The Mobile Film Festival has announced the launch of the 2nd edition of the Mobile Film Festival Africa, after the success of its 1st pan-African edition in 2021. Comedian Gad Elmaleh will be the president of the jury for this edition.
The values defended by the festival are to reveal, support and accompany the talents of tomorrow in cinema, by offering grants and support allowing the winners to shoot a professional short film, indicate its initiators.
As festival founder Bruno Smadja puts it, “because African stories need to be told by Africans for an African audience. Let’s support young cinematographic creation everywhere in Africa”.
The Mobile Film Festival Africa is very honored to have been chosen this year as one of the official events of the “Rabat, African Capital of Culture” program.
Since 2005, the Mobile Film Festival has defended the values of accessibility and equality by eliminating economic constraints, thanks to the use of mobiles as well as free registration for the festival, while promoting the creativity of directors who must tell a story in a minute.
This 2nd 100% African edition is therefore obvious for the Mobile Film Festival. The youngest continent in the world and which has operated its digital revolution around the mobile, Africa is setting out to conquer the world thanks to its creativity and its youth. The Mobile Film Festival wishes to support the emergence of this talented youth.
The Mobile Film Festival Africa returns with the rules that made it so successful: 1 Mobile, 1 Minute, 1 Film. The only condition, you have to live on the African continent to participate. The theme is free in order to highlight all the creativity and commitment of African talents.
In addition, to make our festival even more accessible and to show the richness of the different African cultures, the directors will be able to submit their film in the languages and dialects of their choice. In collaboration with our partner DotSub, the films will then be subtitled in French, English, Arabic and Portuguese to reach the widest audience.
The 1st edition, relayed by more than 600 institutions in 45 countries, received 500 films from 38 African countries. The official selection, made up of around fifty films, still visible online on the festival’s social networks and on YouTube, has garnered 14 million views.
The Grand Prix Africa was awarded to the Senegalese film “Je suis Liberté”, directed by Marcel Moussa Diouf, with a production grant of €10,000. Marcel Moussa Diouf wrote a very beautiful short film on talibé children in Dakar, “Kolia”, which is currently being developed as part of a co-production Burkina (Jiguiya Films) – Senegal (Sangomart Original and Salndu Prodiffusion) – France (Good Rush/Mobile Film Festival). The Kolia screenplay is supported by the Fonds de la Jeune Création Francophone (JCF) with a grant of €30,000. The film will be shot in 2023.
The winners will be chosen by an eminent jury representing the diversity of African cinemas. By partnering with us, it allows us to reach out to the next generation:
– Gad Elmaleh, comedian, actor and Moroccan director, will be the president of the jury
– Samia Akariou, Moroccan actress, screenwriter and director
– Sofia Alaoui, Moroccan director and screenwriter
– Françoise Ellong-Gomez, Beninese-Cameroonian screenwriter and director
– Rafiki Fariala, Congolese slammer director and singer
– Fibby Kioria, Kenyan producer
On the occasion of this 2nd edition, $46,000 in scholarships will be awarded to the winners. Nine prizes will be awarded, associated with grants that allow the winners to make a film with professional means and the help of an African producer.
This year, in honor of Rabat, African Capital of Culture, a Morocco Grand Prix will be devoted to Moroccan talents, to embody all the richness of Moroccan cinematographic creation.
– Africa Grand Prize: $10,000
– Morocco Grand Prize: $10,000
– Francophone Film Prize: $5,000 in partnership with TV5 Monde
– ACP-EU Culture Prize: $5,000 supported by the ACP-EU Culture program
– Screenplay Prize: $5,000 supported by Canal +
– Director Award: $5,000
– Documentary Film Award: $5,000, as well as $500 for the Best Actress and Best Actor awards