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Today AEFF signed an agreement with Kenyan television channel, K24, to broadcast our films in both English and Swahili. K24 is a 24-hour news and features channel. The channel falls under the parent company Regional Reach, also founders of the first independent radio station in Kenya, Kameme FM, whose aim is to “educate, inform and entertain while pursuing a spirit of creativity and the highest level of professionalism” - the same goal as espoused by K24. Although the agreement with this television company is a new step forward for us, our relationship with K24’s parent company goes back several years. Regional Reach used to show AEFF’s films on public screens strategically placed in meeting places in market towns around the country. However, as more and more of the urban population came to own their own televisions (including wind-up TV sets), Regional Reach made the executive decision to close down their market towns initiative and launch a terrestrial TV channel. While K24, whose buy-line is “All Kenyan All of the Time”, is a relatively new channel, its proprietors are old hands in the media business, and already K24 is making waves across the country. For us, to be working alongside such a proactive company, is very exciting in terms of what it means for our audience numbers and the impact our films can have across a broader spectrum of people. The agreement with K24 in no way prevents us from distributing our films through our other outlets, and we are working hard to expand our distribution network on many different levels, and in many different countries.
4 Comments posted on "Broadcast Agreement with Kenyan TV Channel K24"
Theresa Siskind St Petersburg FL on March 25th, 2008 at 4:26 am
Tanya, I finally made it to this latest post (I think I will be late to my own wake, which is ok with me!).Congrats on this deal with K29, sounds very promising. I look forward to hearing more about your different film projects, their themes, etc. Thanks for your comments on your previous posts, and I enjoyed Dipesh’s comment’s as well. I truly believe that through the medium of film, many people can be reached and connect with nature. Do you think that PBS or Nat Geo might be interested in your film projects? I would love to see a conservation film, told from the perspective of the local people.
filmingwild on March 25th, 2008 at 11:42 am
Thank you Theresa. Yes, this broadcasting agreement with K24 is an important new development for us. Through our many distribution partners, we aim to reach all the different sectors of society, from rural communities (via mobile cinemas and wildlife clubs, for example), through to urban audiences who will be the main viewers of a TV channel like K24. In response to your question about PBS or Nat Geo: we are still a relatively small organization, and therefore we have to target our reseources and time on our core mission, until we are able to grow to a point where we have enough personnel to pursue a wider scope of work. Our main focus at present is disseminating environmental and conservation education in Africa. However, we are in the process of formulating an ambitious expansion plan for the Film Foundation, and one area we will be addressing is wider exposure to our films in the Western World. Via our website, we receive many requests from American schools and universities wanting to use our films as teaching tools to supplement their own standard curriculum, and we also receive many requests from individuals. In response to this demand, we will shortly be making our films available for sale via our website. Each time someone buys a DVD, it will allow us to make more copies to distribute in Africa, where the films will remain free of charge, in line with our Foundation principles.
Kigondu Maina on April 15th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Great news about this distribution deal with K24. Is anything forthcoming on partnering with K24 or anyone in the African countries on skill transfer so local producers can make these high quality films from a local perspective?
filmingwild on April 15th, 2008 at 4:27 pm
Hello Maina. I was very interested to read your comment, because we are in the process of formulating an ambitious expansion plan for the Film Foundation - a main component of this plan will be to initiate a Trainee Program, to train young people to become wildlife / environmental film makers. Passing on knowledge and expertise from one generation to the next is so important, and we hope to achieve this through our trainee program. We are currently initiating a fundraising drive to raise the finance for our expansion plans, and will definitely keep you informed of our progress. Thank you again, and please keep in touch. Post a comment
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