Four African Screenwriters Head to Series Mania Forum in France

Four African screenwriters will pitch their Original TV series to international producers, financiers, and distributors on 24th March, 2026, at the 17th Series Mania Forum in Lille, France. The Series Mania Forum is a three-day event dedicated to television series. The forum gathers over 5,000 global TV professionals, featuring conferences, pitching sessions, and networking opportunities. 

The quartet are the latest participants in the Realness Institute’s AuthenticA Series Lab, an episodic screenwriting program run in partnership with The StoryBoard Collective, and with support from the Canada Media Fund and the Series Mania Forum. The screenwriters and their projects include: Gamel Apalayine (Ghana), pitching The Gospel According to Charlotte Nelson, a mystery drama; Reem Morsi (Egypt/Canada), Humanitarians! a dark comedy; Mona Ombogo (Kenya), Kanaan a romantic thriller; and Joladé Olusanya (Nigeria/UK), KID: The Hogan Bassey Story a sports epic. All four developed their projects through the AuthenticA Series Lab screenwriting program run by the Realness Institute to prepare African writers for the international television market. 

Apalayine is a Ghanaian screenwriter and filmmaker who’s making waves in African storytelling. He served as Head Writer on Akwaaba Magic’s hit TV drama Dede and was a principal writer on Ghana’s first Showmax Original Series, Eno.  

Ombogo is a Kenyan writer and director known for her work on the hit Netflix series Volume and contributions to productions like Single Kiasi and Salem. Her feature film Unseen, Unsung, Unforgotten earned two Kalasha Kenya Film Award nominations. She’s also a bestselling author, with her novel Soulfire released in 2012. 

Olusanya is a Nigerian-British poet, filmmaker, and photographer whose work covers memory, masculinity, faith, and emotional inheritance. His poetry has been commissioned by the BBC and the Barbican, and published in Poetry London and various anthologies. As a filmmaker, he’s worked with brands like Warner Bros. and Canon, and his visual work has been featured in The Guardian and VSCO. 

Morsi is an Egyptian-Canadian writer, director, and producer based in Toronto. Morsi’s films often explore themes of identity, culture, and social justice. She is award-winning filmmaker; her feature Banned has just begun its festival tour, and she has directed the film Queen Tut and episodes of the CBC Gem series Virgins!. Her series Fish won the Canadian National Genre Competition by WIFTV and is currently in development, along with two other scripted projects. 

Now in its fourth edition, the AuthenticA Series Lab supports and mentors African writers in developing television series that can compete globally. The program gives  them a chance to pitch and connect with international partners, financiers, and producers. The pitching session in Lille follows six months of intensive development for the four screenwriters, who benefited from hands-on mentorship and support.