Lola Kenya Screen school outreach

Lola Kenya Screen runs a weekly school outreach programme for schools in and around Nairobi every week.

Through the pan-African, Africalia-supported Cinetoile African Cinema project, Lola Kenya Screen traversed the breadth and width of Nairobi and its environs, introducing primary school pupils and secondary school, college and university students to the various aspects of film criticism, film journalism and media literacy.

The interaction with more than 4922 youngsters in various Kenyan primary and secondary schools, colleges and universities proved that young people in these institutions are not only talented but are  yearning for a chance to understand more about the media and put their skills to use. Even at higher institutions of learning such as universities, the desire to apply the acquired knowledge is lacking. Kenyatta University film students, for instance, say that they are looking for areas where they can continually put to use their classroom knowledge yet such opportunities are hard to come by. This not only shows the poor cultural systems in the country, but also point out to many more weaknesses in the media systems in Kenya. The lack of support from established media houses, lack of interest among practising journalists and lack of facilities not only make it difficult to children and youth to appreciate creativity and culture but also affects the quality of journalism in the region. This, in turn, contends Ogova Ondego, stifles creative and cultural expression.