Idris Elba’s Akuna Group launches free AI filmmaking programme for creators in 5 African countries

Akuna Learning, from The Akuna Group chaired by Sir Idris Elba, has opened applications for From Script to Screen with AI, a free programme designed to equip eligible African creators to tell stories on screen using artificial intelligence, in collaboration with Google.

The programme, delivered with a curriculum developed by Curious Refuge, is open to aspiring filmmakers in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and South Africa. Applications are live at akunalearning.com and close on November 15, 2026. The programme is free to apply and, for those selected, free to attend, with creators maintaining control of their work and no claim of ownership rights by the programme or its partners. Over fifty weeks, selected creators will move from a twelve-week academy into mentoring, showcased in October 2027.

Every participant will complete a foundational course in AI filmmaking before choosing to specialise in one of five creative pathways: fiction, documentary, animation, advertising or screenwriting. The programme is structured in five stages, beginning with applications and selection from October 2026 to January 2027 through an open call across all five countries, with review panels in each country and a final cross-country panel. This will be followed by twelve weeks of online training from February to April 2027 with Curious Refuge, weekly Akuna facilitation, in-person meet-ups and certification. From April to June 2027, graduates will put forward one-page ideas, with shortlisted idea owners building teams to spend four weeks with mentors and subject experts. Mentor-endorsed teams will then pitch to panels drawn from Akuna, Google and the wider industry between June and July 2027, with selected projects funded and produced between July and October 2027 before being taken to festivals and showcases.

The programme targets aspiring and emerging visual storytellers, including filmmakers, screenwriters, animators, advertisers, digital content creators, photographers, designers, editors and visual artists, and applicants do not need AI experience, a film school qualification or a set number of years in the industry.

Sir Idris Elba, Chairman of The Akuna Group, said the initiative was about learning and access to courses that help educate creators across the continent to tell their stories. “Through Akuna Learning, we’re partnering with Google and Curious Refuge on ‘From Script to Screen with AI’, a remarkable training and mentorship programme teaching African filmmakers to use AI tools. Selected projects will receive production funding, and creators will retain control of their work. I’m looking forward to seeing the stories they choose, and how the education leads to employment and self-momentum, but helps shape the narrative of Africa,” he said.

Khaled Gad, Chief Executive Officer of The Akuna Group, said training on its own did not build an industry, noting that creators need a route from the classroom to the screen. “This programme carries them all the way, from their first application to a finished, funded film. It opens on the same day and runs to the same standard in all five countries. You do not need a film school background or any experience with AI to apply. You need finished work that shows what you can do, and your application in by November 15,” he said.

Applicants must physically reside in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone or South Africa, be 18 or older on the date of application, have access to a laptop, reliable internet and consistent power for the duration of the programme, and be able to commit fully to the twelve-week academy from February to April 2027 and to the later stages if they progress. They should include existing creative work, however modest, that shows their talent and commitment, with women strongly encouraged to apply.

The Akuna Group is a pan-African organisation building the infrastructure for Africa’s creative economy, connecting talent with the skills, capital, spaces, platforms and partnerships needed to build sustainable livelihoods and access global markets. Akuna Learning is its education platform, equipping African talent with the skills and opportunities to thrive in the global economy.