The Africa Xchange Summit will debut at the Film Festival Cologne 2025 on October 15–16, offering Kenyan creatives and their African peers a powerful new platform to connect with European industries.
The two-day gathering is designed to strengthen partnerships across film, gaming, tech, and finance by creating space for African innovators to share their perspectives directly with German and European stakeholders.
The program is being curated by Nadia Denton, celebrated for her contributions at Berlinale’s European Film Market and the BFI London Film Festival. Denton describes the summit as a “timely intervention” that will elevate fresh voices, bridge cultures, and open up new areas of collaboration.
Several high-profile participants have already confirmed their attendance:
- M.I Abaga (Jude Abaga), Nigerian rapper, producer, and founder of TASCK creative agency.
- Pamela Mutembei, Investment Director at Nairobi’s HEVA Fund.
- Mohamed Kordofani, Sudanese filmmaker of Goodbye Julia, winner of the Prix de la Liberté at Cannes.
- Joel Chikapa-Phiri, South African producer and founder of Known Associates Group.
The initiative is backed by the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW, the state film fund of North Rhine-Westphalia, which emphasized its role in encouraging cultural dialogue and long-term creative exchange. Managing Director Walid Nakschbandi noted that Africa’s “dynamism and diversity” make it increasingly central to the global media landscape.
The summit is jointly organized by Rushlake Media (Cologne/Nairobi) and Die Gesellschaft DGS. Rushlake’s managing director Philipp Hoffmann underlined the event’s importance, stressing that global demand for African storytelling — across film, music, games, and fashion — is rising sharply, and Germany must be part of that conversation.
For Kenya’s creative economy, the summit promises more than visibility — it opens the door to new partnerships, funding opportunities, and a stronger voice in shaping global cultural trends.