The Black Star International Film Festival (BSIFF) has brokered a historic deal that could reshape the future of African cinema.
Announced during the festival’s 10th anniversary celebrations in Accra, the agreement brings together Majestic Cinemas, the largest cinema chain in the Ivory Coast and a growing force across Francophone Africa, CINEKITA, a leading dubbing and subtitling studio, and the Nile Group, led by Nigerian film executive Moses Babatope.
The alliance creates a direct distribution pipeline designed to overcome the language barrier that has long divided Anglophone and Francophone African markets.
English language films will now reach French-speaking territories through professional dubbing and subtitling, while French language productions will find new audiences in Anglophone countries.
Industry experts estimate the potential value of this cross-border exchange at more than 700 million dollars per film, unlocking a massive untapped market for African filmmakers.
Juliet Yaa Asantewaa Asante, Founder and President of BSIFF, said the deal is the culmination of years of advocacy and industry dialogue that began at the Africa Cinema Summit.
“At the Africa Cinema Summit, we identified the critical lack of infrastructure and the language barrier as existential threats to our growth,” she noted.
“This deal is our answer. We have moved from diagnosing the problem to deploying the solution. To broker this right here at the Black Star International Film Festival proves that our platform is where Pan African partnerships are forged and our collective vision becomes reality,” added.
The impact of the new framework is already visible. Son of the Soil, a feature film starring UK Nigerian actor Raz Adoti and directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Chee Keong Cheung, premiered at this year’s BSIFF and has been chosen as the first film to benefit from the deal.
It will be dubbed into French and released theatrically across Francophone Africa in December. Other projects from Ghana, Togo and the Ivory Coast are also being prepared for distribution under the new system, including animation and feature-length dramas.
According to the agreement, films showcased at BSIFF will now have a clear pathway to continental release. Selected titles will undergo seamless localisation through CINEKITA, which already partners with global streaming platforms such as Netflix.
Distribution will be overseen by the Nile Group, while Majestic Cinemas will guarantee theatrical placement across its network as it expands beyond the Ivory Coast into other Francophone territories.
Juliet Asante emphasised that this partnership is more than a business transaction. She described it as a cultural bridge that will connect Africa’s storytellers with audiences who have been separated for generations by colonial language barriers.
“With 40 per cent of the world’s youth projected to live in Africa by 2030, we are not just preparing for the future. We are building it, one groundbreaking deal at a time,” she said.
The initiative has also won international support. UNESCO has endorsed the move, describing it as a model for how cinema can be harnessed for education, cultural preservation and development.
Founded by Juliet Yaa Asantewaa Asante, the Black Star International Film Festival is Ghana’s largest and longest-running film festival.
Over the past decade, it has evolved into a Pan African platform that not only showcases films but also shapes industry policy, builds partnerships and forges opportunities for African cinema on the global stage.
With this landmark agreement, BSIFF is positioning itself as more than a festival. It is becoming the heartbeat of Africa’s new cinematic ecosystem, where stories no longer stop at borders but travel across the continent and beyond.
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