Can you tell us about your activities?
Founded in 2009, Scenarii is an audiovisual production company specializing in distribution, production, directing, and screenwriting. Our headquarters are in Abidjan, but we also have an office in Conakry. We are also planning to open an office in Dakar in the coming months.
Why did you choose to set up in Conakry and Dakar?
Conakry because we were working with a network of partners based there. We identified a need for skills in the local production sector, which is why we decided to set up a team there so that we could work on projects more easily.
In Dakar, the ecosystem is different from anything I have seen in other countries, particularly through the African Capitals series project. This project allowed me to travel across the continent and observe the production sector in each country. When I arrived in Dakar, I discovered that the Senegalese ecosystem represented a real opportunity for the company to develop in the country, as it is a major production hub in the sub-region.
Creativity exists everywhere on the continent, but a real industry is emerging in Senegal that is approaching the audiovisual landscape with a different approach, with an inward-looking perspective. For example, most films are made in Wolof and distributed locally thanks to the strong involvement of sponsors who financially support local production.
The methods of financing and consuming cinema are different. For example, 50% of budgets are financed by economic operators, which is not yet possible in other countries. We must draw inspiration from this.
Can you tell us about some of your projects?
In particular, we are co-producing the series "African Capitals" broadcast on A+. This is a series concept based on two observations: our young people and our populations increasingly disparage our countries in favor of Western countries, even though our countries also offer great opportunities.
We therefore decided to create a concept to showcase our major African cities. So we travel around the major French-speaking African capitals, where we "house" a series that is firmly rooted in the local reality. The common theme in these capitals is youth. We highlight youth in all its diversity and at all levels (education, employment, sexuality, social integration). We also try to highlight major issues such as women's empowerment, as we believe that women should be able to rise to the heart of our countries' governance systems. All the stories we tell revolve around these two main themes, adapted to the realities of each country.
We started with Conakry, focusing on young expatriates returning to their country of origin, then continued with Bamako, Niamey, Yaoundé, and others. The last capital city of this season was Cotonou, where we addressed the issue of new technologies. We are currently filming in Dakar for the next episodes, in which we will talk about immigration through the story of a young Senegalese man who has returned from Europe. We are filming 30 episodes for each capital city. We will then finish with Abidjan, Lomé, and Kigali.
You have been working in the industry for over 20 years. How do you see the evolution of audiovisual production on the continent?
Training, financing, and distribution have evolved over time. These are three fundamental pillars in our industry.
- Training: I taught myself my trade and entered the world of audiovisual and cinema out of passion. From scriptwriting to fundraising and directing, I learned these different trades on the job so that I could be involved in all stages of the creative process. Today, the new generation coming out of school has benefited from real training. Young people take the time to work alongside us to improve their skills and master techniques. We are therefore seeing real progress, as evidenced by the quality of the new programs being produced on the continent.
- In terms of funding, we are also seeing progress, even if it is not enough to sufficiently support these players. We have more and more television channels getting involved in production in Africa, such as CANAL+ and its "Original Creation" concept. These players are helping to "oxygenate" the audiovisual landscape on the continent and allow our talents to demonstrate their expertise. A+ and TV5Monde are also stakeholders and are becoming increasingly involved. New channels are also an important lever for local audiovisual production: CANAL+ has just launched a new 100% Senegalese channel, SUNU YEUF, edited by THEMA.
- In terms of broadcasting, national channels are increasingly understanding the importance of purchasing content. It is still tentative if we look at the continent as a whole: the momentum is not strong enough to ensure wide coverage in terms of broadcasting and return on investment, but it is on the right track. With the closure of CFI, which in my view had a negative influence on African television, channels are increasingly getting involved in production and purchasing for broadcasting.
In your opinion, what needs to be done to help develop the audiovisual sector, particularly production?
In my opinion, the development of the audiovisual sector should be the responsibility of our governments, because today, African production is the result of private initiatives rather than political will. If policies were put in place, the audiovisual landscape would be more powerful, more recognized, and more respected. Today's powerful countries, such as the United States, are countries that have built themselves up with cinema, which is a vehicle that can drive all other sectors.