ZAMBIAN PRODUCERS, THIS IS YOUR CHANCE: TAKE YOUR UNSCRIPTED IDEAS TO THE INTERNATIONAL MARKET
MULTICHOICE GROUP AND FAME WEEK AFRICA OPEN EXCLUSIVE CALL FOR UNSCRIPTED PROJECTS
There is another major opportunity emerging for African producers, and Zambian producers need to pay attention.
MultiChoice Group, a CANAL+ company, in partnership with FAME Week Africa, has launched an exclusive Unscripted Call for Projects for MIP Africa 2026, inviting African producers to submit bold, premium entertainment and reality formats with the potential to travel across African markets and beyond.
For Zambian producers, this is not simply another call for submissions.
This is an opportunity to put a Zambian idea in front of international content decision makers.
The submission deadline is 12 October 2026, with shortlisted producers expected to have an opportunity to pitch their projects live at FAME Week Africa 2026 in Cape Town from 28 to 30 October 2026.
WHAT ARE THEY LOOKING FOR?
The call is focused specifically on unscripted formats, particularly entertainment and reality concepts.
But producers should understand that the opportunity is not simply asking:
"Do you have a good idea?"
The expectation is much bigger.
Producers need to demonstrate how their format works, how the storytelling develops, how audiences will engage with it, how participants or contestants are selected, what makes the concept distinctive, and whether the format has the potential to become a franchise that can travel across different territories.
Among the qualities highlighted in the call are:
, A powerful one sentence hook, Addictive storytelling, Tension and unexpected twists, Strong audience engagement mechanics, International and regional market potential, Premium production ambition, Commercial viability, Franchise potential across MultiChoice Group and CANAL+ territories
This means producers must think beyond the programme itself.
Think format. Think audience. Think business. Think franchise.
ZAMBIA HAS IDEAS
Zambia has no shortage of creative people with ideas.
Our producers understand our communities.
Our filmmakers understand our culture.
Our television professionals understand our audiences.
Our entertainers understand what makes people laugh, debate and engage.
What we now need to do is become more confident in packaging those ideas for the market.
A concept that works beautifully in Zambia could potentially be developed into a format that can work in other African territories.
The key is understanding what makes the idea universally engaging while remaining authentically African.
DON'T JUST PITCH A SHOW, BUILD A FORMAT
This is where Zambian producers need to change their approach.
If you have an idea for a reality programme, don't simply describe what happens in the programme.
Explain the format engine.
What happens in every episode?
What keeps viewers coming back?
What makes participants compete?
Where does the tension come from?
How are decisions made?
How does the audience participate?
What can change from one season to another?
Can the format be adapted for another country?
Can it be produced in different languages?
Can it accommodate different personalities and cultures?
These are the questions that can turn an interesting idea into a commercially viable television property.
THINK BEYOND ZAMBIA
One of the most exciting aspects of this opportunity is the emphasis on projects that can travel across markets.
This is important for Zambia.
We should not always develop content with the assumption that its only possible audience is Zambian.
A strong Zambian concept can begin here and expand.
Imagine a reality format created in Zambia that could eventually be adapted in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania or other African markets.
That is the kind of thinking producers need to develop.
Start local, but design for scale.
THE BUSINESS OF CONTENT
The call also reinforces an important principle that NAMA has continued to encourage within Zambia's creative sector:
Film and television are businesses.
Creativity is at the heart of what we do, but content must also be commercially viable.
A producer must understand audiences, budgets, production models, distribution, intellectual property, sponsorship, advertising, licensing and international partnerships.
The strongest ideas are not necessarily the most expensive ideas.
They are ideas that have a clear creative identity, a strong audience proposition and a sustainable production model.
THIS IS ALSO AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ZAMBIAN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
For years, African creatives have often created content without sufficiently protecting or developing the intellectual property behind their ideas.
This opportunity should encourage producers to think differently.
A successful unscripted format can become more than a television programme.
It can become a brand, a franchise and an intellectual property asset.
That can create opportunities for future seasons, adaptations, sponsorships, licensing and international distribution.
Zambian producers therefore need to start thinking about their ideas not only as productions, but as creative assets with long term commercial value.
DON'T SAY, "SOMEONE ELSE WILL DO IT"
Every international opportunity that comes to Africa creates the possibility that another country will take the opportunity before Zambia does.
We should not sit back and watch.
If you have an unscripted entertainment or reality concept that you believe can work, develop it and submit it.
Do not wait until your idea is perfect.
Professionalise it.
Get your creative team involved.
Test the concept.
Strengthen the format.
Understand your audience.
Prepare your submission properly.
And most importantly, enter the room.
ZAMBIAN PRODUCERS, THIS ONE IS FOR YOU
NAMA is encouraging Zambian producers and content creators to seriously consider this opportunity.
We have repeatedly called for Zambian creatives to move from simply producing content to developing content that can compete in regional and international markets.
This is exactly the kind of opportunity that can help us take that step.
The submission deadline is 12 October 2026.
Shortlisted producers will have the opportunity to pitch at FAME Week Africa 2026 in Cape Town from 28 to 30 October 2026.
The question is no longer whether Zambia has ideas.
The question is whether we are prepared to package those ideas well enough for the world to see them.
So, to every Zambian producer sitting with an unscripted concept, a reality format, an entertainment idea or an original television property:
THIS IS YOUR INVITATION.
Develop it.
Package it.
Submit it.
And let us make sure that when the international content buyers are looking across Africa, Zambia is in the room.
Morgan MbuloPresident, National Association of Media Arts, NAMAMedia Consultant
NAMA 2026 ©
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