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| L – R; Actor, Ijeoma Aniebo; Filmmaker and pioneer Academy Director of the MultiChoice Talent Factory (MTF), Femi Odugbemi; Film Director, James Omokwe; Executive Head of Content and West Africa Channels, MultiChoice, Busola Tejumola and MTF Alumnus, Moses Akerele at the MultiChoice Showcase with African Filmmakers at the Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) held on Wednesday, November 10, 2021, at Landmark Retail Boulevard, Victoria Island, Lagos. |
Tejumola stated that for eighteen years, MultiChoice through
the seven Africa Magic channels has given African storytellers the platform to
thrive and shape the African narrative by telling stories of the past, present
and future. She also added that MultiChoice has invested over $428 million
developing local creative talent and is always open to new ideas and projects,
while encouraging creatives to send in their works to the MultiChoice
submission portal.
“Local content is at the heart of our production at
MultiChoice. We create content that tell stories that are timely and fit into
the current realities of the society.
We create our own original content with our locally sourced
production crew and infrastructure, investing heavily in the future of Nigeria
and Nigerians. We are also always open to strategic collaborations hence why we
encourage creatives to pitch their content,” said Tejumola.
Her presentation was followed by a panel session where she
was joined by Film Director, James Omokwe; respected Filmmaker and the pioneer
Academy Director of the MultiChoice Talent Factory (MTF), Femi Odugbemi; MTF
Alumnus, Moses Akerele and Actor, Ijeoma Aniebo who served as the moderator.
The panelists shared how MultiChoice has been instrumental
to their growth trajectory from giving them training opportunities both within
and outside Nigeria to commissioning stories like Battleground, Riona, Ajoche
among many others.
While speaking at the panel session, Tejumola reiterated
“MultiChoice is always looking to discover, support and reward talent doing
amazing work as evident in the establishment of the MultiChoice Talent Factory
(MTF) and the Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards (AMVCAs)”.
While the MTF trains young and aspiring filmmakers in the
art and business of filmmaking, the AMVCA’s recognizes and rewards outstanding
achievements in television and film annually.
“Content creators can rest assured of our continuous support
and reward for their craft. We are thankful to the organizers of AFRIFF for
celebrating content creators for the past 10 years.” Busola concluded