AFRIFF, French Embassy partner to boost Nigeria’s creative industry

As part of efforts to put the Nigerian movie and creative industry on the world stage, the French Embassy in Nigeria recently held business-to-business meetings between French and Nigerian film key stakeholders.

The meeting which held in Lagos, between November 4 and 6, took place within the framework of the ongoing Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) with which the French Embassy is collaborating to carry out a qualitative event allowing French and Nigerian expertise and excellence in the audiovisual sector to be endorsed within the most prominent Nollywood platform.

Over 10 French companies participated in the three day meetings, which the French Embassy said the objective was to present and facilitate development and partnership possibilities in Nigeria and to promote quality French content to Nigerian producers and distributors and the various tools made available to them to co-produce with France.

The companies engaged in up to six conferences, workshops and masterclasses. Their knowledge was also shared during the meetings to help identify and offer opportunities to the Nigerian talents of tomorrow.

“Indeed, the new generation of Nollywood is sensitive to the possibilities of international co-productions, the search for new audiences and the opportunity to one day be present in the selection of major international festivals, like Cannes, the embassy said.

As an international film showcase that presents an immersion into the world of filmmaking, with participation from all over Africa and the diaspora, AFRIFF, which celebrated its 13th edition this year, has become the unmissable cinema event on the continent, with more than 70,000 visitors.

The presence of this French delegation at AFRIFF was part of an overall action plan of the French Embassy in Nigeria with the general objective of strengthening the Nigerian and French collaboration in the audio-visual sector and developing co-productions. Scattered throughout the year, the Embassy’s actions encompass workshops, networking moments, delegations visits to France.

or welcoming French representatives to Nigeria. Their latest accomplishment was the attendance of 20 official Nigerian studio representatives to the TV content market MIPCOM in Cannes last October.