Discover Kevin’s amazing Africa Day watchlist

Poetically, the end of Showmax coincided with the start of Africa Month.

Publicist Kevin Kriedemann had worked with the streamer since its first Original, Tali’s Wedding Diary.

When he found himself with time on his hands for the first time in a decade, he challenged himself to explore Africa, a film a day in May.

25 days in, he’s still going strong. 

So far I’ve watched four Oscar nominees, a double Emmy nominee, and winners from Berlin, Cannes, IDFA and Sundance,” says Kriedemann. “These represent 15 African countries and more than 180-million YouTube views. It’s been really fun: not much of a challenge at all. These aren’t good African films; they are good films. Period.”

Everything so far has been free to watch on YouTube, which now reaches more people than Netflix and Spotify combined.  

With Showmax closing, Prime Video and Paramount retreating from African content, Netflix seemingly focused primarily on Nigeria and South Africa, and the algorithm pushing the industry towards melodrama, reality TV and true crime, YouTube has stepped in to fill the gaps.

“African content is better than it’s ever been,” says Kriedemann. “But somehow there are fewer buyers for local content now, not more.”

He points out that even the big, Oscar-nominated African films like District 9, Timbuktu, Io Capitano and Hotel Rwanda currently aren’t available to stream in SA. 

“YouTube has the content and the audience, but for now the best African films are scattered across multiple channels and easy to miss,” says Kriedemann. “Most of the films I’ve watched this month have views in the millions — but Youth, a Vimeo Staff Pick short film from Egypt, still has under 3,000. Liyana, one of the most awarded African documentaries ever, has under 2,000. So gorgeous African films are still flying under the radar, as they always have.”

To counter this, Kriedemann has started adding what he finds to a YouTube channel, bringing them all together in one curated place for easy access. He’s also started a Substack newsletter, contextualising what he watches. 

For Africa Day, Kriedemann is encouraging audiences across the continent and diaspora to stop doomscrolling and explore a neighbouring country they’ve never visited — from the comfort of their couch, for free on YouTube, from a shortlist curated by a human.

“The reality is that a pan-African film audience doesn’t exist yet,” says Kriedemann, who proposed the initial idea for the pan-African Disney+ anthology Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire. “The only title I worked on at Showmax that topped the charts across all the key territories was The Real Housewives of Lagos. It’s hard to convince Nigerians to watch South African films, or South Africans to watch Kenyan films, and vice versa. Being divided and conquered is another thing we all have in common.”

Kevin gave us three options to share with readers, and we are going with all three.


Option 1: Documentaries

Here are six acclaimed documentaries Kriedemann recommends starting with:

Bobi Wine: The People’s President | Uganda
A pop star runs for president in Uganda. Can he end Museveni’s 35-year-reign?

Oscar nominee: Best Documentary

Watch on YouTube

Liyana | eSwatini
Gcina Mhlope guides orphans in eSwatini through choosing the story they want to tell.

35 international awards, including Best Documentary at LA Film Festival and the Grand Prize at New York International Children’s Film Festival.

Watch on YouTube

Mama Africa | Guinea & South Africa
The unforgettable story of Miriam Makeba, the first African to win a Grammy.

Audience Award, Berlin

Watch on YouTube

Sisters in Law | Cameroon
In a small courthouse in Cameroon, two women – a prosecutor and court president – are determined to change a village.

Audience Award, IDFA
92% critics rating, Rotten Tomatoes

Watch on YouTube

Softie | Kenya
Photojournalist Boniface “Softie” Mwangi runs for office in a regional Kenyan election, which puts pressure on his young family and his idealism.

Editing Prize, Sundance

Watch on YouTube

The Flood | Botswana
From desert to delta to savannah, two things never change in the Okavango: it is always beautiful and always deadly.

Nominated for Emmys for its cinematography and Angela Bassett’s narration

Watch on YouTube

Option 2: Films

Here are three acclaimed films Kriedemann recommends starting with:

Goodbye Julia | Sudan
Just before the secession of South Sudan, a married former singer from the north seeks redemption for causing the death of a southern man.

Freedom Prize: Un Certain Regard, Cannes

Watch on YouTube

Nairobi Half Life | Kenya
Mwas arrives in Nairobi to become an actor but his first role is as a real-life gangster.

• AFI Fest Breakthrough Audience Award.
• Top 10, Audience Award, Rotterdam
• 2.5 million views on YouTube

Watch on YouTube
Supa Modo | Kenya
An ode to escapism, Supa Modo shows that it takes a village to raise a superhero.

Winner of over 40 international awards, including Best European Children’s Film from the European Children’s Film Association, and a Special Mention at Berlin in the Generation KPlus category.

Watch on YouTube
Option 3: Short films

Here are seven acclaimed short films Kriedemann recommends starting with:

Binta and the Great Idea | Senegal
Binta tells us about everyday life in her village, the importance of education for girls, and her father’s great idea to make the world a better place.

Oscar nominee: Best Live Action Short

Watch on YouTube

Brotherhood | Tunisia
A Tunisian father is shaken when his son returns from fighting in Syria with a mysterious new wife.

Oscar nominee: Best Live Action Short

Watch on YouTube

Butterfly | Algeria
Inspired by the true story of Alfred Nakache, a Jewish-Algerian swimmer who competed at the 1936 Olympics — in Nazi Germany.

Oscar nominee: Best Animated Short

Watch on YouTube

Jakkals13 | South Africa
When a sniper’s hit goes wrong, he must rely on his deadbeat housemate.

Vimeo Staff Pick

Watch on YouTube

Jonah | Tanzania
After two friends photograph a gigantic fish, Zanzibar becomes a tourist hotspot – but not like they dreamed.

Best Short Film, the Jury Special Award, and the Audience Award, Shots Young Director Awards at Cannes Lions

Watch on YouTube

Last Night | Ghana
A married man gives in to temptation, with even worse consequences than his wife finding out.

• Official selection, Annecy
• 2 million views on Youtube

Watch on YouTube

Youth | Egypt
A teenage girl is pushed to consider her own boundaries.

• Best Short Film Under 15m at Palm Springs
• Vimeo Staff Pick and Short of the Week

Watch on YouTube

All the films above, and more, are available on this #AfricaMonthFilmChallenge YouTube playlist.

* Read more about the films on the Plot Twist Africa Substack, and subscribe to be notified as new films are added.