Twenty youths from Chimwemwe in Kitwe selected to participate in Business Mobile Filmmaking Training Programme

Sotambe mobilizes Copperbelt filmmakers to facilitate chimwemwe project

Twenty youths from Chimwemwe area in Kitwe have been selected to participate in the Business Mobile Filmmaking Training Programme that has been designed and implemented by the SOTAMBE Film Institute and fully funded by the US Embassy in Zambia.

“The main goal of this project is to empower youths on the Copperbelt with filmmaking skills using the most affordable and accessible equipment – mobile phones. This will help them to create content and adverts for companies and various established businesses who are in need of online advertising and marketing for their social media sites,” said Martina Mwanza, Co-Founder and Managing Director of the SOTAMBE Film Institute (SFI).  “For this to happen, there is a need not only for skills in filmmaking but also having strong entrepreneurial skills to successfully monetize ones’ talent. The Business Mobile Filmmaking Training Programme is a powerful combination of filmmaking and entrepreneurship skills transfer, that will help youths to become financially stable.”

Interviews took place in the period 8 – 9 January 2021 at the ImaShoots Studio in Chimwemwe headed by the director and actor Douglas Mumbi. “The interviews went on so well, all the interviewees were so excited to be accorded this rare opportunity of being trained in the field where they have passion,” said Mumbi. “The community of Chimwemwe will benefit a lot as Chimwemwe has been a pioneer township  in filmmaking.”

Chimwemwe is a center of many talents and artistic ventures that quickly overtake the country such as famous Chimwemwe dance and it also happens to be the home of the popular Sansamukeni Comedy which took the country by storm from 2006 – 2016 produced by DougArts and Things Productions.

The project begins with the opening of schools with strict COVID-19 measures in place and will last 11 weeks during which students will explore rules of scriptwriting with Barnabas Kanjela, mobile phone techniques with Emmanuel Mwape, role of the producer with Bridget Kashiba, directing skills with Changa Kalumba, acting skills with Douglas Mumbi, camera, lights and sounds with Morgan Mbulo, editing with Bennie Chibwe and entrepreneurship skills with Chembo Litana.

The whole programme has a practical orientation and students will be given plenty of time to work on their individual and group projects. To finish the training each of them would have to complete one social media advert using his/her mobile phone and one short film as a group. The adverts and short films will be screened for the community at the end of the project as part of their graduation ceremony.

In addition, students will be sent for two weeks attachments to available production and media houses to gain the day-to-day experience of a filmmaker. “We are excited because we believe that the project  will help with the creation of sustainable business modeling in the film making industry and contributes to the youth financial ability and self-employment,” said Martina Mwanza.