Locarno Film Festival’s Open Doors Launches Inaugural African Cohort 

As part of efforts towards developing African cinema, Locarno Film Festival’s Open Doors program has launched a four-year plan that will support African filmmakers from 2025 to 2028 through co-production opportunities and training for producers and directors. This inaugural African cohort aligns with the program’s broader vision of providing room for creative talent development for filmmakers from underserved regions where artistic expression is threatened. This year’s program will run from August 7th – 12th, 2025.

“The new Open Doors cycle marks an exciting moment for African film industries in the global independent film landscape,” said Yanis Gaye, Head of Studies at Open Doors. “Our platform empowers talents to shape the tools, strategies, and community needed for their projects and careers to thrive.”

A total of six African producers have been selected to participate in the Open Doors Producers Program. These are June Wairegi (Kenya), Kamy Lara (Angola), Moustapha Sawadogo (Burkina Faso), Yannick Mizero Kabano (Rwanda), Kudi Maradzika (Zimbabwe) and Leul Shoaferaw (Ethiopia). June Wairegi is the co-writer and producer of recently released romantic comedy Sayari. Kamy Lare is celebrated in contemporary African cinema for her documentaries—including Beyond My Steps (Para Lá dos Meus Passos) which has been shown in more than twenty international film festivals. Moustapha Sawadogo is the producer of Duga, les charognards (2019) which won a Best Feature Film award at the 2020 Quibdó África Film Festival. Yannick Mizero Kabano is a co-founder of Screen Connect, a pan-African cinematic initiative incubated in 2024 and aimed at bringing “high-quality, culturally relevant African films to cinema screens across the continent.” Kudi Maradzika, a multi-award-winning actress, producer, director and executive producer, is known for her involvement in film and television content on platforms such as Netflix, eTV, Showmax, and YouTube across African powerhouses like South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya. Leul Shoaferaw boasts a portfolio that cuts across music management and film, and is known for Plumes Blanches, a production that marks his cinema debut, which premiered at FESPACO (Festival Panafricain du Cinéma de Ouagadougou) in 2019.

In addition, six African projects have been selected as beneficiaries of the Open Doors Projects co-production scheme for feature-length films. This includes Zimbabwe’s Black Snake, directed by Naishe Nyamubaya and produced by Sue-Ellen Chitunya of 263 Reels Productions; Ethiopia’s Firtuna (The Fortunate), directed by Habtamu Gebrehiwot and produced by Nahusenay Dereje of MTF Multimedia; Journal Intime d’une Femme-Chèvre (Diary of a Goat Woman), an Ivory Coast-Burkina Faso collaboration directed by Azata Soro and produced by Nameïta Lica Toure of Les Studios Indigo; Nigeria’s Kachifo (Till the Morning Comes), directed by Dika Ofoma and produced by Blessing Uzzi of Bluhouse Studios; Lutteurs (Fighters), a Senegal-France co-production directed by Alassane Sy and produced by Jules Dieng of Thiely Films; and Les Bilokos from the Democratic Republic of Congo, directed by Erickey Bahati and produced by Giresse Kassonga of Gikas Films.

On August 12th, at the Locarno Film Festival, a jury of industry professionals will offer awards to winning projects. This includes the Open Doors Grant of CHF 50,000 sponsored by visions sud est and the City of Bellinzona; the CNC Development Prize worth EUR 8,000; and the Arte Kino International Prize of EUR 6,000.

Created in 1946 following the Second World War, the Locarno Film Festival was designed as a platform for the revival and promotion of artistic freedom. The festival has paved the way for the boldest, most innovative forms of filmmaking. Tucked between the mountains and Lake Maggiore’s Swiss shore, Locarno comes alive annually, draped in the yellow-and-black Leopard hues of the Festival, for a dynamic cinematic celebration across days.