New York Film Academy started off the New Year by welcoming two esteemed MultiChoice Talent Factory full scholarship winners to our hands-on, intensive 8-Week Filmmaking workshop in New York City. These winners were chosen as the top of their class at the Multichoice Talent Factory in their respective countries.
The Multichoice Talent Factory is MultiChoice Africa’s flagship Corporate Social Value (CSV) initiative. It is a 12-month training program distinctly designed to train the next generation of African film and TV creatives in partnership with stakeholders across the continent and globe—including New York Film Academy.
The scholarship winners are Mainala Silondwa from Zambia and Hillary “Hillax” Lanogwa from Kenya. Silondwa is an emerging film director who was a production manager for the final-year MTF student film, The Painting and casting assistant, production manager and offline editor for Savannah Skies; Lanogwa is a cinematographer who was the camera operator for MTF student films Ensulo and Promises.
“The entire New York Film Academy Filmmaking Department’s team considers it a huge honor to welcome both Mainala and Hillary,” declares NYFA instructor and Chair of Short-Term Programs, Jonathan Whittaker, “two high-caliber filmmakers who bring so much raw talent and passion into the classroom and on set, to NYFA.
“These scholarships present not only the opportunity to hone Mainala’s and Hillary’s skillsets but also to positively impact their respective domestic film markets. The time-tested techniques and protocols they will learn from their Hollywood and New York experienced instructors will give them a leg up on the competition back at home. We have no doubt that after proving themselves yet again in our programs both Hillary and Mainala will go on to have enduring and successful careers in the industry.”
written by Blake Babbitt, NYFA Associate Director of Outreach