Imara Stars @ CINEMA DAMARE AFRICA 2019
By Mtaani Konnect Youth Group from Nakuru
I, Simon Wakaba, as a youth and Imara star ambassador, would like to express my sincere gratitude to Imara TV for genuinely supporting, seeing the potential, and deciding to mentor and mould me into the person the current society needs. The entire event served to open my mind so that I can think in all dimensions and help accomplish the set mission for the organization.
Cinemadamare Africa chapter 2019, being the biggest gathering of young filmmakers in the world and for the first time coming to Africa, Kenya, was a million-dollar opportunity for all filmmakers coming together, sharing ideas and experiences as well as travelling for 5 weeks to 5 renowned counties to produce and screen the films to the community. The main objectives of moving from these counties, namely NAIROBI, KISUMU, NYANDARUA, MAKUENI & MOMBASA, were to give a platform to all young filmmakers from across the world to network, learn from each other, and tell their own stories and how the devolution government has improved the filmmaking industry in those different counties.
We had an opportunity to learn from renowned film veterans coming from across Africa and the world.
• Mathew Temple – Hollywood producer/Director (USA CALIFORNIA)
• Oliver Litondo – President Lakewood Films/Hollywood actor (KENYA)
• Prof. Edwin Nyutho – Cinematographer & Film Lecturer UoN (KENYA)
• Steve Agutu – Animator (KENYA)
• David Mulwa – Lecturer/Actor UoN (KENYA)
The trainers played a bigger role in ensuring to sharpen our skills and emphasizing that us young people should be keen and take opportunities and participate in decisions and policy making so that we can always be in the frontline all the time. They also reminded us that we are the main creative and productive forces of whose ideals and inspirations underpin the social-economic development of the film industry.
In conculsion, I will use everythin I have learnt to make better films on the Imara.Tv platform. On behalf of the Mtaani Konnect Youth Group, we are grateful to Imara Digital Media Foundation for sponsoring our participation.