Ugandan screenwriter among top picks for AuthenticA Series Lab

Creatives from Uganda and Kenya are among the four African screenwriters selected from more than 160 applications for the 2024/2025 AuthenticA Series Lab presented by the South African-based Realness Institute in partnership with The StoryBoard Collective, (Switzerland), and with support of the Series Mania Forum (France) and the Canada Media Fund. 

 Submissions this year came from 27 countries, covering 23 genres of television series. The four selected African screenwriters have been named as Pius Talemwa (Uganda), Tony Koros (Kenya), Aden Abebe (Canada/Ethiopia), and Mlilo Mpondo (South Africa). 

 In a hotly contested space for the development of screenplays, the AuthenticA Series Lab will support the four writers to advance their series ideas into pilot scripts, and create “pitch Bibles” to take these confidently to highly competitive international content markets.

 Laure de Peretti de la Rocca, the director of The StoryBoard Collective, a Swiss philanthropic organisation dedicated to supporting the development and impact outreach of authentic and transformative stories, said: “TV series have the capacity to transcend geographies and cultures, creating connections that bridge diverse audiences. This year marks the third edition of AuthenticA, and we look forward to exploring the authentic stories of these four talented writers.” 

The AuthenticA Series Lab is designed by Programme Director Elias Ribeiro, in collaboration with Story Expert Selina Ukwuoma. The Lab takes place over six months, beginning with an in-person residency at the exquisite Coot Club in Stanford (Western Cape) from September 8 to 17.

Following this, the writers will participate in online sessions and then an additional in-person residency in Switzerland (Geneva) from January 20, 2025, culminating in a pitch session at Series Mania Forum in Lille (France) on March 25, 2025 that sees more than 4,200 TV professionals from more than 70 countries across five continents coming together for networking, discovery, and insights. 

“Series Mania is proud to once again partner with Realness Institute and The StoryBoard Collective for the third consecutive year on the AuthenticA Series Lab,” Laurence Herszberg, Series Mania General Director, told the Monitor. “As the leading event in Europe for TV series professionals, Series Mania Forum serves as an ideal platform to amplify African talents and their unique voices, offering them visibility on an international stage while fostering diversity in the global television landscape.” 

Ukwuoma and Creative Producer Mehret Mandefro will spearhead the creative mentorship of the programme. Experienced film professionals from the industry will engage with the cohort as guest speakers, providing diverse perspectives and sharing their professional experiences. 

“Providing a safe space for African screenwriters to find their voice and write the stories that only they can tell, is a critical infrastructure investment in the global media ecosystem,” says Mandefro. 

 This year, the Canada Media Fund (CMF) has partnered with the programme to sponsor Canadian/Ethiopian writer Aden Abebe. 

“We are proud to celebrate the selection of multi-disciplinary artist Aden Abebe for this year’s cohort of the AuthenticA Series Lab," Jessica Lea Fleming, director of growth and inclusion at the CMF, said.

She added: “The CMF is committed to enhancing access to professional development opportunities for content creators like Aden and playing a role in bringing their stories to life.”

Fabulous four

Abebe is a multi-disciplinary artist, community leader and mentor whose passions lie at the intersection of art and social justice. A trained photographer turned writer-director-producer-executive producer, Abebe’s work has been presented in art exhibitions, film screenings and streaming television. Abebe’s series project is a comedy titled 333.