Amman film festival accepting submissions [MENA]

Arab filmmakers are invited to apply for this festival.

Amman International Film Festival (AIFF) is accepting films to its first edition, which will be held April 13 to 18, 2020 in Amman, Jordan.

The competition has the following categories: best first-time director, best first-time director of photography, best first-time screenwriter, best first-time editor, best first-time lead actor, best first-time lead actress and best documentary and best short film.

Films must be produced in 2019 and 2020 in their original language. If not in English, the films must include English subtitles.

Cash awards will be announced in January 2020.

The deadline is Jan. 31, 2020.

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

CFPD offers Online course on website building for journalists [Latin America]

Journalists, entrepreneurs, designers and others can register for this online course in Spanish.

The Center for Digital Journalism (CFPD, in Spanish) at the University of Guadalajara organizes a course in website building Jan. 27 to March 1, 2020.

Instructor Fidel Romero will teach participants the steps for creating and maintaining a journalism website, using basic design tools and processes, including open access content managers.

The cost is MXN1,800 for participants based in Mexico and US$90 for those outside Mexico.

The registration deadline is Jan. 12, 2019.

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

World Nomads offers Travel scholarship for photographers [Worldwide]

Aspiring photographers can apply for a mentored trip to Mongolia.

World Nomads is accepting applications for a travel photography scholarship. The winner will spend 10 days under the mentorship of travel photographer Richard I'Anson documenting  Mongolia's nomadic people, culture and landscapes.

The trip will take place early July 2020. All expenses, including travel insurance, are covered.

Applicants must be proficient in English and submit a five-photo story that tells a story from a place they have visited.

The deadline is Nov. 27.


For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

INTERVIEW: How to solve problems of Nigerian media –Arogundade (I)

Mr. Lanre Arogundade is so many things woven into one.  A man passionate about issues concerning the Nigerian media, he is a journalist of outstanding status, an author, a human rights activist and at a time a politician among other things.  Noted for his penchant for doing battle with anything that may want to obstruct the ease of doing media business in its best form, Arogundade is also a trainer of media practitioners.  With the International Press Centre, IPC, which he founded as a useful tool, he has championed the cause of ensuring press freedom in Nigeria and beyond, in addition to helping shape for the better, the future of media practitioners.

In this interview with SAKIBU OLOKOJOBI, the Director of IPC speaks on a number of issues relating to the media in Nigeria and how best to loosen the grips of the problems threatening to snuff life out of it.  Excerpts:

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

INTERVIEW: How to solve problems of Nigerian media –Arogundade (II)

Mr. Lanre Arogundade is so many things woven into one.  A man passionate about issues concerning the Nigerian media, he is a journalist of outstanding status, an author, a human rights activist and at a time a politician among other things.  Noted for his penchant for doing battle with anything that may want to obstruct the ease of doing media business in its best form, Arogundade is also a trainer of media practitioners.  With the International Press Centre, IPC, which he founded as a useful tool, he has championed the cause of ensuring press freedom in Nigeria and beyond, in addition to helping shape for the better, the future of media practitioners.

In this interview with SAKIBU OLOKOJOBI, the Director of IPC speaks on a number of issues relating to the media in Nigeria and how best to loosen the grips of the problems threatening to snuff life out of it.  Excerpts:

As an organisation interested in the protection of the rights of journalists, what has IPC done in this respect and what are your plans for the future?

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

Professional development exchange program for journalists available [Germany, UK, US]

Journalists ages 25 to 35 from the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany can apply for a fellowship in Russia.

The Alfa Fellowship Program, sponsored by Alfa-Bank, is a professional development exchange program that places qualified young professionals in work assignments at leading organizations in Russia.

The program offers language training in Germany, the United States and the United Kingdom, an orientation in Washington, four months of language classes in Moscow, and regional excursions throughout Russia and one to a neighboring country. Fellows will be placed at host organizations that meet the interests of participants.

Fellows receive travel, free housing, monthly stipends and insurance.

The deadline is Nov. 15.

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

Grants for filmmakers available [Worldwide]

Novice and experienced documentarians can compete for a grant.

Filmmakers Without Borders provides grants for narrative, documentary, experimental and new media projects in various stages of production.

Grant amounts range from US$100 to US$5,000 and can cover development, production, post-production and film festival applications.

Applicants must submit a variety of materials including a project proposal and a video essay.

The deadline is Jan. 1, 2020.

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

Media freedom fellowship available [Sub-Saharan Africa]

Media professionals with demonstrable leadership skills can apply for this fellowship in London.

The University of Westminster hosts the Chevening Africa Media Freedom Fellowship (CAMFF), funded by the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office.

Fellows will participate in the eight-week program titled "New Media for a New Africa: Freedom of Speech, Economic Prosperity and Good Governance," which combines journalism values and new ways to make reporting more effective and enhance its reach and impact.

Candidates must be citizens of Ethiopia, Burundi, Cameroon, Gambia, Malawi, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, South Sudan, Uganda or Zimbabwe.

The fellowship provides airfare and living expenses for the duration of the fellowship.

The deadline is Dec. 9.

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

Festival of Migrant Film accepting entries [Worldwide]

Filmmakers worldwide can participate in this festival.

The Festival of Migrant Film, organized by the Slovenian Philanthropy, is accepting entries. The festival will take place June 2020 in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

The festival will accept both documentary and feature films that highlight diverse topics related to immigration, asylum/refugees and integration of migrants into multicultural societies.

Films may be in any language but must include subtitles if they are not in Slovene or English.

The deadline is Jan. 15, 2020.

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

Course focuses on cross-border investigative journalism [Western Balkans]

Journalists in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia with investigative journalism experience can apply for this free program.

The Center for Media, Data, and Society at the Central European University's School of Public Policy is organizing a cross-border investigative journalism course, combining online and offline training.

The course will start with intensive training Dec. 10 and 11 in Belgrade, Serbia, followed by eight weeks of online instruction.

Participants will learn the latest investigative reporting techniques to be able to research, conduct and present region-specific cross-border investigations, and more.

The program covers accommodations and travel costs.

The deadline is Nov. 15.

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

Registration ongoing for online course on machine learning for journalism [Worldwide]

Journalists and other professionals can participate in this four-week course.

The Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas is hosting the Big Online Course (BOC) "Hands-on machine learning solutions for journalists."

The course will be taught from Nov. 18 to Dec. 15, by John Keefe, investigations editor and technical architect at Quartz.

Participants will get hands-on experience with existing machine learning tools, learn how to get a machine to detect something particular in an image or a video and begin to sort documents based on content.

Students do not need experience with machine learning or coding, but they will must have a computer with an internet browser and an account on Google.

Registration costs US$95 and is ongoing, but spots are limited.

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com

Conference on investigative journalism open [Ukraine]

Investigative journalists can apply to attend this conference.

The Regional Press Development Institute hosts an annual conference on investigative journalism, which will be held Dec. 13 to 15 in Kyiv. The theme of this year's conference is "Investigative journalism in new media reality."

Topics include access to information and open data, new technologies for collecting information, how to find funding for investigative journalism projects and more.

Participation is free for selected journalists. The organizers will cover travel and accommodations.

The deadline is Nov. 15.

For more information, click stellanwofia.blogspot.com