Three African screenwriters will pitch projects spanning a range of genres at the 16th Series Mania in Lille, France.
The line-up includes South Africa’s Mlilo Mpondo, the creator of the comedy drama series “Women From the 13th Floor”; Uganda’s Talemwa Pius, with his Western series “Mad Bounty and the Midnight Gun”; and L.A.-based Kenyan screenwriter Tony Koros, who’s developing the comedy series “Money Town.”
The three writers, who will be pitching their projects on March 25 during the AuthenticA African Series Pitch, are the latest participants of the AuthenticA Series Lab, a training programme for African screenwriters that combines online workshops, masterclasses with industry professionals and residencies in South Africa and Switzerland. The lab is organized by the Cape Town-based Realness Institute, in partnership with the StoryBoard Collective, and with the support of the Series Mania Forum and Canada Media Fund.
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The writers have spent the past six months working with a mentoring team of creative producer Mehret Mandefro and script consultant Selina Ukwuoma, who also co-designed the program.
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“Creating dedicated spaces where African screenwriters can explore their voice and refine their craft, supported and uninterrupted, is not just valuable — it’s essential for Africa to determine her future,” said Mandefro, who is acting managing director at the Realness Institute.
Ukwuoma added: “Through AuthenticA, the writers have had the time and support to nurture both their creative and professional development. They come to Series Mania with a strong sense of who they are and what they have to offer the international market. And it’s fire. They will set the world alight.”
“After seeing their stories develop from Cape Town to Geneva, we are excited to see the three scriptwriters on stage,” said StoryBoard Collective founder David Rimer. “Each of these stories, in its own way, truly embodies what AuthenticA stands for — bringing authentic stories to life.”
South African writer Mlilo Mpondo, whose debut novel “Things My Mother Left Me” was published in 2022, explores themes of identity, heritage and womanhood in her work. This week in Lille she’ll be presenting her 8×52” comedy drama series “Women From the 13th Floor,” which follows Khanya, a college dropout turned reluctant prostitute whose life gets turned upside-down when her best friend dies, leaving Khanya to look after the woman’s 6-year-old son.
Ugandan writer and director Talemwa Pius is a graduate of the MultiChoice Talent Factory Academy and the New York Film Academy’s Short Form Storytelling Workshop whose short film “Engaito” was awarded at the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCA) in 2021. His 8×60” Western series “Mad Bounty and the Midnight Gun” takes place in 19th-century Uganda after the defeat of the British Army and follows the scramble by outlaws and bounty hunters to discover a mythic weapon that could reshape the balance of power across colonial-era Africa.
Kenyan screenwriter Tony Koros, who is based in L.A., is a 2021 Sundance Screenwriters and Directors Lab Fellow and a recipient of film grants from the Tribeca Film Institute and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, among others. His latest short film, “Tithes & Offerings,” premiered in competition at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival in 2019. His 8×30” comedy series “Money Town” is set in a fictional village in Kenya, where the seemingly idyllic rural life is upended after the villagers are the recipients of a massive Universal Basic Income grant.
The AuthenticA Pitch is part of a broader African presence at this year’s Series Mania Forum that includes the African Talents and Industry Breakfast, a networking event that focuses on African talent and aims to develop collaboration between African and international industry experts. This breakfast is hosted by Maison des Mondes Africains, Institut Français, the Realness Institute and the StoryBoard Collective.
Francesco Capurro, the director of the Series Mania Forum, said: “Series Mania Forum provides an international platform for talented voices from Africa. I’m thrilled that, through this partnership with Realness, we can help them connect with partners and bring their projects to life.”
Pictured (L. to R.): Mlilo Mpondo (South Africa); Talemwa Pius (Uganda); Tony Koros (Kenya)
