Global and regional distributors will be joining Africa’s most buzzed-about creators for the much-anticipated 26th edition of DISCOP Kigali slated for November 29, to December 1, in Kigali. Co-organised by Rwanda Film Office, organisers of Mashariki Africa Film Festival and DISCOP Kigali, the three-day immersion program will bring together over 500 young creators varying from broadcasters, pay-tv services, mobile and streaming platforms to web TVs, content aggregators, major production houses, and advertising agencies servicing Sub-Saharan Africa. Offered in both English and French, the program will combine round-table discussions, showcases of projects and upcoming film and television content, special screenings, as well as access to industry leaders in search of new ideas and fresh talent. Complementing the market, a line-up of live sessions will spotlight Rwanda’s plans to become a strategic destination for the industry; co-production opportunities between Anglophone and Francophone Africa; televised sports entertainment; and the relation between e-commerce and broadcasters. The program will also include a series of highly focused workshops addressing challenging aspects of the creative, production and distribution processes as well as the future of the creative economy in Rwanda and the rest of the continent. “Our mandate as DISCOP is to help prepare new talent for a future in television and provide them with hands-on training opportunities” said Patrick Zuchowicki Jucaud, founder of DISCOP. “We also want young creators to understand the reality of our industry through the voices of renown industry leaders,” he added. DISCOP markets are hosted twice a year. Focused on Africa and the Middle East, they bridge the world’s two fastest-growing entertainment and sports marketplaces. “Big cracks forming in the global distribution and production industries impact countless aspects of markets such as DISCOP. Identifying leads and planning relevant and more focused meetings is key to our survival,” said Patrick Zuchowicki, president and founder of DISCOP. Under-scoring Rwanda’s plans, the Rwanda Film Office will host two presentations that will give delegates a chance to learn more about the talent, expertise, sceneries, and financial assistance they can expect locally. A new educational and networking program dubbed DiscoSport will also premiere in Kigali. Its first focus will be electronic sports and ways to engage video gamers and e-sports fans through compelling live and on-screen experiences. Mashariki Africa Film Festival returns In line with the event, the Mashariki African Film Festival (MAFF) 2022 will run from November 26, to December 2. Like the past editions, the annual festival will promote genre cinema and independent African Cinema. “In its 8th edition, MAFF has selected a great percentage of East African cinema in order to underline the growing capacity and creativity in storytelling of this part of Africa,” said festival artistic director Fabrizio Colombo. Colombo explained that they found it is of good importance having the festival alongside DISCOP Kigali because the genre cinema--such as thriller, Science fiction, horror, action, comedy--are appealing to the audience and have the potential for commercial development for producers and creators.
