The recently-concluded Film Industry Stakeholders Summit ignited debate on areas of regulation, legal framework and finance
Perhaps not many beyond the industry quite appreciate the breadth of investment that goes into filmmaking; beyond the scriptwriters, camera people, actors, directors and other crew, you also have catering staff, transport and logistics, make-up artistes, security, set designers, costume designers, production managers, sound engineers and editors, to name just but a few. One successful production is often easily the regular take-home for many livelihoods.
According to the Kenya Film Commission (KFC) C.E.O, Timothy Owase, the global film industry grossed over 177 billion US Dollars and employed over 14 million people between 2017 and 2020. On top of this is the immeasurable value that film holds as a driver of tourism and cultural diplomacy within any economy. 
Mr Owase made these remarks at the recently-concluded first Film Industry Stakeholders Summit, which brought together several key players involved in film production. Themed, ‘Interconnection Between Audio-visual Industry and Financial Institutions for The Growth and Development of The Kenya Film Sector’, the Summit had panel discussions looking at the film production terrain in an industry that according to the KFC CEO, ploughed over 38 billion into the economy in 2022.
There were various exchanges on issues such as financing, the regulatory and legal framework, risk management and the impact of emerging technologies and trends. The panel discussions involved conversations and Q&A sessions with professionals from Kenya Film Classification Board, Kenya Copyright Board (Kecobo), Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Insurance Regulatory Authority as well as representatives from commercial banks and other partners who fund film projects such as GIZ Kenya and NISK Capital. The film industry was represented by, among others, the Producers Guild, Distributors Guild, Association of Animation Artistes and owners of several online film platforms.
In an industry fraught with risk and more than the occasional heartbreak, there paradoxically lies opportunities and information that often goes untapped. KRA’s Brian Maingi expounded how the tax regime around film can offer tax breaks, credits and other incentives for those registered with KFC. Sharon Chahale, for Kecobo, explained the importance for artistes to be on the lookout for their Intellectual Property rights and always seek legal advice, which they offer for free, for copyright protection.
Filmmakers shared their hands-on experiences with regulatory challenges such as getting licences for content and permits, which tend to starkly differ from one county to another. With advances in technology, old problems such as piracy of content have now acquired new faces.
It was observed that there is need for accreditation, industry standards and a cross-cutting Code of Ethics that covers industry players. While various statutes govern this area and others, such as the Film Policy and Film Bill, are still works in progress, there is dire need for industry-driven initiatives to cover some more ground in areas such are contract negotiations. The buzzword of the day across the three panels, one that kept popping up was ‘Collaboration’.
Using benchmarks in Nigeria and South Africa, the discussants observed how industry-driven teamwork can bear fruit in approaching, especially financial institutions, who only understand the language of numbers and the bottom line. Has the Kenyan industry done enough to convince benefactors such as the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), which recently announced the establishment of a 1 billion US Dollar African Film Fund, that they ought to be given a slice? 
Well, so far, there is still some ground to cover…The industry still needs to put in more effort towards providing bankable data, research, information packaging as well as understanding the markets ecosystem. It is at the end of this curve that both traditional and new-age funders, including World Cinema Fund, KFC, the governments’ Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund, Youth Enterprise Development Fund as well as private funds such as GIZ Kenya, will be willing to listen.
Being a business, there is the need for compliance and regular conversations with other industries. For example, insurance in film is an area of compliance and while there is risk involved in lives, health, equipment and even location, it emerged that a deeper conversation needs to be had with the insurance industry to provide user-friendly policies.
A day of healthy debate and exchanges culminated in the passing of three notable resolutions. First, this being an inaugural event, KFC will facilitate quarterly forums with financial institutions to unlock opportunities in the creative sector. Towards this end, a five-member team was formed.
It was also resolved that there needs to be a common platform for Kenyan content, one that includes the subject of finance, to handle the aspect of capital for filmmaking. A four-member taskforce was formed to create this. It was also agreed that there will be another such Summit to take stock and look at the July-September 2024 period.
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