Netflix Creative Equity Scholarship Fund
The scholarship fund for sub-Saharan students is part of Netflix’s global Creative Equity Fund. It launched in 2021 to develop a strong, diverse pipeline of creatives worldwide. The context for scholarships emerged from Netflix's Grow Creative initiative which allocated a USD 1 million grant for Creative Equity Scholarships in Sub-Saharan Africa.
In Kenya, approximately USD 300,000 is dedicated to scholarships at qualifying institutions, reflecting Netflix's commitment to the local creative industry's growth by providing financial support to African creatives for quality tertiary education in film and TV-focused disciplines.
In 2021, Netflix appointed HEVA as the implementing partner/fund administrator responsible for supporting the outreach and execution of the Creative Equity Scholarship Fund - East Africa (CESF). To recruit the students, HEVA put out a call for applications and subsequently conducted a shortlisting process with approval from Netflix. Eligibility for the scholarship was pegged to students being new to or already undertaking Film & TV courses at any of the 5 educational institutions that we partnered with to support formal qualification and training; namely Kenyatta University, USIU-Africa, Kenya Film School (KFS), ADMI-Africa, and KCA University. HEVA also partnered with QWETU Housing to provide accommodation to the scholars. We collaborated with the Netflix team to finalize the fund administration model and establish pre-qualification criteria for applicants and partner institutions.
A grant of approximately USD 300,000 was disbursed to cover tuition fees, accommodation, monthly living stipend, and learning materials for 46 students from 5 institutions across 5 East African countries, enabling the scholars to overcome socioeconomic barriers to obtaining formal training and qualification in film and TV disciplines.
After a successful onboarding, we held an informal Roll Call event in September 2022 at the KCA hall room bringing together students, partner institutions, and key stakeholders to celebrate the scholarships, recipients, and the program at large. Later in August 2023, we hosted the Students’ Workshop at ADMI Africa. HEVA invited industry experts from the Film and TV industry to share their experiences and insights with the scholars.
Capacity building has consistently been a core mission for HEVA within the CCIs, and it stands as a primary objective for our scholarship program. We are proud to have been implementing partners in the project in investing in young creatives from the outset, providing them with the necessary knowledge and tools to thrive in the sector.
FEATURED PROJECTS
-
Uhuru Market Center of Excellence - An Action Research Project
In early 2019, the Government of Kenya partnered with HEVA to conduct a research project and create a pilot centre of excellence.
-
Ota Business Strategy Workshops for Women in Creative Enterprise
Ota successfully ran a two-part series of Business Strategy Workshops for Women in Creative Enterprise which took place in Mombasa and Kisumu.
-
Investigating Informality In The Financing Of Culture And Creative Businesses In Kenya
HEVA was selected to represent Kenya’s perspective in a research commission that seeks to explore what is the relationship between the informal economy and the cultural economy in the global south
LET’S KEEP IN TOUCH
If you want to receive updates on how you can access funding, project incubation, mentorship, and invaluable resources that will fuel your growth and help you achieve your creative aspirations, join our mailing list and we’ll keep you posted.