By Japheth Ogila
Published May 24, 2014
A two-day annual event that brings together digital media and creative arts professionals to network, learn and do business returns to Nairobi for the seventh time on May 26, 2014.
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An estimated 2000 people are expected to gather at Kenyatta International Convention Centre in Nairobi for the event known as Broadcast, Film and Music AFRICA (BFMA).
Aitec Africa, the organisers of BFMA, say the event that shall run on May 26 and 27 in Nairobi CBD shall feature more than 90 industry gurus sharing their knowledge, 15 specialised conference sessions, 10 expert workshops and master classes, and eight new music acts performing in lunch time and evening concerts.
With creative content and digital media as the focal point, BFMA 2014 shall bring participants from media, film, music and technology sectors across the mother continent to showcase their works and network in Nairobi.
The theme of the 7th BFMA—Afriwood Rising—is aimed at provoking and encouraging Africa’s creative, media and technology industries into thinking and acting regionally.
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Among those expected to gather in the Kenyan capital are broadcasters, filmmakers, animators, musicians, computer game developers, policy-makers, journalists, researchers, lawyers, entrepreneurs, and investors in the creative sector.
With special focus being paid to animation, gaming and digital applications (app) development sectors, Sean Moroney, Chairman of Aitec Africa and Director of BFMA says, ” We expect gamers to bring quality content this year and look forward to seeing how their enlivening discussions will inform and invigorate our next generation of great game and app developers and encourage synergies with the region’s animators and filmmakers.”
The move, Moroney says, is a springboard towards identifying and harnessing new and young talents in the circles of animation and technology.
What is billed as Africa’s first regional animation competition overseen by the Association of Animators Artists Kenya shall be held with the aim of engaging the animators who will be judged and awarded on the quality of their 30-second films.
Also being allocated demo spaces as marketing and networking base throughout the event shall be video game developers. African Game Developers Hub, the pavilion from which they shall operate, will be to provide Africa’s rising game developers and start-ups a ground to showcase their products to attract investors in Africa.
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African Media Business Exchange programme, Aitec Africa say, will be reinforced by a workshop touching on New Trends in Internet Protocol (IP) Broadcasting, which shall target journalists attending the event.
The Filmmakers Pavilion comes with a package of workshops on film production and studio installation, lighting equipment and technology.
The two-day BFMA programmes will also include the music industry master class that is expected to analyse the current status of African music industry, examine globalisation is affecting it and explore the challenges of cultural colonisation.
Going by the introduction of new categories such as the animation competition, the BFMA conference is being diversified to accommodate various actors in the Information, Communication, and Technology sector making creation of new jobs feasible.