By Ishmael Sallieu Koroma
For filmmakers across Africa and the Caribbean, making a good film is only part of the challenge. Getting it distributed, finding an audience and earning meaningful revenue from it can be just as difficult. Tyrone of stories, but opportunities to distribute and monetize that work remain limited.
Satchwell, Founder and CEO of AfroPix, is now building the UK-registered streaming platform around African and Caribbean cinema. His goal is to give filmmakers another route to global audiences while creating a payment model that rewards creators for the people who watch their work.
One of the platform’s biggest ambitions is its “First to 54” initiative, which aims to feature content from every African country. AfroPix has already secured an official showcase partnership with the Ethiopian International Film Festival and is working with filmmakers, film boards, festivals and cultural institutions as it expands its catalogue.
The plans extend beyond streaming. From mid-2027, AfroPix intends to train 10,000 filmmakers across Sub-Saharan Africa, with at least half of the places reserved for women. Over time, Satchwell wants the platform to play a wider role in production, training, distribution and promotion.
Satchwell wants AfroPix to help close that gap.
The idea came to him while shooting a documentary in The Gambia. What he saw reinforced a problem familiar to filmmakers across the continent: there is enormous creative talent and no shortage
In this interview with Pan African Visions, Satchwell explains why he created AfroPix, how the “First to 54” initiative will work, why he believes filmmakers need a different compensation model and where he wants the platform to be in the years ahead.
What inspired the creation of AfroPix, and what gaps in the distribution, visibility and monetization of African and Caribbean films are you seeking to address?
I created AfroPix because I wanted to solve the frustrating distribution and monetization hurdles that have quietly held back incredible talent across Africa and the Caribbean for far too long.
While Africa is undeniably rich in natural resources, I truly believe one of its greatest assets is the boundless creativity of its people. Our mission is to showcase that brilliance and ensure creators are finally paid what they deserve.
I was actually shooting a documentary in The Gambia when I came up with the concept of AfroPix.
Why is now the right time for AfroPix? What changes in African cinema, streaming and global demand for African stories make you confident the platform can succeed?
Now is the right moment because AfroPix is live and operational as a UK-registered global streaming platform. We are already building direct distribution pipelines with national film boards, cultural ministries, festival curators and creators to meet the growing global appetite for authentic regional cinema.
Your “First to 54” initiative aims to feature content from every African country. How will it work, how far have you progressed, and what will it take to achieve truly continent-wide representation?
Our “First to 54” mission is driving our cross-continental rollout as we partner directly with filmmakers, creators and national film boards to ensure every single African nation is represented on the platform.
That momentum was proudly kicked off by our official showcase partnership with the Ethiopian International Film Festival. We are making excellent progress and onboarding content from across Africa and the Caribbean as we execute our mission.
With Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, YouTube and other platforms already carrying African content, what makes AfroPix different, and why should filmmakers and viewers choose your platform?
Viewers and filmmakers should choose our platform because we step away from traditional algorithmic monopolies and low local advertising rates by offering a transparent, creator-first compensation structure built specifically to champion authentic African and Caribbean cinema.
AfroPix says creators will be paid for every view, with an illustrative rate of $0.03 per view. How will this compensation model work, how sustainable is it, and how will you guarantee transparency and timely payments as the platform grows?
We make sure creators get paid for every single view, regardless of audience size, under a straightforward and transparent structure calculated in US dollars. For example, that could mean $300 for 10,000 views, scaling up to $3,000 for 100,000 views.
AfroPix only really works if our creators are genuinely happy, so we keep things open and transparent as we partner hand-in-hand with them to bring their stories to the world.
The Ethiopian International Film Festival partnership is an early milestone. What lessons are you drawing from Ethiopia, which markets are next, and what kind of partnerships are you seeking from film boards, festivals and governments across Africa?
The Ethiopian International Film Festival partnership has been an incredible early milestone for us. It has demonstrated the kind of collaborative, official distribution pipeline we want to build with film festivals, cultural ministries and national film boards.
AfroPix plans to train 10,000 filmmakers from 2027, with at least 50 percent being women. How will the initiative be funded and implemented, and how will you ensure participants gain skills that translate into productions, careers and sustainable income?
Kicking off in mid-2027, we are launching a major initiative to train 10,000 filmmakers across Sub-Saharan Africa, with a firm guarantee that a minimum of 50 percent of participants will be women. We want this to drive real and measurable female empowerment.
Training will take place online and through in-person workshops.
Why should viewers make AfroPix part of their streaming choices? What content, experience or access will they find on AfroPix that they cannot easily get from the major global platforms?
Viewers should make AfroPix part of their streaming choices because we are on a mission to tell authentic stories by bringing them high-quality regional features, documentaries and shorts that they simply will not find on the legacy global services, while supporting the creators behind them.
We are also producing our own exclusive in-house content.
Where do you want AfroPix to be in five to ten years? Beyond streaming, could it evolve into a broader ecosystem for financing, producing, training, distributing and promoting African and Caribbean cinema globally?
Yes to all of the above. Over the next five to ten years, I see AfroPix growing into a complete and thriving global ecosystem for African and Caribbean cinema.
We want to expand our “First to 54” pipelines, scale our filmmaker training programmes and help build a sustainable and equitable creative economy worldwide.
*Culled from September Edition of PAV Magazine
