The MultiChoice Talent Factory (MTF) has joined forces with SAE Institute, a global leader in creative media education, to provide 300 professional filmmakers from eight African countries with fully-funded online short courses.
The filmmakers, who come from Malawi, Zambia, Angola, Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, and Nigeria, and work at various production houses and free-to-air channels, including public state-owned broadcasters, will be given access to five courses custom-designed by MTF and SAE to address skills shortages in the industry.
The courses, which include Script Writing, Production Management, Cinematography, Audio Post-Production, and 3D Animation, will each run for five weeks.
The MTF and SAE partnership aims to address key areas of development that have been identified by content buyers and subject-matter experts in the industry.
SAE Institute, which operates 47 campuses in 23 countries, has been setting the global benchmark for creative media education since 1976.
In South Africa, it offers nationally-accredited Bachelor’s Degrees and Higher Certificates across four disciplines: Animation, Audio, Games, and Film.
MTF Director for Africa, Nwabisa Matyumza, said, “Following the success and immense impact of the MTF Academy, we’ve received numerous requests from established filmmakers, who are unable to apply for the Academy Graduate Programmes as they only cater for young filmmakers.
To ensure we cater to those filmmakers, we wanted to create short courses to further enhance their skill sets and this is our response to those requests. The TV & film industry is constantly evolving and as such we as professionals must continue to diversify and develop our skills.”
The online orientation program, hosted by South African comedian Mpho Popps, was attended by the various filmmakers embarking on this exciting learning journey.
During the orientation session, the filmmakers were taken through the online learning platform and had the opportunity to meet their course facilitators and fellow filmmakers from across the continent.
Scott Rogers, Managing Director of InvictusOnline at the SAE Institute, said, “We’re excited to walk this journey with the MultiChoice Talent Factory.
Our purpose is to educate, empower, and employ, and this partnership allows us to expand this purpose into other African countries.
These short courses provide much-needed upskilling for many self-taught individuals who have never had the opportunity to study at a university. It goes a long way in bolstering the existing skill and talent on the continent.”
