Africa’s creatives converge in Nairobi

The inaugural Africa No Filter Summit, held in Nairobi, was a captivating rendezvous for the continent’s creatives. Over three days, this remarkable event showcased the ingenious strategies employed by Africans, especially youths, to counter stereotypes and reshape an empowered narrative for the continent.

By Seth Onyango and Bonface Orucho

Nairobi’s skies, a canvas of moody grays, occasionally part to let the sun toss a warming glance at the vibrant city below. This is the backdrop for a gathering of some of the continent’s most creative minds as Nairobi this week hosted the inaugural Africa No Filter Summit.

Here, journalists, content creators, filmmakers, and a kaleidoscope of creatives convened armed with the power of multiple approaches seeking to drive alternative narratives seeking to redefine Africa’s global image.

Themed #AsWeAre, the summit was more than an event; rather, a movement celebrating the rich, nuanced stories of Africa.

According to Moky Makura, the executive director of Africa No Filter, the summit is significant as it provides a platform for storytellers to discuss what they can do to change the way the world sees Africa.

“We sometimes forget Africa is 54 countries, we don’t naturally get to meet, it is a great opportunity to network people in one space,” she explained.

Electrifying dance performances, illuminating discussions, and insightful one-on-one collisions took center stage in the 3-day odyssey held between November 8 – 10 with different creatives sharing their narrative-changing experiences.

The passionate changemakers, composed mainly of young people, are on a mission to shatter stereotypes and paint a canvas of narratives that dance beyond the shadows of poverty, corruption, and conflict.

Africa No Filter’s partners, funders, narrative champions, and narrative changemakers from across Africa and the diaspora showcased the many creative approaches they are deploying to counter stereotypical and harmful narratives about Africa.

Francois Bouda, the Arts and Culture Program Officer at Africa No Filter, underscores the critical role youth are playing in creating better narratives about the continent.

“It was important to bring all this energy, all these talented people so that they can share with the world how we have the resources to give a different perspective on the African continent,” he stated.

According to Bouda, past reports by Africa No Filter found that pop culture is one of the greatest influences among Africans.

“That is why at Africa No Filter, we’ve invested so much in film and comedy, and we want to tap into the potential transformative power of these disciplines to bring another perspective to the African continent,” he detailed.

These creative items were in full parade at the summit, with speakers, panellists, and performers telling stories that soar beyond the worn-out narratives of poverty, corruption, and strife.

Instead, they were all painting a picture of a continent ripe with potential, pulsating with the rhythm of its diverse cultures, and bursting with the creativity of its people.

On the first day, Dorcas Sheffy Bello, a Nigerian journalist, explained in a solo presentation how she changed her storytelling perspective and began focusing on telling better stories about Africa and not on the negative stories.

“I decided as a storyteller to change my angle and tell stories about who I am, who I really am …because of that, every single story gave me different awards,” she expressed.

Others such as Charity Ezekie use emerging digital options such as TikTok to disseminate sarcastic yet provoking messages that highlight the progressive aspects of the continent.

“When I started doing this I noticed more people were viewing this content, especially non-Africans,” she explained in her presentation.

Panel discussions covering various subjects provided an opportunity for different stakeholders in Africa’s creative sector to showcase their unique perspectives and successes in creating impactful narratives about the continent.

For instance, a session dubbed “New Voices, New Heroes” brought together animators leading the way in how Africa is represented in the industry. Malenga Mulendema, a Zambian writer who is also a co-creator of Supa Team 4, a superhero animation series following four teenage girls living in a futuristic version of Zambia, highlighted how collaborating helped them create an impacting Netflix animation.

“If we didn’t get a Zambian phrase to use, we could easily borrow from Senegal, or Kenya, or elsewhere because we were all working together,” she stated.