new skills, build stronger institutions,
diversify income streams, as well as utilize
our skills to support innovations in other
sectors. If we do this we will emerge into a
future in which creatives are able to create
sustainable livelihoods from their work.
Now Is The Time To Learn
Though the Kenyan government has begun
to ease lockdown orders, we are unlikely
to see the large gatherings that supported
the livelihoods of many creatives. In our
#CreativesAgainstCovid webinar series,
our panelists, all celebrated creatives,
have suggested using this time to learn
new skills. Many organizations including
Adobe, Cannes Film Festival, MultiChoice
Talent Factory, and ADMI, to name a few,
have a wide variety of courses available
online for creatives looking to emerge from
the crisis with marketable skills.
Creatives can now learn anything from
photography, film, and sound all online, and
they can choose the learning experiences
that work best for them. Anything from
massive open online courses (MOOCs) on
platforms like Udemy which allow you to
learn at your own pace, or interactive onone-one
experiences like ADMI Online are
all available at the touch of our fingertips.
Whatever methods creatives choose, they
need to emerge from this crisis more skilled
and knowledgeable about how we can
create value for our fans and clients.
Our panelists suggested that essential skills
will be those that can be leveraged online.
Digital Marketing is now a key skill set
for creatives as clients engage more online.
Businesses that are skilled at targeting the
right customer and engaging with them
creatively and effectively will win the future.
Building Stronger
Organizations
If the creative industry is going to emerge
resilient after this crisis, we must use this
time to organize under strong advocacy
bodies that will speak for and support
creatives. One immediate challenge that
was evident as soon as the government
announced closures, was that there were
several fragmented bodies trying to speak
on behalf of creatives.
While the government has set aside Ksh 100
million to support creatives, it seems likely
that implementation and disbursement will
Global health officials suggest that social
distancing is expected to be the new normal
until a cure or vaccine is found. If this
is the case, how can creatives manage this
crisis? If the world has changed as we know
it how can creatives retool to survive and
emerge more resilient than before?
be a challenge as there is not a clear main
body representing all creatives, that has
buy-in across the industry. The majority
of creatives, 61% according to the Heva
survey, do not belong to any cultural
creative industry (CCI) representation or
organization in their sector or sub-sector.
Organizing creative sub-sectors under
umbrella bodies like KEPSA, which
already has a strong lobbying framework,
or developing an all-inclusive Arts
Council, will be imperative to channel
necessary policy recommendations that
will strengthen the creative industry.
Raising awareness of the existence of
such bodies and the value they provide to
creatives will be key.
Policies that support the social and
economic recognition of artists, as well
as those that encourage formalization,
will obligate the government to build
structures that will support creatives.
It Is All Business
Building sustainable livelihoods for
creatives is also key to the resilience of
the industry. The government guidelines
to social distance immediately cut off
the livelihoods of many creatives. DJs,
photographers, event planners, musicians,
and others in the creative value chains
such as make-up artists and other support
roles are not able to earn an income for an
indefinite period of time. In Heva’s report,
34% of creatives reported cancellation of
events and orders.
Creative businesses can no longer rely
on the same traditional models to earn
revenue as they did before, since social
distancing is likely to be in place for the
next 18-24 months. Resilient creative
businesses will have to adapt to a new
normal of engaging customers on multiple
platforms, and building multiple streams
of income.
We have seen many creatives come up with
innovative ways to connect to fans and
build new streams of income. Creatives
Garage hosted the Lock-In Festival,
where they showcased films, music, art,
and even created spaces for vendors. On
social media, there are concerts, parties,
and performances every day as artists
keep their fans entertained at home.
These artists have demonstrated the value
of creative work in public life as they have
gathered, entertained, and comforted
people across the globe. Successful
creatives will channel this attention
to platforms where they can directly
monetize their content, merchandise,
and even their performances. Creatives
that can demonstrate they have an
engaged following can turn that into
sponsorships from brands that are also
now looking for their customers online.
The practice of fans directly supporting
artists is also making a 21st-century
comeback. Creatives can solicit
support from their fans on platforms
such as Patreon where users can buy
a subscription to support an artist. In
Kenya, Turnapp.net is a platform where
creatives can post their work and receive
direct payments from their fans. For
photographers, they can use the “gold”
in their hard drives to post on stock
image sites that companies are more
likely to use these days, rather than
hiring a photographer.
Filmmakers and other content producers
will have to find ways to distribute their
work directly to consumers in a world
where there are no cinemas and festivals
to showcase their work. Vumi Central
is an upcoming distribution channel
for African content where producers
can monetize their films, music, books,
games, and animations. Musicians
also have a variety of streaming sites
including iTunes, Spotify, and Tidal
where they can post their music and
collect revenue.
Now more than ever it is imperative
for creatives to protect their intellectual
property. Registering work with copyright
bodies is essential to secure their income
as more of their content is shared online.
Creatives will require a shift beyond seeing
their work as mere expression. Successful
creatives will view their creative outputs
as products that they can use to create
thriving livelihoods.
Everyone Is Moving Online,
Let’s Help Them
The future is now here, even if it has
come sooner than we thought. Creative
technology skills are more important than
ever as public life moves online by force.
Virtual Reality, Animation, Gaming, and
Film are now going to be key to building
up other sectors. For example, as schools
move online, animation and gaming can
be used as pedagogical tools to keep
students engaged. In tourism, Virtual and
Augmented Reality (VR/AR) will enable
people to tour the world from the comfort
of their homes.
wTour companies and hotels are already
using VR to whet the appetite of travelers
confined to their homes. Healthcare, a
sector where personal interaction was
once considered essential, has also been
made to move online. ADMF is building
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The future is now
here, even if it has
come sooner than
we thought. Creative
technology skills
are more important
than ever as public
life moves online by
force. Virtual Reality,
Animation, Gaming,
and Film are
now going to be key
to building up other
sectors.
multimedia tools that community health
workers can use to train and manage
Covid-19 in communities that are now
inaccessible due to travel restrictions.
In this period we can reimagine uses of
creative work that can add value to other
sectors, thus adding value to the creative
industry as a whole.
If every cloud has a silver lining, then
the silver lining of Covid-19 is that it
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has allowed us to see the challenges of
the creative industry afresh. “Never let a
good crisis go to waste” is an adage that
is especially relevant as it would be remiss
for us to waste this opportunity to make
changes that will build a sustainable
future for the industry.
We can use the momentum of this crisis
to engage governments that are now
receptive to hearing how they can support
creatives. In addition, we can re-engage
with our fans and clients to create value
that they will be willing to pay for, creating
new income streams in a low-touch, social
distancing world.
Finally, we can reassert the value of creative
work in public life. “As you binge-watch
your tenth Netflix series or read a book,
or sleep to music, remember this: in the
darkest days, when everything stopped,
you turned to artists.” - Tal Shuman
Mukui Mbindyo is the Partnerships
Officer at Africa Digital Media
Group. You can commune with
her on this or related matters
via email at: Partnerships@
africadigitalmedia.org.
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