Broadcasting
Winners of Netflix & Unesco ‘African Folktales’ Emerged
After launching a groundbreaking competition to find some of Sub-Saharan Africa’s up and coming filmmakers, entitled ‘African Folktales, Reimagined’ Netflix and UNESCO can now announce the six winners.
Each winner will receive US$25,000 plus a production budget of US$75,000 to create short films through a local production company and under the guidance of Netflix-appointed supervising producer and industry mentors from across the continent.
Staying true to the competition’s aim of showcasing Africa’s rich cultural heritage, the short films will feature reimagined African folktales presented in multiple African languages.
The final six filmmakers – you can watch them here – will now go into the development phase of their projects, before starting production on the short films that will eventually premiere on Netflix as part of ‘An Anthology of African Folktales’ later this year.
The competition was launched by Netflix and UNESCO in October 2021, with the goal of promoting diverse local stories and bringing them to the world.
The competition was also a step towards creative equity – as part of the Netflix Creative Equity Fund, which aims at enabling new voices from underrepresented communities within entertainment to bring their perspectives to a global audience.
“Congratulations to the six winners! The fact that their films will be shown to a global audience is part of our commitment to promote cultural diversity around the world. Like the African movie sector itself, these six individuals have a very bright future ahead of them.
The laureates, and all the participants in this competition more broadly, highlight the rich, diverse and ever-evolving culture that Sub-Saharan Africa has to offer and that UNESCO wants to promote.
We cannot wait to celebrate these films at a special premier at UNESCO headquarters in Paris at the end of this year.”- Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO.
Ben Amadasun, Netflix Director of Content in Africa said, “It’s been a truly inspiring journey for us to experience the level of creative talent from our candidates.
“From the thousands of applicants we’ve received to the Top 21 and finally, the 6 winners – it’s evident that Africa is filled with amazing storytelling talent that is ready to share their different perspectives and celebrate Africa’s rich culture and heritage.
Congratulations to the winners – and to emerging filmmakers who didn’t make it – we urge you to continue your passion of telling African stories. The world is ready to experience your talent and we at Netflix, will continue to be your biggest cheerleaders in this journey.”
Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) has announced the postponement of its maiden annual Public Relations, Reputation, Ideas, Concepts and Excellence (PRICE) Awards and Prizes to January 25, 2026.
NIPR
The event, earlier scheduled for December 7, 2025, was deferred to accommodate stakeholders whose observance of Christmas festivities had commenced earlier than expected.
Chairman of the Organising Committee, Mr. Israel Opayemi, urged stakeholders to note the new date and prepare to participate in the ceremony.
He said the awards would motivate professionals, practitioners and scholars, while enhancing Nigeria’s global competitiveness in the public relations ecosystem and strengthening brand equity for all stakeholders.
Opayemi reaffirmed the Committee’s commitment to delivering a best-in-class award administration and ceremony, describing the PRICE Awards as a credible and enduring platform to identify, celebrate and elevate outstanding individuals, campaigns and organisations shaping the public relations landscape across sectors.
The development of the PRICE Awards peaked in September 2025 when the NIPR President and Chairman, Council, Dr. Ike Neliaku, inaugurated a 12-man committee to organise the maiden edition. The inauguration followed the Council’s adoption of the report of a technical team tasked with establishing the awards.
Netflix has announced a landmark agreement to acquire Warner Bros. and HBO Max in a transaction valued at $82.7 billion, a move analysts say will reshape the global entertainment industry.
Netflix
The deal, which includes Warner Bros.’ film and television studios, HBO, HBO Max, and Warner Bros. Games, was unanimously approved by the boards of both companies. Under the terms, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shareholders will receive $23.25 in cash and $4.50 in Netflix shares for each WBD share.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos described the acquisition as “a defining moment” for the streaming giant, noting that the company intends to maintain Warner Bros.’ current operations while expanding its production capacity.
“By combining Warner Bros.’ incredible library of shows and movies with Netflix’s culture-defining titles, we can give audiences more of what they love and help define the next century of storytelling,” Sarandos said.
The transaction is expected to close within 12 to 18 months, following the planned spin-off of WBD’s TV networks division, Discovery Global, in 2026. Netflix projects annual cost savings of $2–3 billion by the third year after completion and expects the deal to be accretive to earnings per share by year two.
Industry groups, including the Directors Guild of America and Cinema United, have raised concerns about the impact on movie theaters, while regulators are expected to scrutinize the deal over antitrust issues. Netflix has pledged to continue supporting theatrical releases, with Warner Bros.’ cinema commitments running through 2029.
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav hailed the agreement, saying it “combines two of the greatest storytelling companies in the world to bring to even more people the entertainment they love.”
Observers note that the acquisition comes 15 years after former Time Warner chief Jeff Bewkes dismissed Netflix as “the Albanian army,” underscoring the dramatic shift in the entertainment landscape.
A major shake‑up rocks viewers and subscribers of DSTV/GOTV as many channels are set to shut down and be removed on January 1, 2026.
The trigger for the upcoming shut‑down is a breakdown in negotiations between the owners of multiple global channels and the pay‑TV operator.
As of December 2025, the deal between Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) and DStv/GOtv has expired and the two parties have not reached a renewal agreement.
Without a new carriage/distribution agreement, the channels belonging to WBD risk being pulled off the DStv/GOtv line‑up.
This is the most significant content cutback the service has seen in years.
The affected channels are:
Discovery Channel
TLC
Cartoonito
Cartoon Network
CNN International
Food Network
The Travel Channel
TNT
Investigation Discovery
Real Time
HGTV
Discovery Family
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