Netflix appoints Kenyan TV producer as manager International Originals

Global streaming giant Netflix has appointed Kenyan award-winning TV producer and Spielworks Media chief executive Dorothy Ghettuba as its manager for International Originals.

The move comes after global streaming giant Netflix announced last year that it would commission original shows from Africa by 2019.

This could increase demand for the platform among viewers from the region and eventually reduce the cost of access.

“Telling our African stories. Onwards and Upwards,” said Ms Ghettuba in an Instagram post announcing her appointment.

This appointment continues an impressive trend of Kenyans in the creative industry taking up more positions on the global stage.

This month, the movie Us, in which Oscar-award winning actress Lupita Nyong’o starred, generated $70 million upon its debut in 3,741 North American locations.

For Amazon’s streaming service, the director for the film Rafiki Wanuri Kahiu will script and direct an adaptation of Octavia Butler’s novel Wild Seed.

Middle East carrier Emirates launched a new campaign this month comprising films in which they are “paying tribute to a new generation of African disrupters who are making their mark globally across music, fashion, literature and the arts, the campaign celebrates the cultural renaissance taking over Africa.”

The campaign features Kenyan musician Blinky Bill and South-Sudanese model Shanelle Nyasiase who was born in Ethiopia and raised in Kenya.

A report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development noted Kenya’s strides in some aspects of the creative economy but called for creative activities to be anchored in political and governmental commitment and concrete support.