22 Ethiopians complete international training on children’s media
17-08-2009 (Addis Ababa)
The workshop script-writing session
© UNESCO
Film makers and artists gathered at the Goethe-Institut in Addis Ababa last week to gain new insights into the production of children’s television. Participants viewed top quality children’s programmes from around the world, collected by the Prix Jeunesse International, bi-annual children’s television festival held in Munich, Germany.
Viewings were followed by discussions on the strengths and weaknesses of each programme and participants offered insights on what could be learned in order to strengthen children’s content in Ethiopia. The week’s events concluded with a script writing workshop, discussion on future collaborative projects and a short ceremony recognizing participants for their involvement.
The event was organized by Whiz Kids Workshop, in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut and the Prix Jeunesse International. Whiz Kids Workshop received an award at the 2008 Prix Jeunesse festival for their Ethiopian children’s television programme Tsehai Loves Learning. “It was such a privilege to participate in Prix Jeunesse in Germany last year and get exposed to so many inspiring children’s productions from around the world,” said Bruktawit Tigabu, co-founder of Whiz Kids Workshop and Tsehai Loves Learning. “We’re happy that Tsehai is being shared with producers not only in Ethiopia but at other Prix Jeunesse workshops all around the world. Tsehai is the proof that high-quality children’s programmes can be produced with limited resources if you have a lot of creativity and a very dedicated team,” added Mrs Tigabu.
Susanne Rieschel came from Germany to organize the workshop on behalf of Prix Jeunesse International. Ms Rieschel is the head of the children’s and youth programme for ZDF, one of two big public TV channels in Germany based in Frankfurt. She has been involved in children’s television production for more than 20 years. Ms Rieschel co-facilitated the programme with Mrs Tigabu of Whiz Kids Workshop.
“We recently conducted intensive eight-week training in children’s television production with the support of UNESCO’s International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC),” sais Shane Etzenhouser, another Whiz Kids Workshop co-founder. “We had originally planned to share the Prix Jeunesse Suitcase as part of that training, but realized that this aspect of the training should be opened up to all artists and producers in Ethiopia. Thankfully, the Goethe-Institut made that possible.” Students of Whiz Kids Workshop’s production training were also honoured with certificates at the conclusion of the events at the Goethe-Institut. Five new episodes of Tsehai Loves Learning were produced by students as part of their training. These new episodes will be screened in cinema halls in the coming months.
“The Goethe-Institut cooperates with Prix Jeunesse to conduct similar workshops all around the world,” said the new Director of Goethe-Institut in Addis Ababa, Dr Elke Kaschl Mohni. “We hosted another Prix Jeunesse Suitcase here in 2006, which led to Whiz Kids Workshop’s participation and prize at the festival in 2008. The discussions this year have been lively and very fruitful. We hope it will trigger new ideas and projects for children’s television here in Ethiopia. It’s been a great way to begin my work here,” continued Dr Kaschl Mohni.
The event was organized by Whiz Kids Workshop, in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut and the Prix Jeunesse International. Whiz Kids Workshop received an award at the 2008 Prix Jeunesse festival for their Ethiopian children’s television programme Tsehai Loves Learning. “It was such a privilege to participate in Prix Jeunesse in Germany last year and get exposed to so many inspiring children’s productions from around the world,” said Bruktawit Tigabu, co-founder of Whiz Kids Workshop and Tsehai Loves Learning. “We’re happy that Tsehai is being shared with producers not only in Ethiopia but at other Prix Jeunesse workshops all around the world. Tsehai is the proof that high-quality children’s programmes can be produced with limited resources if you have a lot of creativity and a very dedicated team,” added Mrs Tigabu.
Susanne Rieschel came from Germany to organize the workshop on behalf of Prix Jeunesse International. Ms Rieschel is the head of the children’s and youth programme for ZDF, one of two big public TV channels in Germany based in Frankfurt. She has been involved in children’s television production for more than 20 years. Ms Rieschel co-facilitated the programme with Mrs Tigabu of Whiz Kids Workshop.
“We recently conducted intensive eight-week training in children’s television production with the support of UNESCO’s International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC),” sais Shane Etzenhouser, another Whiz Kids Workshop co-founder. “We had originally planned to share the Prix Jeunesse Suitcase as part of that training, but realized that this aspect of the training should be opened up to all artists and producers in Ethiopia. Thankfully, the Goethe-Institut made that possible.” Students of Whiz Kids Workshop’s production training were also honoured with certificates at the conclusion of the events at the Goethe-Institut. Five new episodes of Tsehai Loves Learning were produced by students as part of their training. These new episodes will be screened in cinema halls in the coming months.
“The Goethe-Institut cooperates with Prix Jeunesse to conduct similar workshops all around the world,” said the new Director of Goethe-Institut in Addis Ababa, Dr Elke Kaschl Mohni. “We hosted another Prix Jeunesse Suitcase here in 2006, which led to Whiz Kids Workshop’s participation and prize at the festival in 2008. The discussions this year have been lively and very fruitful. We hope it will trigger new ideas and projects for children’s television here in Ethiopia. It’s been a great way to begin my work here,” continued Dr Kaschl Mohni.
Whiz Kids Workshop is a local production company that focuses on serving Ethiopia through educational media. Their participation at Prix Jeunesse 2008 was made possible by the Goethe-Institut and UNESCO.
The Goethe-Institut is an organization acting worldwide to promote German language and intercultural exchange.
Discussion during the workshop© UNESCO
Participants of the workshop© UNESCO
Related themes/countries
· Ethiopia
· Youth and ICT
· Training of Media Professionals
Share this story:
Contact information
-
Contact
- Paul Hector, UNESCO Office in Addis Ababa
- Bruktawit Tigabu, Whiz Kids Workshop
- Tenagne Tarekegn, Goethe-Institut
- UNESCO
Source