Kenyan filmmaker Stephanie Maseki. PHOTOS | COURTESY
When Stephanie Maseki set out on her journey as a filmmaker her main focus was to be able to tell stories that speak on both the good and bad of the society. When she was not working as a social worker you would find her at the Little Theatre club in Mombasa, where she would perform her many shows.
Her drive and passion for the creative industry perhaps is the reason why she was appointed by the Youth Affairs, Sports and the Arts Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba, to be a member of the Kenya Film Classification Board.
“It was not expected but at the same time it was expected. I have been in the industry at the coast for so long and I have seen its highs and lows. I have seen a lot of artistes living Mombasa for greener pastures in Nairobi and that breaks my heart in a way, because it means we have not created enough opportunities for them where we are,” Maseki said.
“I can even go as far as saying that we have better content than our neighbouring countries, but the reason why their market seems bigger than ours is because they receive the right amount of support from their government. However, as Kenyans we also need to up our game in terms of content, “she said.
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In 2019 she released the film Behind the Closed Hearts, a 40-minute film which tells the story of Ruby (Stephanie Maseki) whose friend Shawn (Dan Sonko) commits suicide.
The movie also touches on the different relationships we have in life, for instance, marriage, friends, family and how they affect us.
“As a social worker I often get a lot of phone calls from people especially young people going through many life challenges. Mostly they are artistes facing unemployment and just want someone to talk to. The Pandemic came and made it difficult for them to get gigs are they are still feeling the aftershocks tills now because businesses are also still grappling to get to where they used to,” she said.
Stephanie joins the list of other notable individuals who have been appointed to various positions by Mr Namwamba.
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The CS announced the establishment of Talanta Hela Council and its two technical committees, one for sports and one for creatives.
The Creatives Technical Committee will be chaired by Daniel Ndambuki, better known by his stage name Churchill.
Members of the creatives committee are artiste Akinyi Odongo, Jimmi Gathu, Catherine Kamau, Esther Akoth (Akothee), Kizito Makhande, Azziad Nasenya, Rosemary Wahu Kagwi, Awadhi Salim, Awadhi, Douglas Kipkirui Langat and Susan Ekasiba.
The creatives team will be in charge of the collection and distribution of royalties to all creatives, propose implementation frameworks for the National Creatives Economy Plan, manage the National Creatives Awards (Kenyan Grammys), deploy the digital space in talent search, identification, nurturing and exposure; establish a robust framework to monetise the creatives sector to expand employment opportunities and support Kenya’s
economic growth.
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