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Speakers

 2026 Speakers 

Actors  

  1. Jimmy Jean-Louis, Actor, Author, Haiti

  2. Tella Kpomahou, Filmmaker, Actress, Director, Guinea Conakry

  3. Welket Bungué, Actor, Director, Guinea-Bissau + Portugal + Germany

  4. Maria Gal, Actress, Producer, TV Host, Brazil 

  5. Tarina Patel, Producer, Actor, South Africa 

  6. Fatlume Bunjaku, Actress, Talent of 2026, Kosovo+Albania

  7. Rayan Hamda, Actor, France + Algeria

  8. Vanessa Montserrat Wittenbeck, Actress, Germany 

  9. Juliet Ibrahim, Actress, Producer, Ghana

  10. Dexter McKinney, Actor, Producer, USA 

  11. Rayan Hamda Barhoumi, Actor, Producer, France + Morocco

Directors 

  1. Yoshimi Joya, Film Director, Japan 

  2. Shun Seki, Film Director, Japan 

  3. Soji Arai, Film Producer, Japan 

  4. Sachiko Miyase, Film Director, Japan   

  5. Anouar Moatassim, Filmmaker, Director, Founder, Cabablanca Pictures, Morocco

  6. Mandlakiyase Dube, Award Winning Director, Producer, Screenwriter, South Africa 

  7. Jane Spencer, Director, Playwright, Producer, USA 

  8. Sara Suliman, Filmmaker, Scholar, Producer, Director, UK + Sudan 

  9. Ibrahim “Snoppy” Ahmad, Director, Producer, Founder, Deep Visions, Sudan + Kenya

  10. Ogo Okpué, Director, Writer, Graphic Designer, UK + Nigeria

  11. Jean-Marie Teno, Filmmaker, Director, Cameroon

  12. Bea Wangondu, Director & Producer, The Bea Company, Kenya 

  13. Yohane Dean Lengol, Director, Producer, DR Congo

Agents

  1. Fola Amuludun, Sales Agent, WME, UK + Nigeria 

  2. Vuyelwa Mpakanyiswa, Managing Director, Lemuel Management, South Africa

Government & NGO

  1. Kangwa Chileshe, Permanent Secretary – Youth & Sport, Ministry of Youth, Sport & Arts, Zambia

  2. Enrico Chiasi, Head of the Cinema Department, OIF (La Francophonie), France

  3. Kagisho Bapela, Head of Strategic Business Unit, IDC (Industrial Development Corporation), South Africa

  4. Donnie Beamer, Senior Tech Advisor, City of Atlanta Mayor's Office of Technology & Innovation, City of Atlanta, Georgia, USA

  5. Maanka Chipindi, Director, National Arts Council, Zambia 

  6.  Tivo Shikapwasha, Vice-President, National Arts Council, Zambia

Distribution

  1. Moses Babatope, Group CEO, The Nile Media Entertainment Group, Nigeria | TBC

Technologists 

  1. Justin Dawkins, Interim COO & Product Steward, Fanbase, USA

  2. Noah Washington, Partnerships Lead, Fanbase, USA

Journalists 

  1. Jerry Chiemeke, Film Critic, Storyteller, UK + Nigeria

  2. Barbara Sam, Journalist, USA + Sierra Leone + Liberia

Writers

  1. Kalungi Ssebandeke, Writer, Actor, Rapper, UK + Uganda 

  2. Captain Beth Powell, Pilot, American Airlines, Producer, Screenwriter, USA + Jamaica

  3. Chiderah Uzowulu, Writer, Producer & Actor, Sabi Productions, Nigeria

Financing

  1. Nathan Abadadzie, Investment Director, Media Finance Capital, Ghana + UK  

  2. Erik Gordon, VP Corporate Partners, FilmHedge, USA 

  3. Fela Oke, CEO, Hyphen8, UK + Nigeria 

  4. Mimo Kabbara, Founder, Major Events Media, Proplamar, France + Canada + Lebanon

  5. Karl Hillbrick, Film Marketing Specialist, Financier, Founder, InFilmPact, Germany + EU​

  6. Taylor Willams, Venture Capitalist, Cleveland Avenue, USA

  7. Sydney Masina, Partner, Head of Business Affairs, PambiliMedia, South Africa

Festival Programmers

  1. Heidi Zwicker, Programmer, Sundance Film Festival, USA

  2. Azize Tan, Film Festival Director & Programmer, Istanbul Foundation for Culture & Arts, Istanbul Film Festival, Turkiye 

  3. Salym Fayad, Director, MUICA African Film Festival, Colombia  

  4. Faridah Gbadamosi, Senior Film Programmer & Curator, Tribeca Film Festival, USA  

  5. Mimi Plauché, Director, Chicago International Film Festival, USA 

  6. Robyn Citizen, Director of Programming, Festival & Cinematheque, TIFF(Toronto 
    International Film Festival), Canada

  7. Arshad Khan, Director, Mosaic International Film Festival of New South and West Asian Cinema MISAFF, Producer, Director, Canada + Pakistan

Marketing & Branding

  1. Octavia Warren, Founder & CEO, Chroma Creators, USA

  2. Alechia Reese, Vice-President, Chroma Creators, USA

  3. Darwin Garcia, Founder, Winners Circle Group, USA + Honduras

Training & Education

  1. Ene Katrine Rasmussen,  Head of Industry & Continuing Education, National Film School of Denmark; Project Manager, MAIEFP,  Former Head, Creative Europe MEDIA Desk Denmark, EAVE Graduate, Denmark

Producers

  1. Darryll C. Scott, Film & TV  Producer, Founder, Evergreen Valley Productions, a subsidiary of Cedar Park Entertainment, USA ​

  2. Pape Boye, CEO, Black MicMac, France + Senegal 

  3. Mark Engels, Producer, Director, Founder, IMPI Films, South Africa 

  4. Albert Mensah, Founder, Fortune Favours Productions, UK + Ghana

  5. Simone Pennant (MBE), Founder, Director, The TV Collective, UK + Jamaica 

  6. Toby Kyeremantang, Award Winning Producer, UK + Ghana    

  7. Christopher Simon, Actor, Producer, Australia 

  8. Daniela Scalia, CEO, Blullow, Journalist, Producer, Italy

  9. Ty Walker, Executive Producer, Braveheart Entertainment, USA

  10. Sabrina Fidalgo, Producer, Writer, Director, Fidalgo Produções, Brazil 

Visual Artists 

  1. Natasha Ayoo, Visual Director, Kenya

  2. Violeta Sofia, Award Winning Photographer, Visual Artist, UK + Cameroon + Equatorial Guinea

Casting Directors 

  1. Cassandra Han, Casting Director, Founder, Cassandra Han Casting, President, Casting Society, USA + China + Germany 

  2. Luci Lenox, Academy Member, Casting Director, Co-Founder, The Actors’ Home, Ireland + Spain

  3. Rhavynn Drummer, Casting Director, Owner of RAD Media Studios, USA

  4. Nancy Bishop, Casting Director, USA + UK + Czech Republic

Music 

  1. Juan Atkins, Renown Record Producer & DJ, Originator of Techno Music Genre, USA

  2. Clémentine Koumenda, Music Supervisor, France

  3. Nainita Desai, Emmy, Ivor Novello, BIFA Nominated Film Music Composer, UK

Industry Guilds  

  1. Oma Areh, Founder, Digital Creator Africa, Vice-President, WIFT Africa, Nigeria

  2. Cecilia W’Emedi, Senior Project Manager, International Programs, WIF (Women in Film, LA), USA + Kenya

  3. Marjorie Galas, Senior Director, Members & Education, AFCI (Association of Film Commissioners), USA

  4. Becky Ngoma, President, WIFT Zambia

Producers 

  1. Tomomi Furuyama, Producer, Japan 

  2. Petri Kemppinen, Executive producer and Audiovisual Strategist, CEO, Good Hand Production, former CEO of Nordisk Film & TV Fund,  and of Aurora Studios, Finland

  3. Sten-Kristian Saluveer, Academy Award Nominated Producer & Strategist at the Intersection of Storytelling, Technology, and Innovation Ecosystems; Strategic Advisor, Cannes Next, Director, MAIEFP, Estonia 

  4. Paul Russell, Producer, Director, Founder, Millstreams Films & Media, UK + Italy  

  5. Andrea Vogt, Journalist, Co-Founder, Head of Productions, Millstream Films & Media, UK +  Italy 

  6. Arthur Cohen, Documentary Film Producer, USA 

  7. Luke Wilms, Award-Winning Writer, Director and Producer, Founder, Mbuntu Media, Canada 

  8. Jo Southwell, TV & Film Director, UK 

  9. Francis Nébot, Producer, Founder, iFind Pictures, France 

  10. Leslie-Anne McFarlane, Producer, Founder, Farlane Media, UK

  11. Deepti Chawla, Producer, Director and Screenwriter, India

  12. McListowel Koranteng, Media Consultant, Sky, Creative Business Executive, The National Film Television School (NFTS), UK + Ghana

  13. Orla Garriques, Development & Marketing Director, Inner City Films, Canada + Jamaica

Producers

  1. Patricia Bebia Mawa, Multi-Award Winning Media Personality, President, Diamond Plus Media; Film Director & Producer; EVP, Afroglobal, Canada + Nigeria 

  2. Shaka Henry, Founder, Rep Dat TV, UK

  3. Tera Carissa Hodges, Entrepreneur, Producer, Storyteller, USA  

  4. Giresse Kassongo, Producer, Founder, Kongo Konnect, DR Congo

  5. Uche Okocha, Managing Director, Trino Pictures, Nigeria

  6. Neerja Narayanan, Filmmaker, Studio Executive, USA + India

 2025 Speakers 

Past Speakers 
For 

For 2025 edition speakers, please check this section of the homepage  
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