The Digital Creator Africa Academy (DCAA) has partnered with Singapore-based AI video company Video Rebirth to provide AI filmmaking training and scholarships to 100 African creators focused on vertical and microdrama production.
The partnership was announced on May 15 at the WIFT Africa Global South Pavilion during the Marche du Film in Cannes. Under the agreement, Video Rebirth will integrate its BACH AI video engine into DCAA’s AI Filmmaking curriculum and provide scholarships for 100 participants enrolled in the programme’s AI filmmaking stream.
According to DCAA, the initiative marks Video Rebirth’s first institutional partnership in Africa and includes the placement of two BACH facilitators within the training cohort for the duration of the programme.
Founded by creative strategist Ifeoma ‘Oma Areh and media executive Elijah Affi, DCAA launched earlier this year in Lagos as a specialist training academy focused on vertical storytelling and microdrama production for mobile-first streaming platforms.
The Academy’s programmes are designed to train filmmakers, writers, editors and producers transitioning from traditional horizontal formats into short-form vertical content production. Its curriculum includes directing, screenwriting, production management, editing and AI-assisted workflows tailored for platforms such as ReelShort, DramaBox and ShortMax.
DCAA said its inaugural cohort has already secured five international commissions currently in production, which it describes as the first awarded directly to graduates of an African microdrama training programme.
Ifeoma ‘Oma Areh (pictured) said: “The future of cinema is no longer confined to traditional studios, formats, or borders. It lives in the hands of creators who understand culture, technology, and audience behaviour simultaneously. DCAA exists to train those creators at scale. Partnering with Video Rebirth means African filmmakers now have direct access to world-class AI production infrastructure while telling stories rooted in our own identity, imagination, and cultural power.”
Elijah Affi added: “Africa’s screen economy is not waiting for permission to lead in AI filmmaking. DCAA was built to ensure that when the world looks for where AI-native film culture took root, the answer is unambiguously African. This partnership places industrial-grade AI production tools directly in the hands of Africa’s most commercially ready creators, and that changes the shape of what African cinema can be.”
Video Rebirth, headquartered in Singapore, develops the BACH AI video generation tools and is backed by investors including AMD Ventures and Hyundai Motor Group. Dan Kong, co-founder & COO, said: “Africa is home to some of the world’s most vibrant storytelling traditions, and we believe AI will be the catalyst that brings these stories to global audiences at a scale never before possible. This partnership with DCAA is not just about providing a tool, it’s about investing in the creative foundation for a new generation of filmmakers. We see Africa as one of the most exciting frontiers for AI-powered filmmaking, and we intend to be the engine behind it.”
