Africa’s creative industry is about to get a potentially significant new route from pitch to screen, with MultiChoice Group, a CANAL+ company, announced as the Super Sponsor of FAME Week Africa 2026.
The partnership goes beyond sponsorship.
At its heart is an ambition to create more direct opportunities for African producers, strengthen connections between creators and commissioners, and help African stories travel further across the continent and beyond.
FAME Week Africa 2026 takes place from 28–30 October 2026 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC2), followed by the FAME Film Festival from 30 October–1 November at the Rockefeller Hotel.
The event will bring together broadcasters, streamers, producers, distributors, creators, investors and industry leaders for three days focused on business, partnerships and the future of Africa’s creative industries.
From Pitching Ideas to Creating Opportunities
The most significant element of the partnership may happen away from the red carpet.
As part of its role as Super Sponsor, MultiChoice Group will deepen its engagement with Africa’s creative community and create direct opportunities for producers to pitch projects that align with its commissioning needs.
That commitment is already taking shape through an exclusive Premium Drama Call for Projects launched for FAME Week Africa 2026.
The call invites producers from across Africa to submit original drama series concepts that meet specific commissioning requirements.
The search is for contemporary, high-concept and commercially compelling African drama, with strong characters, universal themes and the potential to connect with audiences across two or more African territories.
For producers, this creates something particularly valuable: a direct opportunity to put original ideas in front of people actively looking for new content.
Shortlisted producers will have the opportunity to present their projects directly to a commissioning panel from MultiChoice Group and STUDIOCANAL, CANAL+’s in-house film and television studio with worldwide production and distribution capabilities.
That process will take place during FAME Week Africa.
A Direct Line Between Creators and Commissioners
The Premium Drama Call will operate alongside the established MIP Africa Project Pitch Platform, adding another direct route between African producers and commissioners seeking new content.
For a creative industry where developing a strong idea is only part of the challenge, access to decision-makers can be just as important.
FAME Week Africa is therefore positioning the partnership around more than visibility.
It is about connection.
It is about creating spaces where African producers can move from discussing possibilities to presenting projects with genuine commissioning potential.
“MultiChoice Group has spent decades investing in African stories, talent and production, and we know the extraordinary creative potential that exists across the continent,” says Nomsa Philiso, Executive Vice President: Content, CANAL+ Africa.
“FAME Week Africa gives us an important opportunity to connect directly with producers and discover compelling new stories. As part of CANAL+, we can build on that strong foundation and create even greater opportunities for African storytelling to reach audiences across the continent and beyond.”
MultiChoice’s African Storytelling Legacy Enters a New Chapter
MultiChoice Group has played a major role in the development of Africa’s television and entertainment industry for decades.
Its involvement has included investment in local productions, creative talent and stories reflecting the cultures, languages and experiences of audiences across the continent.
Now, as part of CANAL+, that commitment enters a new chapter.
The partnership brings together MultiChoice Group’s established African content expertise with the scale and reach of a wider international entertainment group.
For African producers, that broader connection could create new possibilities for stories developed on the continent to find audiences beyond their original markets.
More Than a Sponsorship
FAME Week Africa has established itself as a meeting place for Africa’s creative community and broadcasters, platforms, buyers, commissioners, distributors and international partners.
MultiChoice Group’s involvement will extend beyond traditional sponsorship visibility.
The partnership will include commissioning opportunities, industry conversations, networking and direct engagement with producers and creators.
That distinction matters.
Because while sponsorship can put a brand at the centre of an industry gathering, commissioning can put creators one step closer to seeing their ideas become actual productions.
“Having MultiChoice Group join FAME Week Africa as our Super Sponsor is significant for Africa’s creative industries,” says Martin Hiller, Portfolio Director, FAME Week Africa.
“This partnership is about creating tangible opportunities for African storytellers and building stronger bridges between talent, investment and audiences. The Premium Drama Call brings that commitment to life by giving producers direct access to commissioners looking for African stories.”
Cape Town Becomes the Meeting Point
FAME Week Africa 2026 will bring together the continent’s creative industries in Cape Town for three days of deal-making, pitching, networking, screenings, showcases and conversations.
The programme will span film, television, animation, music, fashion and entertainment, bringing together the people developing, financing, distributing and consuming African creative content.
The FAME Film Festival will then follow from 30 October to 1 November at the Rockefeller Hotel.
Together, the events are designed to create an environment where creative ideas can meet the people, investment and platforms needed to take them further.
African Stories, Bigger Possibilities
The partnership between FAME Week Africa and MultiChoice Group arrives at a moment when African storytelling is increasingly looking beyond individual markets.
But the opportunity is not simply about reaching bigger audiences.
It is also about ensuring African producers have meaningful access to commissioners, platforms and industry leaders who can help turn ambitious ideas into productions.
That is where the Premium Drama Call for Projects could prove particularly important.
Producers with original concepts that meet the call’s requirements now have an opportunity to put those ideas forward, with shortlisted projects set to be presented directly to commissioning representatives from MultiChoice Group and STUDIOCANAL during FAME Week Africa.
The bigger picture is clear: create stronger pathways between African talent, investment, commissioners and audiences.
And if the partnership delivers on that ambition, FAME Week Africa 2026 could become more than a meeting place.
It could become a place where the next generation of African stories begins its journey from idea to screen.
FAME Week Africa 2026 takes place from 28–30 October at CTICC2 in Cape Town, followed by the FAME Film Festival from 30 October–1 November at the Rockefeller Hotel.
