The Alliance Française de Nairobi is a French language and cultural centre. It was founded in 1949. It is a locally registered not-for-profit organization governed by a Board of Trustees. Over the last sixty years, the Alliance Française has developed into one of the largest on the African continent with some 3000 students learning the French language annually. It is part of global network of Alliance Française in 135 countries around the world.
The institution offers a rich programme of annual activities showcasing local and international Arts and encouraging creativity. It supports the production and presentation of artistic works, across all disciplines, that reflect the diversity, aspiration and contradictions of our contemporary society and open up space for dialogue.
Objectives
• Deliver high-quality French language services• Develop an appreciation and understanding of French and Francophone cultures
• Encourage cultural interaction and promote the diversity of artistic expressions
• Promote higher education studies in France
Values
• Respect for linguistic and cultural diversity• Apolitical and secular
• Uphold the founding principles of humanism
• Sense of community
• Excellence and innovation
Why a Smartphone Film Competition ?
The impact of internet access via mobile devices on the African continent is a game changer and continues to pave way for huge opportunities. Kenya leads Africa’s internet access and connectivity. Kenya’s mobile phone penetration level hit almost 90% (that is 38 million mobile phone users out of a population of about 45 million). The number of internet users in Kenya is estimated at 32 million and a large majority of them access the internet via their mobile devices. This growth is largely attributed to the low cost of services due to increased competition between different operators.In Kenya, the mobile phone is omnipresent in everyday life, addressing all needs from work to pure entertainment, to socializing, to business and shopping, … With an increasing number of affordable smartphones that make it possible to record and produce high quality videos, the Smartphone Film Competition aims to encourage the creation of content for and by smartphones.
The Alliance Française de Nairobi remains a popular cultural venue with the Kenyan youth for its promotion of cultural and linguistic diversity through its dynamic Arts programming and its French language classes, and as a space for dialogue and debate on topical societal issues. Through this competition, we aim to expose and promote young directors of short films and contribute to popularizing the art of cinema thanks to the ubiquitous smartphone.