Wildstar Foundation has announced that they'll be supporting Wildscreen Festival as Headline Sponsor, cementing its commitment to nurturing and amplifying global voices and talent in natural history filmmaking.
It marks a return to Nairobi, from the first edition which launched in 2023. Since then, the Wildscreen Festival African editions have grown into the continent’s most influential gathering of the wildlife film, TV and content industry with the goal of supporting a more equitable, sustainable and inclusive wildlife content genre for Africans both within the continent and globally.
The Festival Programme which will span industry talks, panels, premieres and networking will be curated by with the support of a Festival Advisory Board, comprised of representatives spanning the international wildlife film and TV industry, African filmmakers and conservation organisations.
The Chair of the 2026 edition is award-winning Producer/Director Faith Musembi, whose credits include QUEENS (National Geographic/Disney+), winner of Best Series at Wildscreen 2024, CHASING THE RAINS (Love Nature, Sky Nature, Arte) and is currently Producer/Director on LION, a landmark BBC Studios Natural History Unit series for National Geographic.
Faith Musembi, Chair of Wildscreen Festival Kenya said: “Seeds planted at that first Festival in Kenya in 2023 have since grown into jobs, commissions and meaningful industry collaborations and partnerships. It feels like a full-circle moment for our community, while also driving us to keep investing in and developing our own talent and creative economy within the wildlife genre."
Vanessa Berlowitz, Co-Founder of Wildstar Foundation said: “We were lucky enough to have Faith lend her creativity and authenticity to Wildstar Films’ QUEENS at the beginning of her directing journey and we are proud that she continues to collaborate with us through the Wildstar Foundation today. The Foundation was built on the belief that, in a time of crisis, our planet needs authentic, global storytellers. It’s a belief that is embodied by this Nairobi based Wildscreen festival and we are honoured to support Faith, the event and the community it reaches.
Lucie Muir, CEO of Wildscreen said: "Faith is not only immensely talented filmmaker but she continues to break ground within the wildlife storytelling genre globally both with the stories she tells and the storytellers she nurtures. She's a true visionary who opens doors, widens them and keeps them open for underrepresented and authentic voices to tell and own their own stories. We’re honoured to have her as Chair and so thankful to Wildstar Foundation and all our partners and community for standing alongside us to deliver Wildscreen Festival Kenya as part of our goal to nurture a more equitable natural history industry."
The event will convene over 200 delegates from across the continent and key global players including filmmakers, production companies, broadcasters, streamers and conservationists, from over 12 countries. The Festival focuses on platforming the continents stories, talent and creativity and encourages collaboration, nurturing of talent and co-production within and across borders.
The University of the West of England (UWE Bristol) is supporting the event as a Major Sponsor, whose renowned MA Wildlife Filmmaking programme is co-designed with producers, directors and production managers from the BBC Studios Natural History Unit, who will also support as sponsors.
The sold-out previous editions took place in Nairobi in 2023, Tanzania in 2024 and Botswana in 2025. The festival is open to all aspiring and established African film industry professionals as well as the global natural history film industry.
Early bird tickets are on sale here: www.wildscreen.org/wildscreen-festival-kenya
Wildscreen is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to connecting people to nature through storytelling.
