supporting artists, curators, technologists, researchers and cultural practitioners exploring the intersection of art, AI, systems design and emerging technologies. Selected fellows receive £10,000, mentorship, research support, and travel to London for a year-long programme focused on experimentation, critical inquiry and future-facing creative practice. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 7 June 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎭 FILE NOT FOUND Residency: international residency programme exploring archives as sites of cultural memory, resistance and knowledge preservation. Ten artists, researchers and cultural practitioners will be embedded within leading archives across Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, Iraq, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal and South Africa, receiving a €4,000 grant plus travel and accommodation support to develop new artistic responses to contemporary challenges facing archives worldwide. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 7 June 2026

🌶️ 🎬 FIFIB – Festival International du Film Indépendant de Bordeaux 🇫🇷: festival dedicated to independent and auteur cinema. Submission information available via official platform (in French, use ChatGPT to translate). 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 12 June 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🎬 Sundance Institute Documentary Fund: one of the world's most prestigious documentary funds, supporting independent feature-length documentaries with non-recoupable grants from development through release. Particularly suited for bold, cinematic nonfiction projects tackling urgent contemporary issues and seeking both financial support and international recognition. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 15 June 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 AFAC Cinema Grant (Arab Region & Diaspora): one of the most respected film funds in the region, supporting Arab directors and producers with grants of up to USD 50,000 for feature films in production, USD 25,000 for post-production, and dedicated support for short films. Ideal for projects seeking development financing, production support, or completion funding while building international visibility. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 19 June 2026

🌶️ 🎬 African Diaspora Cinema Festival (Italy): Florence-based festival dedicated to Black stories and filmmakers from Africa and the diaspora. Selected films gain access to an international audience, industry networking opportunities, awards across multiple categories, and one of Europe’s leading platforms celebrating African and diaspora cinema. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 June 2026

Looking beyond June 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Atelier PaS Nantes - Production and Storytelling 🇫🇷: international training workshop dedicated to young producers and directors from Africa, Latin America and Asia developing fiction film projects. Focus on international co-production, with tailored mentorship and project-based support to help participants navigate financing and collaboration across markets. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 10 July 2026

🌶️ 🎬 FIACAFI – Mostra de la Francophonie de la Diversité: Brazilian showcase promoting francophone cinema and cultural diversity. Open to films engaging with identity, language and cross-cultural narratives. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 4 August 2026

Subscribe now

🌶️🌶️ 🎨 OIF – Mobility Fund for Artists & Circulation of Cultural Goods: supports artist travel for festivals, markets, awards, masterclasses and short professional training, with up to €5,000 for mobility and €2,500 for circulation of goods. Best suited to artists who already have a concrete invitation, market opportunity or mobility-led growth plan. Eligibility: individual artists or collectives from OIF member countries with a proven link to the Francophone space. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 August 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Yennenga Co-Production Workshops – FESPACO 2027 (Burkina Faso): co-production platform supporting African and diaspora feature fiction and documentary projects seeking financing and international partners. Selected teams will present their projects during FESPACO 2027, gaining access to producers, financiers, distributors and decision-makers from across the global film industry. A strong opportunity for projects entering the financing phase and looking to secure co-production and distribution partnerships. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 25 September 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 FESPACO 2027 – Call for Films (Burkina Faso): Africa’s largest and most influential film festival is officially open for submissions. Open to feature films, documentaries, short films, series and animation from African filmmakers and the diaspora, FESPACO remains one of the continent’s most important platforms for visibility, industry recognition, distribution opportunities and access to pan-African film networks. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 30 September 2026

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

"Hey! Hey! Hey!" Take-aways from an insider at the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi

Maurice Chapot — Mon, 18 May 2026 09:35:25 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 9 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 538 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

Earlier this week took place in Nairobi the Africa Forward Summit.

The first of its kind to be held on the continent, it brought together political, cultural, and economic figures from all over Africa, France and the diasporas.

If you live in a cave, you probably still saw the viral reel of President Macron demanding silence for the Ghanaian and Malagasy creatives that were sharing their experience on stage.

While this episode took up a significant share of the conversation around the Summit, some far more interesting developments actually emerged during the event, which I witnessed first hand, being personally involved in the Summit organization.

This Summit demonstrated a shift in how France and Africa are trying to relate to one another.

Not simply through diplomacy, military cooperation or investment announcements, but increasingly through stories, co-production, culture and imagination itself.

Two articles in particular helped me sharpen my thinking around what was happening beneath the surface: “Taisez-vous ou partez ! Le difficile métier de président français en Afrique” by William Bayiha, and a thoughtful analysis by Yannick Deza.

Both looked at the same event and reached very different conclusions. And both, I think, captured something important.

And that is precisely what I want to come back to in this edition.

Here are the two developments you should really be paying attention to.

Creative industries took center stage (a first for a political and economic Summit of this magnitude)
The neo-colonial controversy (and my personal take on this)

Let’s dive right in.

Enjoy the read,

Yours,

Maurice

Subscribe now

Presidential visit of the Immersive exhibition designed in partnership with MansA (Maison des Mondes Africains) and Dream Feel Factory. 📸 Soazig de La Moissonnière

1. Creative industries took center stage: a first for a political and economic Summit of this magnitude

The Summit was designed with the creative industries as a clear focal point.

From creative entrepreneurs and artists taking the main stage alongside Presidents, to dedicated sessions on youth, sport and investment, immersive exhibitions in animation, video games and XR, and a closing concert organised by Trace TV, this was NOT your typical political summit.

For decades, France–Africa relations were largely structured around diplomacy, economics, defence and institutions. Increasingly, another layer seems to be emerging: shared narratives, co-created imaginaries and cultural ecosystem developpment.

Because stories matter. Whoever helps shape narratives often influences how societies imagine themselves, their place in the world, and their relationship with others.

Creatives played an active part of the programme.

I can tell you because I was there myself.

Over the last couple of months, I have been lucky to play a critical role in interfacing production teams from France and Kenya to deliver Creation in Motion, a highly challenging audiovisual production, inaugurated jointly by Presidents Ruto and Macron on May 11th 2026 at the University of Nairobi.

Inside the immersive cube at University of Nairobi, 11th May 2026.

Designed under the artistic direction of MansA Maison des Mondes Africains and Dream Feel Factory🇫🇷, the immersive exhibition showcased 3 films co-produced between Africa and France:

The Mugumo Tree: a Kenyan immersive experience by Brian Afande (Black Rhino XR) and Mercy Barno.
In the Beginning: a 360° immersive experience and exhibition developped by South African creatives Inka Kendzia and Xabiso Vili
Kancica: a French-Brazil-Benin co-production directed by Laeïla Adjovi and Joséphine Derobe

This project provides a concrete exemple of how creatives from both the continent and France can collaborate in producing immersive (XR) works that resonate with international audiences, and in continuing the reflection on how those works can circulate across various geographies and cultural contexts (one that echoes MansA’s core goals).

Looking back at it now, projects like Creation in Motion perhaps matter for reasons that go beyond the exhibition itself.

They feel less like finished products and more like laboratories: creatives from different countries, cultures, and artistic traditions attempting to create, test new forms of collaboration and imagine new possibilities.

Together.

An another exemple of that was the involvement of both African and French creative and business voices.

Kenyan streamer Brian Diang’a aka “The Beast”, one of Africa’s most prominent voices in the esport and video game scene, navigated from presidential dinner to high level sequences focused on youth and sport, at the invitation of the French president.

In a context where esport, video games, and other creative sectors, including the creator economy command the attention of millions of young Africans across the continent, while remaining largely unsupported and misunderstood, this presents a rather symbolic signal.

Both politically and economically, those sectors carry a weight and influence that can no longer be ignored, and France seems increasingly willing to acknowledge that shift.

President Macron introducing the Beast to President Ruto at the University of Nairobi on May 11th 2026. 📸 Soazig de La Moissonnière

Likewise, other leading creative and entrepreneurial voices from France and the continent joined in: Abderrahmane Sissako, veteran filmmaker from Mauritania, Chafik Gasmi, pionner designer from Algeria, Roméo Mivekannin, Toulouse-based Beninese and Ivorian-born painter, Marie Lora-Mungai, the founder of Restless Global and an expert in Sport & Creative business in Africa, or Liz Gomis, the inspiring director of MansA, were among the many creatives and cultural professionals that joined in.

Major announcements were made during the Summit.

Here we can think of the launch by the French CNC (Centre National du Cinéma) of a pan-African fund, committing a yearly 1M€ to supporting authors and producers across the continent, and supporting access to international markets and platforms for film professionals.

Still in the audiovisual sector, Maxime Saada, CEO of Canal+ Group, stressed that the ambition behind the Canal+/MultiChoice merger is to build the scale needed to compete with global streaming giants while strengthening investment in African storytelling. With a combined audience of roughly 20–25 million subscribers, the goal is to give African content broader visibility and stronger international reach, ultimately making this merger a bet on African content itself.

We can of course think of the installation of MansA (Maison des mondes Africains) in a more permanent location in Paris, where the institution will continue to promote the dialogue between France, Africa and its diasporas from a cultural and critical perspective, encouraging the invention of new narratives, the circulation of works and creative professionals, co-production and co-creation between French and African creatives, and promoting co-investment in the space across both geographies.

Finally, President Macron announced the adoption of a new law in France enabling the restitution of stolen artefacts and cultural treasures, a significant step that could unlock new forms of collaboration between museums and cultural institutions in Africa and France, while deepening ongoing conversations around memory and shared histories.

Subscribe now

2. The neo-colonial controversy (and my personal take on this)

Amidst the various conversations that emerged during and around the Summit, one that came back regularly was the neo-colonial stance allegedly taken by President Macron in this occasion, and by France in general.

While some of you may or may not suscribe to such vision, and while the continuation of the relationship with the continent is indeed highly strategic for France as a country, both politically and economically, it doesn’t make the idea of a renewed partnership with the continent any less valid and meaningful.

According to President Macron’s own words, this renewed partnership he’s calling forth between France and Africa is one based on

“peace, prosperity and independence”.

But the real question he’s trying to answer is this: how could our respective nations and continents mend the traumatic and abusive relationship that has prevailed for centuries, and reinvent a new partnership capable of uplifting us all, one built on balance, mutual respect, and shared growth?

In “Taisez-vous ou partez ! Le difficile métier de président français en Afrique”, William Bayiha reminds us that institutions, habits and power structures have an inherent inertia that won’t disappear overnight.

It will indeed take time, intention, and commitment to change the old ways of relating to one another.

But the answer President Macron has been trying to formulate through this Summit, while maybe imperfect, offers nonetheless a clear attempt at moving the lines.

One where culture and creativity are taking centre stage, and actively positioned and leveraged as means of transformation.

Through initiatives like Création Africa, mobility programmes, co-production support, the creation of MansA, France appears to be experimenting with another way of relating to the continent through culture and imagination.

In the first edition of MansA Magazine, Franco-Caribbean author Michael Roch writes about afrofuturism as a tool of reinvention, echoing one of MansA’s core objective, and purpose:

“The objectives are clear: to re-establish the legitimacy of our voices in telling our own narratives, to present new role models and figures of representation to younger people, to leverage fiction for liberation and re-empowerment through self-prophecy, and to reshape our societies and collective imaginaries with new blueprints for the future.”

That broader movement is precisely what initiatives like these seem designed to support.

Could this be a form of rebranding, and proceed from a strategic decision? Surely.

But strategy and sincerity are not necessarily opposites.

Because regardless of intentions, these programmes also create very real spaces for encounters, collaborations, opportunities and new narratives to emerge.

At some point, these conversations stop being abstract geopolitical debates to become questions about people, families, identities and the kinds of futures we choose to build together.

In case you haven’t noticed yet, I am male, white French.

My wife is Nigerian.

Our daughter is mixed: she’s both Nigerian and French.

This case is far from being unique.

We are dozens of millions sharing similar trajectories.

Our continents share a long history, one that demands time and healing (something that couldn’t happen in the span of a generation alone).

And we are collectively going ahead of major challenges and crisis linked to global warming, demography, and migrations, at the very least.

Do we really have the luxury to turn our back to each other at such a decisive moment? Many, on both sides, may believe so.

I don’t.

What about you?

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

Come & join us in Nairobi this Friday for our #3 Savannah Creatives Night!

Love Obianujuaku Nebo — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 14:27:04 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 7 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 529 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

This isn’t your ordinary dispatch: it’s your last chance to RSVP for our coming party!

RSVP

We’re bringing back our Mumbie movie night this Friday 1st of May (although going forward it would be called “Savannah Creative Night” as our audience has continued to grow wilder than we ever anticipated).

RSVP

Under this umbrella, we will have several focused activities; from our Cine Clubs, to Music and dance events. Our goal is to continue to provide you with solid support as you unlock the creativity in you!

Here is what to expect:

☔A terrasse AND a roof: we’ll be in an indoor rootop (you’ll still be able to smoke outside if you wish, there are also open parts)

🚪 Door opens at 6:00 PM, on May 1st

🎶🌇 We start the evening with a sundowner (BYOB🍷) & vinyl listening chaperoned by Maurice as we dive deep in the diverse collections we’ve amassed over the year!

📽️After that, we continue with the movie screening from 7:30 PM till around 9:30 PM or so. The film line up will be a surprise this time... And then we end the night with the same beautiful energy we started.

🎟️ Don’t forget to RSVP (it’s free).

We’re looking forward to reconnecting with old faces and meeting new ones.

With love,

Love & Maurice

RSVP

A pic from our last edition for Halloween last year

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

28 hot 🌶️ creative opportunities you don't want to miss in May (and a cool event to attend in Nairobi)

Love Obianujuaku Nebo — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 09:48:29 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 30 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 522 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your joining us on this journey as we continue to bring you diverse resources to keep exploring the creative in you.

Whether you’re a creative professional or simply a creative enthusiast, there will always be something for you in our digest!

It’s been a while you heard from us which is unusual to our modus operandi. But these past weeks have been all shades of chaos! And I dare say, we’re only just coming out of it.

👉🏾 While we were healing from the seasonal ailments, and multiple relapses, here are 27 key industry opportunities you might have missed if our digest is the only place you get credible information on the African creative ecosystem.

Here is our top #3:

💰 Great Lakes Creative Producers Lab #6. Coming to Kigali next November, this regional lab supporting East African film producers through mentorship, project development and industry connections, powered by Création Africa Fund and the Embassy of France in Kenya.
✍️ Series Mania Institute 🇫🇷 x HBO Max Script Engine: 4-month development programme for intermediate-level screenwriters connected to France, Spain, Germany or Italy. Includes high-level training, individual mentoring and direct collaboration with HBO Max editorial teams, culminating in a final pitch to regional executives. (DEADLINE APRIL 26th!!)
🎥 Atelier Ludwigsburg-Paris 2026–2027🇫🇷: one-year European training programme for early-career film producers and distributors, focused on co-production, financing, sales, distribution and legal frameworks, delivered by La Fémis and Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg.

We wish you all the very best with your applications🪄.

With love,

Love & Maurice

PPS: if you apply to of those opportunities and get selected, please let me know so we can celebrate the news with everyone here!🥹

📽️🧟‍♀️Our Mumbie movie night returns on May 1st in Nairobi!🎶

To say thank you for sticking with us even in our absence. We’re bringing back our Mumbie movie night, although going forward it would be called “Savannah Creative Night” as our audience has continued to grow wilder than we ever anticipated.

Under this umbrella, we will have several focused activities; from our Cine Clubs, to Music and dance events. Our goal is to continue to provide you with solid support as you unlock the creativity in you!

On May 1st, our door opens at 6pm with a sundowner (BYOB) and vinyl listening chaperoned by Maurice as we dive deep in the diverse collections we’ve amassed over the year! After that, the movie screening will start at 07:30pm. And we end the night with the same beautiful energy we started. We’re looking forward to reconnecting with old faces and meeting new ones. Don’t forget to RSVP here.

Frey & Teddos from Qene Films production studio in Addis Abeba, during the 5th edition of the Great Lakes Creative Producers Lab , November 2025.

Hot opportunities for African creatives - April 2026

(The more 🌶️ you see, the hotter the opportunity)

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 WBD Access x HBO Max Script Engine (Series Mania Institute): 4-month development programme for intermediate-level screenwriters connected to France, Spain, Germany or Italy. Includes high-level training, individual mentoring and direct collaboration with HBO Max editorial teams, culminating in a final pitch to regional executives. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 26 April 2026

🌶️🌶️ 📸 Unpublished Africa – Open Call for African Photographers: invites photographers to submit a short series exploring the theme of leadership in their local context. Selected works contribute to a platform focused on visibility, storytelling and social impact across African photography ecosystems. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 May 2026

🌶️ 🎬 African Film Festival Cologne 🇩🇪: festival showcasing African cinema and diasporic perspectives in Europe. Submission process handled via FilmFreeway. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 May 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎓 Quad-A Academy 2026: training programme for emerging African creatives combining mentorship, workshops and industry exposure. Designed to accelerate professionalisation and connect participants with international networks. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: they didn’t say so better hurry!

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Fantoche International Animation Film Festival (Switzerland): leading festival dedicated to independent and innovative animation, inviting animated short films from around the world (all techniques, max 40 min) completed after Dec 2024 for its 2026 competitions in Baden. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 3 May

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 💰 IDFA Bertha Fund - Co-production: supports documentaries in co-production between a Dutch minority co-producer and an IBF-supported country producer (must have had prior IBF support), with contributions up to €50,000. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 5 May

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🕶️ Venice Immersive 2026 (Italy): the XR competition of the Venice International Film Festival invites VR, XR installations, immersive videos and virtual worlds presented as world or international premieres. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 7 May

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF): one of the world’s most influential festivals invites submissions across feature, documentary and short film categories via FilmFreeway. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 8 May

🌶️🌶️ 🎧 Radio Workshop Residency: residency supporting audio storytellers with mentorship, editorial guidance and production support. Aimed at podcast creators and sound artists developing narrative audio projects. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 11 May 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Filmoramax International Short Film Festival 🇫🇷: international short film competition in Lyon offering screenings, networking with producers and distributors, and industry exposure. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 10 May 2026

🌶️ 🎬 Lens of Change Youth Voices Lab: open call for young filmmakers to create short documentaries on social and environmental issues. Selected participants receive mentorship and support for production and visibility. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 18 May 2026

🌶️ 💰 UNESCO International Fund for Cultural Diversity: global fund supporting projects that strengthen creative industries, cultural policies and market access in developing countries. Targets systemic impact across the cultural value chain (policy, entrepreneurship, distribution). 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 21 May 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 💰 Red Sea Development Fund: supports film projects from treatment to production-ready stage, backing feature films and series from African, Arab and Asian filmmakers with strong development potential. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 21 May 2026 (application window: 6–21 May)

🌶️ 🎬 Cairo International Film Festival 🇪🇬: one of the oldest film festivals in the Arab world with international competition sections. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 22 May 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 NBO Film Festival 🇰🇪: Nairobi-based festival showcasing African films with screenings and awards. Submission handled via FilmFreeway platform. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 May 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🇫🇷 🎬 Folimage Artist-in-Residence (Young Audience Animation): international residency offering directors the opportunity to develop and produce a 6-minute animated short film for young audiences (ages 5–7). Selected filmmaker is hosted in Valence (France) for 10–12 months with full studio support, leading to theatrical and international distribution (Gebeka Films, Institut Français network). 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 May 2026

Looking beyond May 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Atelier Ludwigsburg-Paris 2026–2027🇫🇷: one-year European training programme for early-career film producers and distributors, focused on co-production, financing, sales, distribution and legal frameworks. Delivered by La Fémis and Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, the programme combines high-level industry training with hands-on experience, including the co-production of a short film with ARTE and SWR. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 June 2026

Subscribe now

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

29 hot 🌶️ opportunities shaping Africa’s creative scene this April

Maurice Chapot — Wed, 15 Apr 2026 10:01:00 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 2 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 492 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

Today’s dispatch is our monthly opportunity board, and as always we have some serious ones to share.

👉🏾 29 opportunities that you might want to seriously consider, targeting East-African African animation studios, filmmakers, festival directors, and creative professionals in general.

Here is our top #3:

🎮 First the Road to Annecy 🇫🇷 2026 East Africa edition: a flagship programme funded by the Embassy of France in Kenya supporting East African animation studios with an exceptional pitching opportunity at Annecy/MIFA, the world’s largest animation market. Don’t sleep on it.
🔗 Second the Real Reel Impact Fund: an impact programme supported by Documentary Africa, open to African documentary filmmakers supporting social and environmental storytelling with grants (up to $10,000) and mentorship on impact strategy.
🎥 Last but not least, the Indian Ocean mobility fund: mobility grants courtesy from the French Ministry of Culture 🇫🇷 supporting artists and cultural professionals for travel linked to creation, research, training, residencies and professional events connected to the Caribbean and Indian Ocean territories.

We wish you all the very best with your applications🪄.

With love,

Love & Maurice

PPS: if you apply to of those opportunities and get selected, please let me know so we can celebrate the news with everyone here!🥹

Chief Nyamweya (Pungulu Pa Productions) on the East-African booth at Annecy/Mifa 2025 / 📸 Maurice Chapot

Hot opportunities for African creatives - April 2026

(The more 🌶️ you see, the hotter the opportunity)

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎤 Visa For Music: major music industry platform in Rabat offering artists international exposure, professional networking and showcase opportunities across global, urban and electronic music scenes. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 27 March 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🏆 Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA): Africa’s premier film awards platform invites submissions from filmmakers across the continent and diaspora across feature, documentary and short categories. 👉 Apply here | Earlybird Deadline: 31 March

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Zanzibar International Film Festival (ZIFF): one of Africa’s largest film festivals, offering filmmakers a platform for screening, visibility, awards and industry exposure. Open to feature films, documentaries, shorts and animations, with strong focus on African stories and global cultural narratives. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 March 2026

🌶️ 🎥 Shanghai International Film Festival (CN): Major international festival and industry market offering competitive sections and global visibility for features, shorts and documentaries. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 March

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🌍 OIF – Distribution & Discoverability Fund: supports cultural organisations building tools, platforms, B2B events, market access initiatives or discoverability solutions in live performance, film/audiovisual, and publishing. Grants go up to €50,000, covering up to 80% of project costs. Particularly relevant if you’re working on visibility, monetisation or market infrastructure rather than a single artwork. Eligibility: legally registered cultural organisations in OIF member countries (no individuals). 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 March 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎨 Goethe-Institut International Co-production Fund: supports co-creation projects between German and international artists across disciplines (film, music, digital arts, performance), enabling long-term artistic collaboration. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: April 1st 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ ✍️ OIF – Writing & (Co-)Productions Fund: supports the crucial step between development and production in book publishing, film and live performance, with grants between €7,000 and €20,000. Good fit for publishers, production structures and cultural operators working on co-productions, co-editions or cross-border partnerships built to travel. Eligibility: legally registered organisations in OIF member countries (minimum experience required, no individuals). 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 2 April 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 💰 IDFA Bertha Fund - Europe Minority Co-production: grants up to €40,000 for international documentary co-productions between a minority European producer from a MEDIA-participating country and a producer from an IBF-supported region. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 April

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🧪 Rough Cut Lab Africa Doc East Africa Focus: editorial lab for African documentary filmmakers with projects in rough-cut stage, offering mentorship, industry connections and festival strategy support, in partnership with the Encounters Documentary Film Festival, the South African Guild of Editors and the National Film and Video Foundation. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 3 April

Subscribe now

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 DIFF Festival Directors Programme (South Africa): the DIFF residency selects African festival directors and programmers for a week-long programme during the 47th Durban International Film Festival, offering strategic exchange, networking and industry exposure alongside the Durban FilmMart Institute. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 4 April

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 Écrans Noirs (CM): Flagship Central African film festival showcasing African and diaspora cinema and connecting filmmakers with regional and international professionals. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 5 April

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 Locarno Film Festival 2026 (CH): one of Europe’s leading international film festivals is open for submissions of feature, medium-length and short films across all genres for its official selections, offering strong artistic recognition and international visibility. 👉 Apply here | Regular deadline: 9 April

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Road to Annecy 2026 East Africa Edition 🇫🇷: flagship programme funded by the Embassy of France in Kenya supporting East African animation studios with access to MIFA, pitching opportunities, mentorship and international exposure. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 12 April 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 OIF – Fonds Image de la Francophonie (FIF): supports development, production and post-production for fiction films, documentaries and series from eligible Francophone countries, with grants ranging from €10,000 to €100,000 depending on the stage and format. Strong fit for producers already packaging projects with financing, diffusion and execution plans. Eligibility: production companies and filmmakers from eligible OIF countries (with stricter rules for “Global South” countries depending on the fund). 👉 Apply here | Deadlines: 23 March–12 April 2026 (documentaries) / 13 April–3 May 2026 (series) / 25 May–14 June 2026 (fiction)

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Real Reel Impact (RRI): impact programme for African documentary filmmakers supporting social and environmental storytelling with grants (up to $10,000) and mentorship on impact strategy. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 13 April 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ ✈️ Indian Ocean mobility fund (FR 🇫🇷): mobility grants from the French Ministry of Culture supporting artists and cultural professionals for travel linked to creation, research, training, residencies and professional events connected to the Caribbean and Indian Ocean territories. 👉 Apply here | Deadlines: 15 April

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🖼️ Africa-Europe Partnerships for Culture Visual Arts Grant: supports African-European teams to co-create, produce and publicly present new visual artworks, covering the full production and dissemination cycle. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 17 April 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Edinburgh International Film Festival: major international festival showcasing global cinema across fiction, documentary and experimental formats with strong industry visibility. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 17 April 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🎥 Sunny Side of the Doc 2026 (France): the world’s leading documentary market returns to La Rochelle (June 22–24, 2026) after a last-minute industry-led rescue, now standing as one of the last global marketplaces fully dedicated to doc & factual. 120 projects will be selected for curated matchmaking, with up to 8 meetings with top broadcasters, distributors and funders. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: April 24, 2026

Looking beyond April 2026

🌶️🌶️ 💰 IDFA Bertha Fund - Co-production: supports documentaries in co-production between a Dutch minority co-producer and an IBF-supported country producer (must have had prior IBF support), with contributions up to €50,000. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 5 May

🌶️🌶️ 🕶️ Venice Immersive 2026 (Italy): the XR competition of the Venice International Film Festival invites VR, XR installations, immersive videos and virtual worlds presented as world or international premieres. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 7 May

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF): one of the world’s most influential festivals invites submissions across feature, documentary and short film categories via FilmFreeway. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 8 May

🌶️🌶️ 💰 Red Sea Development Fund: supports film projects from treatment to production-ready stage, backing feature films and series from African, Arab and Asian filmmakers with strong development potential. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 21 May 2026 (application window: 6–21 May)

🌶️ 🎭 Pro Helvetia Co-creation Funding 2026: Pro Helvetia supports collaborative arts projects between Swiss-based artists and partners in liaison-office regions. Any discipline; project must be co-developed and shared equally. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 June

🌶️ 🎬 Venice International Film Festival (Italy): one of the world’s most prestigious A-list festivals invites feature films, shorts and restored films completed after Sept 2025, with strong premiere requirements and global industry visibility. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 4 June (features)

🌶️ 🎬 Festival des 3 Continents 🇫🇷: international festival open to feature films (fiction, documentary, animation, experimental) from Africa, Asia and Latin America, connecting filmmakers to international programmers and distributors. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 17 July 2026

Subscribe now

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

Africa Forward Summit: is it too late to get in?

Maurice Chapot — Fri, 20 Mar 2026 05:44:40 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 8 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 490 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been actively mobilised in the preparations leading to the upcoming Africa Forward Summit, which will take place in Nairobi on May 11th and 12th, 2026.

From a distance, it may look like something creative entrepreneurs might have no place into… but this is not your ordinary summit.

In this edition, I will break down for you:

What kind of opportunity the Africa Forward Summit actually represents
Who is it actually for? (and can you still join in?)

Let’s dive right in.

Enjoy the read,

Yours,

Maurice

1. What the Africa Forward Summit actually is, and what it is not

First, the summit will be open to a large “diversity of participants, which include States, business leaders, young people, artists, civil societies and diasporas”.

Indeed, roughly half of the programme is built around a Business Forum designed to connect private sector actors with high-level political decision-makers and sources of capital.

The stated objective is to “build and finance tangible solutions,” which, in practice, translates into a fairly simple mechanism: bring together projects, investors and public actors in the same room, and create the conditions for deals to happen.

This is what distinguishes SAF from more traditional summits.

The focus is not just on declarations or visibility, but on aligning business opportunities with capital and policy support.

The sectors being discussed reflect that logic. Alongside the usual suspects (energy, agriculture, health, infrastructure), the programme also integrates technology, AI, cultural and creative industries (CCIs) and sport as part of the broader economic landscape.

Taken together, this positions the Summit not just as a diplomatic event, but also as a platform where diverse economic actors can meet to structure partnerships and financing.

Subscribe now

2. Who is this actually for? (and can you still join in?)

In case there was still a doubt lingering somewhere: this event is not just for anyone.

The summit itself is designed for Heads of States and high level executives.

But the Business Forum is designed for a wider scope of participants: actors who are engaged in building, financing or structuring economic activity at scale.

That includes companies and entrepreneurs operating in strategic sectors, investors looking for opportunities on the continent, and public or institutional actors involved in shaping markets.

If you are still an early stage creative entrepreneur, exploring ideas or looking for visibility, this is probably not the right environment.

If, on the other hand, you are building a creative company, structuring a project, or positioning yourself within a value chain, the relevance becomes much more tangible.

As we’ve discussed in previous editions, the main challenge across African creative industries is not a lack of content, but a lack of infrastructure and scalable business models.

Distribution, platforms, data, monetisation systems: this is where most of the value sits, and where capital is most likely to flow.

The closer you are to building or operating within those layers of the value chain, the more you actually belong in that room.

If you’re still not sure whether this opportunity is indeed for you or not… I would say it’s worth a try.😅

👉 Pre-registration is currently open here.

Subscribe now

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

What makes a creative sector investable, from an investor's perspective?

Maurice Chapot — Sat, 14 Mar 2026 08:45:30 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 16 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 482 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

As some of you may know, I was in Addis Abeba a couple weeks ago to organise a workshop for creative hubs and incubators.

For the occasion, I invited a very exciting figure of the African ICC space to deliver a masterclass on the African creative industries value chains, from an investors’ perspective.

For those of you who wouldn’t know her, Marie Lora-Mungai is a French entrepreneur working at the nexus of creative industries, sports, and finance.

She has a really cool newsletter I invite you to check out btw.

Let me tell you: I learned a LOT during this masterclass.

So I decided to compile a big chunk of my notes to share with you in this edition.

Here’s what we’ll be covering today:

The creative trap: betting on content alone instead of infrastructure
Let’s all learn from the best student in class: fashion and beauty, the most reliable creative sector investments across Africa
The investor's barometer: where would your sector stands in an investor’s priority list?

Let’s dive right in.

Enjoy the read,

Yours,

Maurice

Subscribe now

1. The creation trap: betting on content alone instead of infrastructure

Across Africa’s creative industries, one pattern appears again and again: ecosystems invest their energy in producing content, while the real economic value sits elsewhere in the value chain.

Film and television are a good example.

The sector is arguably one of the most structured creative industries on the continent.

The value chain is well understood (development > production > distribution > monetisation), and African cinema has made impressive progress on the global stage.

Independent films increasingly circulate in major festivals, development funds have multiplied, and some countries such as South Africa or Rwanda, actively support their national production.

Yet distribution remains a major obstacle, that has not yet been cracked:

There are not enough cinemas across the continent.
Local broadcasters operate with limited budgets.
Streaming platforms that once appeared as a solution have largely stepped back from African production.
With Canal+ becoming one of the few consistent buyers in several markets, the routes to audiences have narrowed rather than expanded.

More projects are being developed than ever before, but financing a film has paradoxically become harder, because access to market, and in the end, profitability, remain highly inconsistent and difficult to predict in the African context.

Hence, in such environment, the real opportunity is not in content itself, but in controlling access to audiences.

The same logic applies in music.

Culturally, African music is one of the continent’s most powerful exports. Afrobeats artists fill arenas globally and generate billions of streams.

Yet the economic reality tells a different story. Recorded music revenues across the entire continent reached roughly $110 million in 2024, a fraction of what a market of this size should generate.

Infrastructure, or the lack of it, once again, is the main bottleneck.

Between piracy, the lack of data, broken copyright collection systems, overall low streaming penetration across, value capture remains weak.

Some of the few success stories in the sector illustrate exactly where value sits.

Nigerian label Mavin Records did not become attractive to global investors because of a single artist.

When Kupanda Capital invested in the company in 2018, they rebuilt its operational backbone from scratch: contracts, data analytics, rights management, internal processes, etc.

Only then did the label later attracted the attention of Universal Music Group, culminating in a major acquisition in 2024.

The same pattern can be observed with companies such as Africori, which built scalable distribution systems for African music globally.

What this means essentially, is that across the wider African creative industries, the next wave of value will likely not come from producing more content, but from building the infrastructure that captures value from that content.

Distribution, rights management, ticketing, data systems, platforms and audience access: this is where most of investors’ attention will fall in the coming years, until the necessary infrastructure is in place.

Across sectors, value tends to accumulate not where culture is created, but where distribution, monetisation and infrastructure are controlled.

This doesn’t mean in any way that contents shouldn’t keep receiving attention and that they’re not important.

They are, at the end of the day, the cultural assets that will be monetized, and from which value will be derived.

They also are public good, whose cultural and societal value largely transcends the economics.

But without the systems that allow for this value to be captured, contents will remain symbolic, but highly unsustainable cultural vessels.

Ethiopia’s push into textile manufacturing, supported by industrial policy and foreign investment, shows how quickly production capacity can scale when the right ecosystem is in place. Still from Made in Ethiopia by chinese director Xinyan Yu and British filmmaker Max Duncan).

2. Fashion and beauty: the most reliable creative sector investments across Africa

If one creative sector consistently attracts investor interest across the continent, it is fashion and beauty.

Unlike many other cultural industries, fashion operates within a straightforward business model: it sells tangible products to local consumers.

Revenue does not depend on broken distribution systems or global platform algorithms, but on supply chains, retail networks and demand.

That speaks to investors because it taps into known distribution pipelines.

The numbers reflect this reality. African fashion exports reached approximately $15.5 billion in 2023, and the sector continues to attract growing investor attention.

Companies like Vivo Fashion Group offer a bright exemple of successful, African creative business can run at scale.

According to the Success Stories in the Creative Industries in Africa and other Emerging Markets report put together by PwC and Restless Global in 2025, the Kenyan brand generates around $9 million in annual revenue, operating more than thirty stores across the country, and employing hundreds of people and manufactures locally.

Across the continent, many fashion companies operate in a similar range.

For benchmark sake, a fashion SME generating between $100,000 and $400,000 in annual revenue can actually be considered successful.

More importantly, it is essential to note that many of these businesses are indeed profitable.

Unlike many other creative businesses fighting to meet an audience, those companies don’t lack traction.

What they do like however is growth capital.

Many designers struggle to expand production because manufacturing capacity remains limited.

Local textile industries have shrunk over decades, forcing designers into small-batch production that drives up costs and pushes brands toward luxury positioning.

Some companies solve this by manufacturing abroad (hello China) while maintaining African design and branding.

Where governments have invested in textile infrastructure, the story looks different.

Ethiopia’s push into textile manufacturing, supported by industrial policy and foreign investment, shows how quickly production capacity can scale when the right ecosystem is in place.

But it’s not always rosy either (check out the excellent documentary Made in Ethiopia by chinese director Xinyan Yu and British filmmaker Max Duncan).

Subscribe now

3. The investor’s barometer: where would your company stands in an investor’s priority list?

From an investor’s perspective, creative sectors tend to fall into three broad categories.

#1 Investable sectors/companies

That is essentially where value capture already works.

Fashion & beauty belong here, as we have just seen.

But also distribution & payment infrastructure, whichever sector they relate to, be it gaming, film, or the creator economy.

Platforms like Selar (NG), that allow creators sell digital products online, is a great exemple of an investable company in such sectors.

In 2026, the company is expected to distribute more than $21 million to creators for digital sales made in 2025.

Another exemple of investable business in the creator economy is the Kenyan platform Wowzi, which connects brands with thousands of nano-creators across Africa, transforming social media audiences into structured marketing networks.

Another exemple in the video game sector: the distribution and publishing platform Carry1st.

Probably the most successful African gaming companies, Carry1st, reached scale after pivoting away from game development toward publishing, distribution and fintech infrastructure.

Its Pay1st payment system now enables international games to monetise in African markets through local payment solutions, a move that helped the company raise more than $60 million in funding.

These companies attract investors because the mechanisms that generate revenue are clear.

#2 Sectors where prudence prevails

In the middle tier sit industries that are culturally powerful but structurally fragile.

Live events, visual arts and publishing often fall into this category.

Festivals, concerts, art fairs generate huge visibility and cultural impact, yet their financial models often remain unstable.

Many rely on sponsorship, grants and ticket sales that cover only a fraction of their production costs.

Here, the opportunity mostly lies in infrastructure (again).

Companies building venues, ticketing platforms or event franchises often show stronger business fundamentals than the events themselves.

The global Afrobeats festival brand Afro Nation for instance, is showing how a cultural moment can also become a scalable event platform spanning multiple countries.

Similarly, new sports and entertainment leagues entering African markets are creating demand for venues, event operators and advertising networks.

In that category, businesses like HustleSasa, a unified commerce and ticketing platform made in Kenya, would offer a much more investable profile than, let’s say, a film festival (!).

#3 High risk sectors

At the bottom tier sit sectors where excitement tends to exceed economic stability.

Animation, gaming and extended reality (XR) generate attention but remain highly difficult for investors to evaluate.

Animation studios require highly specialised talent and significant upfront capital, while the film distribution infrastructure remains mostly broken on the continent, meaning there is no clear access to market and monetisation pathways in place that could hep reassure investors.

South African studio Triggerfish has achieved international success largely through service work and public support, aside of being operating across multiple markets (not just Africa).

Yet even such studio, arguably Africa’s largest and most successful animation studio, does not always retain ownership of the intellectual property it produces, posing a real ownership challenge.

Gaming too falls into this category.

While we boast of an African gaming market surpassing $1 billion, most of that revenue still flows to global publishers rather than local studios.

Few are the Africa-made games that have become commercial successes.

At the end of the day, money will rather flow towards infrastructural projects that successfully and consistently capture value, rather than high risk, capital intensive project that have no clear distribution pathways.

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

21 hot🌶️ opportunities African creatives should have on their radar in March

Maurice Chapot — Fri, 06 Mar 2026 11:28:28 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 14 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 466 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

Today’s dispatch is our monthly opportunity board, and as always we have some serious ones to share.

👉🏾 21 opportunities that you might want to seriously consider, targeting African video game designers, filmmakers, festival directors, animation studios, and creative professionals in general.

Here is our top #3:

🎮 First the Playful Obscura video game residency in Ghana: Goethe-Institut, A MAZE. and Leti Arts invite African artists working with playful media, experimental games and interactive art for a 3-week residency in Accra exploring the intersection of art, technology and games.
🔗 Second the DIFF Festival Directors Programme in South Africa: the DIFF residency selects African festival directors and programmers for a week-long programme during the 47th Durban International Film Festival, offering strategic exchange, networking and industry exposure alongside the Durban FilmMart Institute.
🎥 Last but not least, the Rough Cut Lab Africa Doc East Africa Focus, an editorial lab for African documentary filmmakers with projects in rough-cut stage, offering mentorship, industry connections and festival strategy support, in partnership with the Encounters Documentary Film Festival.

We wish you all the very best with your applications🪄.

With love,

Love & Maurice

PPS: if you apply to of those opportunities and get selected, please let me know so we can celebrate the news with everyone here!🥹

Hot opportunities for African creatives - March 2026

(The more 🌶️ you see, the hotter the opportunity)

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🕹️ Playful Obscura – Arthouse Games Residency (Ghana): Goethe-Institut, A MAZE. and Leti Arts invite African artists working with playful media, experimental games and interactive art for a 3-week residency in Accra exploring the intersection of art, technology and games, with production support and a stipend. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 13 Mar

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 Festival de Cannes 2026 (FR): submissions are open for the 79th edition’s Official Selection (features, shorts in Competition, etc.), plus parallel opportunities via the Short Film Corner and Marché du Film. 👉 Apply here | Deadlines: 13 Mar (features)

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Africajarc Festival call for films (France): the Africajarc festival, dedicated to African cultures, invites filmmakers to submit films for its 2026 edition in Cajarc, France, as part of its cinema programme highlighting African and diaspora stories. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 15 March

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 Annecy International Animation Film Festival 2026 (FR): the world’s leading animation festival is now open for shorts, features, TV, commissioned, graduation and immersive works, with paid submissions across all categories. 👉 Apply here | Deadlines: 15 March (features/immersive)

🌶️🌶️ ✈️ Africa–Europe Partnerships for Culture mobility grants: EU-funded mobility support for artists and cultural professionals, prioritising Africa–Africa and Africa–Europe exchanges. Grants of up to €4,000 cover travel, accommodation, subsistence and digital costs, with additional support for childcare, disability and green mobility. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 15 March

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 💰 Red Sea Fund Production Fund: supports feature-length fiction, documentary and animation films (60+ min) from directors of Arab origin, African and Asian nationalities, as well as episodic projects (25–59 min/episode). Short films are eligible only for Saudi directors. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 21 March

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🏆 Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA): Africa’s premier film awards platform invites submissions from filmmakers across the continent and diaspora across feature, documentary and short categories. 👉 Apply here | Earlybird Deadline: 31 March

🌶️ 💰 IDFA Bertha Fund - Europe Minority Co-production: grants up to €40,000 for international documentary co-productions between a minority European producer from a MEDIA-participating country and a producer from an IBF-supported region. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 April

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 DIFF Festival Directors Programme (South Africa): the DIFF residency selects African festival directors and programmers for a week-long programme during the 47th Durban International Film Festival, offering strategic exchange, networking and industry exposure alongside the Durban FilmMart Institute. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 4 April

🌶️ 🎥 Écrans Noirs (CM): Flagship Central African film festival showcasing African and diaspora cinema and connecting filmmakers with regional and international professionals. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 5 April

🌶️🌶️ ✈️ Indian Ocean mobility fund (FR): mobility grants from the French Ministry of Culture supporting artists and cultural professionals for travel linked to creation, research, training, residencies and professional events connected to the Caribbean and Indian Ocean territories. 👉 Apply here | Deadlines: 15 April

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Edinburgh International Film Festival 2026 (UK): historic international festival accepting narrative, documentary and short films through FilmFreeway, with competitions and strong industry exposure. 👉 Apply here | Final Deadline: 17 April

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Fantoche International Animation Film Festival (Switzerland): leading festival dedicated to independent and innovative animation, inviting animated short films from around the world (all techniques, max 40 min) completed after Dec 2024 for its 2026 competitions in Baden. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 3 May

🌶️ 💰 IDFA Bertha Fund - Co-production: supports documentaries in co-production between a Dutch minority co-producer and an IBF-supported country producer (must have had prior IBF support), with contributions up to €50,000. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 5 May

Subscribe now

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Venice International Film Festival (Italy): one of the world’s most prestigious A-list festivals invites feature films, shorts and restored films completed after Sept 2025, with strong premiere requirements and global industry visibility. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 4 June (features)

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

The creative funding paradox: why money is not flowing into the African creative industries

Maurice Chapot — Fri, 27 Feb 2026 13:55:29 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 6 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 452 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

I was in Addis Abeba this week to organise a regional workshop for 5 creative incubators deployed across Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Ethiopia, to help them identify pathways to sustainability.

It was a very exciting few days, bringing together creative industry experts from France, South Africa and Ethiopia, that gave us the opportunity to dive deep into the nitty gritty of funding Africa’s creative industries.

Among the many insightful sessions, we were lucky to have Marie Lora-Mungai (Restless Global) talk us through the creative funding paradox, that explains why money is not flowing into the African creative space.

That’s what we’ll be covering today:

There has never been so much (private) money on the table: investors are actively looking at creative businesses to invest in
… But the creative deal pipeline is dry: too few creative businesses are actually investable

Let’s dive right in.

Enjoy the read,

Yours,

Maurice

1. There has never been so much (private) money on the table: investors are actively looking at businesses to invest in

The African creative industries are sitting on a serious pile of money.

Roughly $3 billion has been committed to the ecosystem over the last two years.

A big chunk of that ($2 billion) comes from Afreximbank, pledged over the next three years for sectors like film, music and fashion.

Aside this massive contribution, many smaller ones are lining up.

In 2024, the Next Narrative Africa Fund launched a $40 million vehicle for the film sector, which is progressively been rolled out towards a selection of high-impact audiovisual projects.

The Sony Innovation Fund is currently aiming at investing $10 million, targeting innovative African creative startups across video game, animation and film.

Angel money is showing up too. At CANEX WKND in Algiers in 2024, $350,000 was committed to three African creative entrepreneurs during the “CANEX Presents the Angels” session. Fashion, media and cultural ventures secured equity investments from players like Woodhall Capital and Silverbacks Holdings.

On the development finance side, de-risking mechanism such as CREA Fund, launched by Proparco under the EU’s CreatiFI initiative, aims at supporting investments in the space for financial intermediaries through guarantees and technical support, helping lenders get more comfortable financing creative businesses.

Private equity, angel networks, impact funds, development banks: all are currently looking at investing in the space.

But the capital is stuck.

Subscribe now

2. The creative deal pipeline is dry: too few creative businesses are currently investable

African creatives are more visible than ever.

Artists like Tyla are filling major arenas on international tours, including a sold-out night at Tokyo’s Ariake Arena on her We Wanna Party tour.

Tems has toured across Europe, North America and Asia on her Born in the Wild world tour, playing large venues and festivals.

Veteran singer Burna Boy has become one of the most streamed African artists globally and earned multiple Grammy nominations and Billboard recognitions.

Designers like Thebe Magugu have shown collections in Paris and on global fashion calendars.

Filmmakers such as Haile Gerima were honoured at the Berlin International Film Festival with the Berlinale Camera, spotlighting decades of influential cinema.

But visibility and growth is not monetisation.

An artist can trend globally and still struggle to capture the full value of their work if distribution rights, publishing, data and revenue structures are not in place.

From an investor’s standpoint, attention or content alone is not a business model.

And as of today, many African creative businesses are not structured in ways that make them investable:

❌ Lack of clear product–market fit
❌ Lack of recurring and predictable revenue
❌ Absence of a clean legal structure and clear IP ownership
❌ Lack of financial literacy within the founding team
❌ Confused positioning and offer
❌ No scalable production or distribution model
❌ No alignment between growth ambition and funding strategy
❌ No visibility on cashflow
❌ Structural dependence on grants
❌ No understanding of investor expectations or exit strategy
❌ Talent-led structures with no operational backbone

Be it equity investment or loans, access to capital requires real structuration, and real business models.

Subscribe now

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

Maurice & Love

Why entrepreneurship is easier than you think

Maurice Chapot — Mon, 23 Feb 2026 09:09:33 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 5 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 451 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

We tend to focus a lot on the challenges and the problem facing our creative industries, or on its biggest successes, but we rarely speak of the smaller initiatives, those that haven’t yet “made it”.

Too small to be noticed, yet more impactful and relatable than any of these success stories can be.

There are many exemples of such smaller, yet impactful initiatives taking place across the African creative ecosystem, the first that comes to mind being Love’s Mumbie Movie Hangout, an event creating space for mothers, creatives and their community to gather and connect around a movie screening in our home in Nairobi.

All reflect the two things I like to see most in this industry: entrepreneurship and community.

And that’s what we’ll be talking about today:

Entrepreneurship, and why it’s is easier than you think
Community, and why building one is the best way to creative enterprise

Let’s dive right in.

Enjoy the read,

Yours,

Maurice

Subscribe now

1. Entrepreneurship is easier than you think.

A few months ago, I noticed this young Kenyan on my LinkedIn feed, talking about financing in the creative industries.

It picked my attention because it’s not often you see people writing sensible things on such subject.

Anne Gichuki was working at the time on building the alpha version of a solution to help creatives fund their projects.

Her ideas were not clear, many questions were left open, but she kept on, asking questions to her audience, engaging people.

In a word: moving.

A couple of weeks later, she released First Raise, a digital product for creative entrepreneurs lost in the fundraising process.

It wasn’t a perfect product, but it was something she could start from.

And more importantly something people could buy.

People sometimes struggle to get « the perfect idea ».

Others (myself included), struggle to take theirs off the ground.

Wasting time in both cases, for no good reason.

An idea and the energy to turn it into something real is all you need at first.

That’s it.

Whether it works out or not shouldn’t be your concern before you reach this point, for there wouldn’t be anything to test otherwise.

Only once you have put your first feet forward can the real challenge begins: that of turning this first product of yours into tangible cash.

Subscribe now

2. Why community building is the best way to creative enterprise.

Three reasons coming to my mind.

Building a community pushes you to create: bringing people together either online or IRL requires you to make something (plan a meeting, organize an event, make works and share it…). That’s a maker mindset.
Building a community will teach you a lot: about yourself, about your market, about your product, or what it is you want to build.
Building a community creates opportunities: both for yourself and for the community. Or at least it should. A community that doesn’t being value to it’s member lacks purpose.

If you don’t have a creative business idea, build a community.

It will challenge you in all the right ways.

Maybe this will become a business overtime, maybe you’ll just make friends, maybe both.

But I can only see great outcomes.

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

Maurice & Love

Why industry monitoring shouldn't be overlooked

Maurice Chapot — Sat, 14 Feb 2026 05:10:42 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 6 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 446 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

I lacked inspiration quite a bit this week.

As I was looking for the theme of our next dispatch, I decided to turn to my weekly reads in search of inspiration.

I quickly realised my sources of information could very well make for a useful subject.

Here is what we’ll be covering:

(1) Making a habit of learning about your industry, in 30 minutes a week

(2) My top newsletters, accounts & podcasts for an insightful watch: where I keep myself informed

Let’s dive right in.

Enjoy the read,

Yours,

Maurice

PS: I’m pretty sure you are consuming some super dope content too, so please do share with us in the comment section below! I would love to hear yours.

You’ll notice the perfect manicure💅😂 #AI.

(1) Making a habit of learning about your industry, in 30 minutes a week only

In any given sector, information is power.

If you don’t have the right information, you’ll miss on opportunities.

You’ll make mistakes that could have been avoided.

On the other end, information can help you save time. Money.

It can help you gain a competitive advantage, give you an edge, however so little, that could change your perspective, and lead you to a more successful path.

So where to start from?

A good place to start would be to (1) make a list of the people around you (IRL or online), whom you trust, whom inspire you, and whom regularly talk, write or share about your industry/sector.

Maybe they have a podcast, or maybe they’re writing online (in a magazine, a newsletter, on social media…), or simply sharing insightful contents from others.

That’s all good stuff, and a great base to begin with.

You definitely don’t need to map it all out. There isn’t such thing as a “perfect list”, and you’ll always be able to expand it along the way if you wish.

What matters however is to (2) tune in regularly to those channels of yours.

Make a habit of it. While you’re having a cup of coffee, or on your way to work.

Engage with all sorts of contents, but be mindful of shorts and reels, for they often lead us astray without us realising it.

It’s so easy to fall into a rabbit hole.

To short form video contents, prefer longer formats, that help (3) focus your attention.

This may look too simple to you right now.

Nobody ever said it wasn’t.

But simple doesn’t equate inconsequential.

However small an impact such practice might yield for you, remember that little things repeated over time will eventually compound into something bigger.

So let’s brace ourselves for the little steps!

Subscribe now

(2) My top newsletters, accounts & podcasts

If you’re here, it’s likely because you’re already doing the work.

Let me share with you my top sources of information and inspiration, so you can check them out, and add them to your list if you find them useful.

I am lucky to read both French🇫🇷 and English🇬🇧, so this reflects in the content below: not everything might be within your reach.

Newsletters

🇬🇧 Hustle & Flow by Marie Lora-Mungai: a bi-monthly newsletter about business and investment opportunities in the African Entertainment space.

🇬🇧 Akoroko by Tambay Obenson: real-time intelligence on African film, TV, and digital screen sectors. Curated for global industry professionals and the seriously invested.

🇬🇧 Communiqué by David Adeleke: a publication that analyses Africa’s creative economy. It’s the perfect resource for entrepreneurs, investors, scholars, and operators looking to make sense of the opportunities within the African media, tech, and creative economy.

🇬🇧 Data Bites by Yannick Deza: turning complex research, data, and trends into concise, curated, and visually striking stories. An exercise in collective knowledge.

🇬🇧 3-2-1 Thursday by James Clear: “the most wisdom per word of any newsletter on the web”

🇫🇷 Solobusiness by Thibault Louis: chaque être humain a la possibilité de créer son business autonome en ligne, sans capital de départ, sans équipe, grâce à l’ensemble des possibilités permises par la plus grande technologie de l’Humanité : Internet. Mon but est de documenter ce que j’apprends et de vous armer pour vous lancer ou croître en tant qu’entreprise de une personne florissante.

🇫🇷 Les persos de Maud by Maud Alavès: tous les jours, j’expérimente, lis, recherche, et coache sur les stratégies de réputation. Une fois par semaine, je partage ce que j’ai appris dans une édition Des Persos de Maud, pour vous aider à bâtir la vôtre.

Subscribe now

Traditional media

🇬🇧🇫🇷 Ecoffin Agency: covers the news from 9 business sectors in Africa: Public management, Finance, ICT, Agribusiness, Electricity, Mining, Oil and Gas, Comms and Laws.

🇬🇧 Sinema Focus by Jennifer Ochieng: provides dedicated coverage of East African screen sectors, anchored in Kenya.

Podcasts

🇬🇧 Filmhackers Uganda : it is aimed to inspire, motivate, boost and create employment opportunities within the Ugandan film industry by providing a platform to film makers, writers, actors and actresses, cinematographers, directors, photographers, animators, copywriters, designers and the general audience to tell captivating stories and produce outstanding and high quality content.

🇫🇷 Business Pirate by Thibault Louis: un podcast sur l’entreprenariat et le business en solo.

🇫🇷 Génération do it yourself by Mathieu Stéfani: le podcast qui décortique le succès des personnes qui ont fait le grand saut.

🇫🇷 Vision(s) by Noyau Sutdio: parcours de photographes

🇫🇷 Sans permission by Yomi Denzel, Oussama Ammar et Antoine Blanco: business, entreprenariat, entertainment.

Accounts (my top 3 Linkedin)

In no particular order:

🇬🇧 Marie Lora-Mungai

🇬🇧 David Adeleke

🇫🇷 Thibault Louis

I’m pretty sure you are consuming some super dope content too, so please do share with us in the comment section below!👇

I would love to hear yours.

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

Maurice & Love

22 hot🌶️ opportunities for African creatives this February

Maurice Chapot — Fri, 06 Feb 2026 10:02:30 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 6 new subscribers who joined the community this week! You are now 440 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

Today’s dispatch is our monthly opportunity board, and as always we have some serious ones to share.

👉🏾 22 opportunities that you might want to seriously consider, targeting African photographers, filmmakers, distributors, animation studios, and creative professionals in general.

Here is our top #3:

📸 First an exhibition opportunity for African women photographers, provided by Unpublished Africa, an exciting platform that has grown across the entire continent, organising photo walks in a bunch of cities, from Nairobi, to Jos or Addis, as well as capacity building programmes.
🎥 Second, the MultiChoice Talent Factory 2026, a flagship capacity building programme for film professionals, open to talents in SA, Kenya, Zambia and Nigeria.
✈️ Last but not least, the Indian Ocean mobility fund 2026, offered by the French Ministry of Culture to support artists and cultural professionals for travel linked to creation, research, training, residencies and professional events connected to the Caribbean and Indian Ocean territories.

We wish you all the very best with your applications🪄.

With love,

Love & Maurice

PPS: if you apply to of those opportunities and get selected, please let me know so we can celebrate the news with everyone here!🥹

Still from World Cup Ride, a short film by Love Nebo & Elias Ben Dahhou

🚨Our next MumBie Movie Hangout is coming up!🚨

The third edition of our MumBie Movie Hangout is coming up on Friday, February 20th.

Following the success of our first screenings in 2025, our cozy evenings are returning this year, inviting you once again to unwind, connect, and enjoy good cinema together, and for the very first time, meet with some of our movie directors.

As always, you’ll be able to vote for the film to screen that evening, choosing between two options, which we’ll be announcing next week.

The evening begins with a sundowner from 6:00 to 7:30 pm, followed by the movie screening and open conversation.

As always, it’s free and open to all, so bring your friends, partners, a blanket for comfort, as well as your favourite drink or snack to share!🍷

To join us, kindly RSVP here to help us plan for the best!

Jos Photo Walk led by Gil Dachomo, Nigeria. Courtesy of Unpublished Africa.

Hot opportunities for African creatives - February 2026

(The more 🌶️ you see, the hotter the opportunity)

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 💰 IDFA Bertha Fund - Project Development: supports early-stage documentary projects by directors from IBF Classic eligible countries (Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean & Oceania), offering up to €7,500 for research, script and visual material development. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 10 Feb 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 💰 IDFA Bertha Fund - Production & Post-production : provides up to €25,000 to documentary filmmakers in production or post-production from IBF Classic eligible regions, supporting shooting, editing and finalisation, plus festival visibility tied to IDFA. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 10 Feb 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🎮 Digital Lab Africa 9 (DLA9): Pan-African call supporting innovative digital creation projects in animation, gaming, XR, digital arts and music, offering mentorship, international exposure and industry connections. The application deadline has been extended to give more creatives time to submit bold, future-facing projects. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 13 Feb 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎥 Kalasha International Film & TV Festival (KE🇰🇪): Kenya’s national film and TV awards platform recognizing outstanding fiction, documentary, animation and television productions. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 13 February

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 📸 Open Call for Women Photographers 2026 (Africa) — Unpublished Africa invites African women photographers to submit compelling photo stories for exhibition in the 2025 Women’s Month programme. Work should explore themes like empowerment, cultural heritage, climate response and human stories. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 15 Feb 2026

Subscribe now

🌶️ 🎥 Accra Indie Filmfest (GH): international short-film festival celebrating indie cinema, with labs, masterclasses, and the “Filmmakers Connect” co-production forum. 👉 Submit here | Late deadline: 15 February 2025

🌶️ 🎭 UNESCO Funding Open Call 2026: UNESCO invites proposals to strengthen artists’ rights, freedom of expression & cultural diversity, offering technical support and grants (up to $50,000) for initiatives aligned with global artistic freedom goals. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 23 Feb 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🛠️ Cannes Makers 2026 (FR): a three-day immersive training and mentoring program taking place during the Marché du Film (12–20 May 2026) designed to shape the next generation of international sales, distribution and marketing professionals under 30 through practical training, networking and expert dialogues at one of the world’s leading film markets. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 26 February 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 MultiChoice Talent Factory 2026 (Africa) — Pan-African film & TV training initiative offering a fully funded academy programme for emerging African creatives in filmmaking, TV & media. Includes hands-on training, production experience & industry exposure across regional academies. 👉 Apply here | Applications close: 27 Feb 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 Durban International Film Festival (SA): Africa’s oldest and largest film festival, presenting 100+ screenings, industry workshops, and Oscar-qualifying competitions. Categories include Features, Documentaries, Shorts, and Student Films. 👉 Apply here | Regular deadline: 27 Feb 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎭 Pro Helvetia Residency (CH): 3-month research and creation residencies in Switzerland supporting international artists and cultural practitioners, including film and audiovisual, during early or exploratory project phases. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 March 2026

🌶️🌶️ 🎭 Séjour culture residency (FR): Short professional stay in France enabling foreign cultural professionals to advance a concrete project while developing partnerships with French institutions. 👉 Email Maurice at maurice.chapot@diplomatie.gouv.fr to receive additional details | Deadline: 15 March

Subscribe now

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

6 challenges facing East Africa’s creative industries (and my 5-point strategy to address them)

Maurice Chapot — Fri, 30 Jan 2026 06:48:59 GMT

Hi guys,

Welcome to the 12 new subscribers who joined the community this week, and a happy new year to all of you! You are now 434 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

This month makes exactly 17 months that I took up my position as a Film & Media attaché for East Africa at the Embassy of France in Nairobi.

For those of you who don’t have young children (and don’t calculate everything in months👧🏽), that’s a little less than a year and a half.

A lots of things have happened since the beginning of my mission, and I would like to use the opportunity of this new year newsletter to get back on some of the achievements, challenges, and failures that this journey has yielded so far.

Here is what this dispatch will be covering:

(1) The 6 challenges of the East African creative industries (from my little window)

(2) A strategy to address them all, in 5 point only

(3) Taking stocks: what has happened so far and what has not

(4) What I hope to achieve in 2026

Disclaimer: it’s a little longer than usual, because it made more sense to me to share it all in the same place.

Anyway, have a good read!

Yours,

Maurice

PS: to help us continue bringing free value to you, please support us by sharing this newsletter with a friend, or by subscribing through the button below!

🚨Our MumBie Movie Hangout is returning this February!🚨

Before we dive in, a little announcement as the third edition of our MumBie Movie Hangout is coming up on Friday, February 20th.

For this first edition of 2026, we’ll be presenting a special short film selection from across the continent, in collaboration with good friends from Nigeria🇳🇬 and beyond.

The evening begins with a sundowner from 6:00 to 7:30 pm, followed by the movie screening and open conversation.

As always, it’s free and open to all, so bring your friends, partners, a blanket for comfort, as well as your favourite drink or snack to share!🍷

To join us, kindly RSVP here to help us plan for the best!

Blankets & Wine 2025, Kenya’s premier international music festival.

(1) The 6 challenges of the East African creative industries

Four months into my newly found position, I conducted an initial diagnosis of the East African ICCs, with the little perspective I had gathered so far.

I identified 6 key obstacles to the development of the East African creative industries.

A year later, this initial analysis still largely stands.

1/ Infrastructure deficiencies

Infrastructure deficiencies remain a major constraint across East African creative industries, though they can manifest quite differently depending on sectors and countries.

On the production side, many creators lack access to essential equipment and tools, including cameras, sound gear, powerful computers and specialised software.

High costs, import taxes, limited local supply and weak maintenance ecosystems sometimes make professional equipment difficult to access, particularly outside major urban centres.

On the distribution side, bottlenecks are even more structural. In the audiovisual sector, access to cinema screens and broadcast slots remains extremely limited.

According to UNESCO, Africa counts roughly 1,700 cinema screens for a population of 1.3 billion people, compared to more than 6,000 screens in France for 65 million inhabitants.

This translates into one screen per 765,000 people in Africa, versus one per 11,000 in France, making theatrical distribution structurally inaccessible for most local productions.

Many old cinemas have disapeard, here the old Kenya Cinema Plaza in Nairobi

Digital distribution has not compensated for these gaps. High internet access costs continue to limit streaming and online circulation, while international platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime have significantly reduced, if not entirely withdrawn, their commissioning and investment in African original content.

In the audiovisual sector, Canal+ Group now stands as almost the sole structured operator still commissioning and distributing local projects at scale, further narrowing access to markets.

2/ Inadequate financing models and misaligned incentives

Financing models in East Africa remain largely ill-suited to the specific dynamics of creative and cultural industries.

Unlike the tech sector, CCIs typically follow linear and long-term growth trajectories, with slower returns and higher dependence on project cycles.

This doesn’t align with the expectations of most investors and funders, who would rather look at rapid scaling and exponential growth, creating a mismatch between capital structures and sector realities.

Beyond a few such exceptions, local private capital remains scarce: only a limited number of film funds actively invest in the region, forcing creative businesses to rely on donor programmes or occasional international co-productions, neither of which offer predictable or sustainable financing.

This situation is compounded by limited understanding, on both sides, of what makes a creative project bankable or investable.

In addition, many cooperation funding schemes are often misaligned with market realities, inadvertently reinforcing dependency rather than sustainability.

The absence of consistent public funding further deepens this structural gap.

Subscribe now

3/ Lack of coordination and synergies between sectors and stakeholders

Despite the growing number of initiatives supporting creative industries in East Africa, coordination remains weak.

Public institutions, international donors, private actors and support structures often operate in parallel rather than in alignment, resulting in fragmented efforts, duplication of activities and inefficient use of limited resources.

This lack of coordination is particularly damaging in a regional context.

Creative markets naturally transcend national borders, yet the absence of structured collaboration prevents the emergence of cross-border value chains, shared markets and regional economies of scale.

As a result, many initiatives remain localised and isolated, limiting their long-term impact.

Unlocking the full potential of creative industries therefore requires stronger coordination mechanisms and strategic partnerships that align objectives across sectors, institutions and countries.

4/ Training, skills and information gaps

Training and skills gaps remain a major barrier to the professionalisation of creative industries in East Africa.

Many creators and cultural entrepreneurs lack access to structured training that would allow them to acquire the technical, managerial and entrepreneurial skills needed to grow sustainable businesses.

This challenge is particularly acute in sectors such as animation, audiovisual production, and distribution, among others.

Local training capacity remains extremely limited. In animation, for example, most professionals are either self-taught or trained abroad in countries such as India, France or Malaysia, as formal training programmes are rare or non-existent in many countries.

This shifts the burden of training onto studios that are already under-resourced, while brain drain further weakens local talent pools as skilled professionals leave for better opportunities abroad.

These skills gaps are compounded by significant information asymmetries.

African creative professionals often lack access to information about funding opportunities, market expectations, international production standards and professional pathways.

Limited exposure to how global creative markets operate results in weak positioning, missed opportunities and difficulties engaging with investors, distributors and partners.

Together, these training and information gaps constrain both individual careers and the overall competitiveness of the ecosystem.

5/ Limited sustainability of support initiatives

The sustainability of support initiatives remains a structural weakness.

Many incubators, funds and creative hubs rely on short-term funding, often through grants or international programmes, with the expectation that supported projects or organisations will reach financial autonomy within two or three years.

In practice, given the linear nature of most creative business models and the difficulty of diversifying revenue streams, this timeline is rarely realistic.

Once initial funding cycles end, many support structures struggle to survive, weakening the ecosystems they were meant to strengthen.

Even successful initiatives, such as HEVA’s investments in Kenya, face limits in scale and reach due to the absence of long-term financial instruments and sustained strategic support.

Durable impact therefore requires economic models and financing mechanisms designed for continuity rather than short-term results.

6/ Weak legal frameworks and regulatory enforcement

Weak legal and regulatory frameworks continue to hinder the development of creative industries in East Africa.

Inadequate copyright protection exposes creative works to piracy, directly eroding revenues for artists and cultural enterprises and discouraging reinvestment.

More broadly, the absence of coherent public policies and adapted regulatory environments limits the sector’s ability to attract structured and sustainable financing.

Legal uncertainty increases perceived risk for investors and constrains the development of formal markets.

While some countries have begun to address these gaps (sometimes quite efficiently), regulatory reform remains uneven across the region.

(2) My strategy to address these bottlenecks (in 5 point only)

To address those challenges, I came up with strategy, spread over a 4 years time frame.

It can be resumed in 5 key concepts:

#Understand: conduct a precise diagnosis of the creative industries in East Africa to better guide our actions.
#Associate: create synergies and integrate CCIs into regional and global dynamics.
#Sustain: ensure the durability of actions undertaken and strengthen beneficiaries’ autonomy.
#Inform: act as a facilitator between policymakers, investors, and CCI professionals.
#Advocate: maximize the visibility of CCIs and promote our actions to partners and the public.

Based on this, I made a non exhaustive list of actions to be undertaken.

You’ll find it below👇

Subscribe now

(3) Taking stocks: what has happened and what has not

✅ Develop a regional mapping/database of key stakeholders (studios, festivals, creators, incubators), including their activities and needs.

✅ Identify the “gaps” (underrepresented sectors, overlooked geographic areas, missing skills).

❌ Commission country-specific studies on CCI value chains to refine our understanding of the sectors (animation, music, audiovisual).

❌ Benchmark similar initiatives by other diplomatic partners in the region (e.g., Goethe-Institut, British Council) to identify opportunities, overlaps, and synergies.

❌ Define clear monitoring indicators to assess the progress of our objectives.

❌ Share databases of experts, mentors, and service providers across our network.

✅ Organize regional thematic meetings (cinema, music, video games) to connect talents and stakeholders.

✅ Support collaborative projects (e.g., films co-produced by multiple countries, regional tours of performances).

🔜 Promote exchanges between hubs to strengthen ecosystems.

✅ Encourage the engagement of African experts and trainers to consolidate ecosystems and facilitate the circulation of expertise across the continent.

✅ Facilitate access to regional and international markets for East African filmmakers and producers.

The East African delegation at Annecy/MIFA, June 2025

✅ Beyond specific technical training, incorporate an entrepreneurial dimension into the support provided to beneficiaries.

✅ Assist project leaders in diversifying their funding sources.

🔜 Build relationships and partnerships with private investors to co-finance projects over the long term.

✅ Encourage supported incubators and hubs to develop autonomous economic models (paid memberships, corporate services) to move beyond a grant-based logic and create positive incentives for self-reliance.

Subscribe now

❌ Promote a regulatory framework inspired by the French model (copyright, cultural taxation) and collaborate with local governments to adopt public policies favoring CCIs, such as combating piracy and supporting emerging industries.

🔜 Participate in investment forums/events to advocate for the economic opportunities of CCIs and develop connections with entrepreneurial networks and private investors.

❌ Create a quarterly newsletter for the region’s diplomatic posts detailing successes, opportunities, and future projects.

❌ Organize periodic thematic meetings among teams to share challenges and best practices.

✅ Manage a monthly newsletter on CCI developments in the region.

🔜 Create a podcast to highlight entrepreneurship within CCIs and showcase specific projects supported by the posts.

✅ Publish weekly updates on LinkedIn to share opportunities (calls for projects, training) and build trust and proximity with members of the CCI ecosystem.

(4) What I hope to achieve in 2026

1/ More intentional projects

2026 will most likely come with less funding.

That is a reality we can either lament or choose to work with, but I tend to see it as an opportunity.

Funding support remains important to help structure ecosystems and de-risk experimentation.

But when creative projects start relying on public or donor funding as if it were a business model, something is fundamentally wrong.

Free money can be pervasive.

In some cases, it artificially keeps alive studios or structures that would not survive under real market conditions, without encouraging them to confront questions of revenue, audiences or sustainability.

The reality is that, unlike countries such as France where a strong cultural policy and public support system sustains creation, most African countries do not have comparable mechanisms in place.

Expecting funding alone to compensate for this gap is completely unrealistic.

Fewer resources therefore force more discipline and clearer intentions.

Moving forward, we’ll need to focus on fewer projects, but ones that are better articulated, more grounded economically, and more likely to generate lasting value for creators and ecosystems, and better align with market reality.

Subscribe now

2/ Support toward local distribution experiments

Distribution remains one of the most broken links in the creative value chain, but also one of the most promising.

Too often, the solution is expected to come from outside, through international platforms or foreign buyers.

Yet the potential for local and regional distribution models remains largely untapped.

In 2026 and beyond, I hope to place more emphasis on supporting local distribution experiments, whether through alternative cinema models, community-based screenings, regional touring, local broadcasters, or hybrid digital approaches.

3/ A sustained online presence, expanding across new formats

This means sustaining a regular presence on Linkedin, for one.

It also means continuing building newsletters on Substack.

It also means exploring video as a way to keep sharing insights.

4/ Continued support for international mobility

Finally, and as I was able to witness it myself, international mobility support remains a key lever, ensuring exposure to markets, festivals, labs and professional networks.

At a regional level.

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)

14 opportunities for African creatives to grab this January

Maurice Chapot — Fri, 23 Jan 2026 09:57:16 GMT

Hi guys,

We have been taking a break over the last couple of weeks, but are happy to let you know that we are BACK!

Welcome to the 5 new subscribers who joined the community this week, and a happy new year to all of you! You are now 422 to follow Savannah Creatives Digest on Substack. Thank you for your support.🙏🏾

Today’s dispatch is our monthly opportunity board, and as always we have some serious ones to share.

👉🏾 14 opportunities that you might want to seriously consider, targeting African filmmakers, distributors, animation studios, and creative professionals in general.

Here is our top #3:

🇫🇷Annecy International Animation Film Festival & Market: the #1 opportunity any African animation studio should keep in mind, every year, to either submit a film, or enter the MIFA pitching competition.
🇫🇷 Cannes Makers 2026, a three-day immersive training and mentoring program taking place during the Marché du Film (12–20 May 2026) designed to shape the next generation of international sales, distribution and marketing professionals under 30 (honestly, this is 🔥).
🇨🇭Pro Helvetia residency: a 3-month multidisciplinary research and creation residency targeting international artists and cultural practitioners during early or exploratory project phases.

We wish you all the very best with your applications🪄.

With love,

Love & Maurice

PPS: if you apply to of those opportunities and get selected, please let me know so we can celebrate the news with everyone here!🥹

Hot opportunities for African creatives - January 2026

(The more 🌶️ you see, the hotter the opportunity)

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 Encounters South African International Documentary Festival 2026 (SA): Africa’s premier documentary festival invites African and international feature & short docs, with awards, labs, talks and outreach across South Africa. 👉 Apply here | Regular deadline: 30 Jan 2026

🌶️ 🎥 International Alexandria Short Film Festival (EG): focused on short fiction, docs & animation; offers accommodation and transport to selected filmmakers. 👉 Submit here | Extended deadline: 31 Jan 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 Tribeca Festival 2026 (USA): major festival and market open for feature & short films, series, digital works, games, podcasts and works in progress, with multiple categories feeding into the Tribeca Creators Market. 👉 Apply here | Extended short film deadline: 4 February 2026

Subscribe now

🌶️🌶️🌶️📈 Cannes Makers 2026 (FR): a three-day immersive training and mentoring program taking place during the Marché du Film (12–20 May 2026) designed to shape the next generation of international sales, distribution and marketing professionals under 30 through practical training, networking and expert dialogues at one of the world’s leading film markets. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 26 February 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎭 Pro Helvetia Residency (CH): 3-month research and creation residencies in Switzerland supporting international artists and cultural practitioners, including film and audiovisual, during early or exploratory project phases. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 1 March 2026

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🇫🇷 Séjour culture residency (FR): Short professional stay in France enabling foreign cultural professionals to advance a concrete project while developing partnerships with French institutions. 👉 Email me at maurice.chapot@diplomatie.gouv.fr to receive additional details | Deadline: 15 March

🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🎥 Shanghai International Film Festival (CN): Major international festival and industry market offering competitive sections and global visibility for features, shorts and documentaries. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 31 March

🌶️🌶️ 🎬 Écrans Noirs (CM): Flagship Central African film festival showcasing African and diaspora cinema and connecting filmmakers with regional and international professionals. 👉 Apply here | Deadline: 5 April

Did you like this edition?

Please share with a friend if you found this useful!

Remember we don’t build an ecosystem by withholding information and opportunities from one another: that’s a loser move.

If you wanna grow, it has to be with the wider community.

It’s a collective game.

So help us share the word! ;)