Filmmakers urged to seek mentorship and prioritise collaboration

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Richard Mulindwa – a multi-award-winning film producer, writer, and director, has called for mentorship among young actors, directors, and producers. He asserted that the lack of mentorship hinders the quality of many productions.

“We are losing a lot of talent because of inexperienced directors in Uganda. Some people know how to write scripts but will wake up one day and decide to direct without understanding even the basics of directing,” Mulindwa said While addressing filmmakers at MoTIV on Friday.

“As a result, many actors will end up staying at the same level because a director’s job is to push actors and get them out of their comfort zone so that they can improve their skill and delivery,” he said.

The filmmakers gathered at MoTIV for the first of MoTIV’s Creative Fridays Sauti Plus Takeovers – an initiative of MoTIV, the SautiPlus Media Hub, and Reach A Hand Uganda and a platform for creatives in the film industry to connect, learn, collaborate, and network under the theme: “Navigating creative film production”.

The platform is an opportunity for creatives to showcase their work while engaging with their vibrant communities and featured talks from Mulindwa (Production and Directing); Stella Nantumbwe (Acting); Rehema Nanfuka (Screenwriting) and; Tony Kastimo (Sound Production for Film).

Rehema Nanfuka – a film, theatre, and TV actress, director, and filmmaker known for her roles in Veronica’s Wish, The Girl in the Yellow Jumper, and Queen of Katwe, said, “When creating stories, do not go the common route. Try to use a different unexpected route such that you can stand out from the rest. And when it comes to pitching your scripts, create a writers’ room because pitching as a group takes you further while pitching alone is less impactful. There’s more magic in multiple people pitching an idea.”

Humphrey Nabimanya, an Executive Producer and the founder of Reach A Hand Uganda and SautiPlus Media Hub emphasised the importance of sharing knowledge, connecting, and networking as a way of investing in and building the local film industry.

He added, “Let’s not create films because of awards but because we want to create a sustainable impact in Uganda’s film and creative industry. As SautiPlus, our vision is to build a streaming platform and proper warehouse studios in addition to creating more spaces for filmmakers to learn, dialogue, and work together to take our industry to global standards.”

SautiPlus Media Hub is a full-service communications agency and production house that is behind productions like Sabotage (2024), When You Become Me (2023), and the Kyaddala TV series (2019-). In March 2023, they were officially licensed by the Uganda Communications Commission to exhibit and distribute audio and visual film and video works in Uganda as a national distributor and exhibitor.