“Hollywood, it’s been a long time coming,” Phil Karanja wrote on a social media caption on October 9.
The video; sights and sounds of Los Angeles, where he had just landed to attend the 2024 American Film Showcase’s Film and TV Leadership Initiative.
The celebrated film director secured the exclusive invitation because of his impact in Kenya’s creative industry, and, together with renowned actor Kenneth Ambani, made the cut out of four Africans selected for the opportunity.
Nigeria’s Kunle Afolayan and Bolanle Austen-peters, both celebrated film producers, were also selected.
While announcing the fellows who had been picked, the American Film Showcase noted that the initiative is part of a wider U.S. Department of State effort to support the creative economy in Africa and facilitate collaborative exchange between the American and African film industries.
“These four top Kenyan and Nigerian filmmakers and film industry leaders will travel to Los Angeles, California, Washington, DC, Middleburg, Virginia, and Atlanta, Georgia.”
The statement added: “They will meet with their Hollywood counterparts in LA, State Department officials in DC, lead a panel at the Middleburg Film Festival in Virginia, and meet industry and studio leaders in Atlanta.”
Kenneth Ambani, popularly known as Baraza, has been documenting his experiences during the initiative’s itinerary, celebrating every new lesson and networking session.
“Today, we had a great meeting with Michael Gordon at the Creative Artists Agency (CAA). Michael is a TV Global Scripted Agent at CAA in Los Angeles, where he has put together and represented many critically acclaimed global shows on Netflix, Apple, HBO, Epix, Amazon, and HBO Max,” he wrote on October 12.
“CAA represents a wide range of clients in entertainment, sports, and media industries, including actors, musicians, directors, producers, and athletes.”
