Realness Institute, the Cape Town-based organization that supports independent African storytellers working in film and television, has announced a new board and Alumni Advisory Council, framing the move as part of a new phase of sustainability for the organization.
Founded in 2015, Realness has built writing and producing development programs for African screen professionals. Its work includes the Creative Producer Indaba, a fellowship for producers built around sustainability and co-financing opportunities, and the AuthenticA Series Lab, which supports episodic content development in partnership with StoryBoard Collective and Series Mania.
According to the organization, more than 200 film and television professionals have come through its programs. Realness says alumni have gone on to become award-winning producers, writers, and directors, with premieres and prizes at festivals including Sundance, Cannes, and Venice.
The newly appointed board includes Dillion Phiri, a filmmaker, founder, and creative entrepreneur known for building Creative Nestlings; Enyinnaya Omeruah, a Nigerian talent manager and film financier with experience in production and distribution; Moussa Sene Absa, the Senegalese painter, writer, musician, and filmmaker whose work has been recognized at Carthage, FESPACO, and the Berlinale; and Thabiso Molefe, a South African media and communications professional with experience in television, public-sector communication, and political stakeholder engagement across the Southern African Development Community region.
Alongside the new board, Realness has named a nine-member alumni advisory sub-committee that will serve under the board. The group includes Berry Hahn, a sales agent and independent consultant; Godisamang Khunou, a South African filmmaker and producer; Kudi Maradzika, a Zimbabwean-South African screenwriter, director, and producer; Omotunde Akiode, a Nigerian screenwriter with live-action television experience; Lara Sousa, a Mozambican director, artist, and founder of Kulunga Filmes; Maéva Ranaïvojaona, a filmmaker and producer working across documentary and fiction; Mimi Bartels, a Nigerian producer with experience in production and film financing; Tapiwa Chipfupa, a Zimbabwean director, producer, and writer; and Tshenolo Mabale, a South African story development executive and producer.
Realness said the alumni sub-committee will draw on direct experience of the organization's programs to support both the board and the operational team, while also contributing to the development of an alumni network offering and the organization's strategic direction.
In the language of the announcement, the move is a governance expansion tied to long-term organizational stability. Realness managing director and co-founder Mehret Mandefro said that across much of Africa, limited government support for film and television leaves filmmakers carrying risk on their own, and said the new board and alumni advisory structure would help provide stronger support for African screen talent.
The March 9, 2026 announcement places Realness in a more formal institutional phase after a decade of program work. The organization is presenting this new structure as a way to strengthen continuity, deepen alumni involvement, and give its writing and producing programs a firmer long-term base.
